Years ago, I had the opportunity to work with a large suburban corporate caterer. One very, very busy day we had to make three thousand sandwiches for a cruise ship. A small army of us got in at 2:30 a.m. to start the fun.
I remember thinking, “We gotta just get these done — fast.” Over the next few hours, we were in big-time production mode. At 6 a.m., the owner came in. He called out to his small army,
“Remember that every sandwich you are making is someone’s lunch today.”
A great revelation? No. The message was simple, yet it has remained with me. Completing the order on time was not enough. They still needed to be great sandwiches — just because we had to make so many, didn’t let us off the hook. In fact, the opposite was true. We had to do a great job. This was a huge opportunity for some positive word of mouth advertising, and future business.
But more than that, there is tremendous personal satisfaction that comes from a job well done. As opposed to just getting by, or hoping no one notices shoddy work, think of the service you provide as an opportunity to make someone’s day better. Put good karma out into the universe. Remember, what goes around comes around.