If You Work In The Service Industry, You Need To Be Kind To Your Clients
This is a topic that should be obvious and yet, it is not.
As people who provide a service — whether it is a makeup artist, stylist, architect, mechanic, whatever — we must remember that our clients provide our bread and butter. It is never okay to disrespect or be rude to a client. Whether you are at the top of your game and your main clientele is celebrity-oriented, or you are providing for the average Joe, it is important to remain humble, and be kind.
I cannot even tell you how often I see people who provide a service act as though they are better than those they are servicing. Um, and you are? Rude — you are RUDE! Without your clients, you are nothing; you are no one; you have no job!
At the end of the day, you never know who you are speaking with. Oprah went on an interview once to describe an experience she had overseas in another country. She walked into a shop (I believe she wanted to buy a purse). The salesperson had no idea who she was and in so many words told her that she could not afford it. Oprah walked out of the store and did not purchase anything. That salesperson is lucky that Oprah was so kind as to just walk out and not embarrass them. I would have reported the person and then bought their store out of business just to prove a point. Does this make me a bitch? It’s possible, but if I were Oprah, I would like to think that said saleswoman would never be able to find a job again. Thankfully, Oprah has more tact than I do.
Everyone you deal with deserves respect. It does not matter what they are wearing, what their skin tone is, or where their accent is from. Everyone is someone, and you never know who you are speaking with. Some of the top billionaires look like the average Joe. They don’t care to impress you, they can buy your whole life, and your whole family’s lives, too!
If I didn’t make this clear already, let me say it again — as a service provider, you are the brand. You are selling yourself, and your attitude is everything. Without your clients, you are doomed. They are your reputation. They are the ones who make or break you. If it was not for them purchasing your services or your products, you’d have to do something else with your life.
There is no such thing as any service provider being too good to provide anyone with a service. Stay modest. You too may fall upon hard times and you never know who will assist you. In life, we are ALL in the middle. Not one person better than the next. For every good attribute you have, there is a negative and the same goes for the next person, and the next. Therefore your social status is nothing without humility. Social status simply means how many people know who you are. Just because you have internet fans or are great at what you do does NOT give you the right to humiliate others. You have ‘fans’ because people like you. Be someone worth liking, and worth being looked up to.
Yes, sometimes as service providers we receive the client from hell, the kind you just want to scream at, but as a professional, it is your duty to do just that — remain professional. If you do not know how to speak with people, take a class. We are all humans; we all have good and bad days. Seriously, “save the drama for your mama” and do your job. After all, no one said it wouldn’t be work.