ArcaMax

Norman K. Augustine, former chairman of the Lockheed Martin Corporation, uses this little example to get our attention: "Management cannot adopt the attitude exhibited by a local bus service in rural England, whose drivers passed by long queues of would-be passengers with a smile and a wave of the hand. 'It is impossible for the drivers to keep their timetables if they must stop for passengers,' explained one of the company's officials. The logic is certainly impeccable, but something seems to have been missed."

This probably never happened, but it gives us something to think about when we explore how we can keep our customers happy.

Another of my favorites is the story of the sales manager who was gung-ho about making lots of calls. He emphasized that if you made the calls, you would make the sales, and he set an unreasonably high number of calls for each sales person. At the end of the first week, one salesman came in with over 300 calls. The manager was duly impressed, and invited the young salesman to stand up and explain how he did it. The salesman shared his secret: "It was really no problem. I could have made even more, except a number of the people stopped me to ask questions."

Message: Don't lose sight of your objective -- use your common sense -- apply yourself. The same principle holds true on any job -- as long as you're there, get busy. Who knows? Rewards beyond your wildest expectations might come your way in the form of raises, bonuses and promotions. That will give your employer -- and you -- something to smile about.

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To find out more about Zig Ziglar and read features by other Creators writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators webpage at www.creators.com. Subscribe to Zig Ziglar's free email newsletter through ziglar.com.