What Are You Waiting For?

Have you ever noticed that we seem to put up road blocks for making change happen in our lives?  As youngsters we wait until we are a teen or when we can drive or vote or get a new job or finish college or lose weight or earn more money or get married or get divorced or when the kids leave home or finish college or the economy gets better.  Hmmm.   

It’s always something.  We are waiting for something to change BEFORE we are willing to make a change.

Why is that?

With Make or Break Moments there isn’t a reason to wait for anything because facing each moment with each customer as if they were the most important person in your day, doesn’t require a college degree or new marketing material or even money. 

So what are we waiting for?

I ran across a post that Scott Ginsberg wrote a few years ago called Wait for Nothing.  In it he talks about not waiting to make a name for yourself, but the same idea applies to starting a customer service attitude within our lives.  He says:

… you don’t need to wait for anything or anybody to make a name for yourself.

You don’t need to wait for permission.
You don’t need to wait for the right time.
You don’t need to wait until you get the money.
You don’t need to wait for someone else to lead the way.
You don’t need to wait until you’ve had 20 years of experience.
You don’t need to wait for the mainstream to validate your voice.

I wrote my first book when I was 22.
I gave my first paid speech when I was 23.

Apparently, that’s not the way you’re “supposed” to do it.

See, most authors and speakers spend half their lives working for some big company or organization, then decide to write books or give speeches.

Not the other way around.

But the age of 22, my thought was, “Dude, I’m not waiting 15 years. Screw that! I’m ready now. Let’s go…”

So I did. And looking back, I realize it was the smartest move I ever made.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with Scott, he is the Name Tag Guy – the one who wears a name tag 24/7 and has for about five years because he believes putting our name out there makes us more approachable. 

So what are you waiting for?  Creating an environment of make or break moments that are MAXIMIZED doesn’t take any money – it just takes a willingness to want to make a difference in the lives of those we encounter.

Making the most of those make or break moments means listening with our whole being, being empathetic – putting ourselves in their shoes and understanding that perception is the real truth.

I would encourage you to be more aware during your next conversation today.  Whether that conversation is with a significant other, an employee, a peer, your boss or most importantly a potential customer and decide to make is a memorable moment. 

Are you still waiting?