Happy New Year!

It has been quite some time since I last posted. Actually it was March 2011. I said at that time that I would post once a week. I wish that had been true. This has been an incredible year on so many fronts. My wife opened two businesses in Athens, Georgia. My employer, Hunter Technical Resources, htrjobs.com, broke all sales records months much before the close of 2011. The best of all is my first grandchild was born, Sophia Marie Steele, to my son and daughter in-law, Andrew and Vivian Steele. I have found with a grandchild, every day is Christmas. Sophia is a great blessing in our lives.

This year I have been reminded how important the over and above service level is to real success in business and in life. It is practiced so little that when it is practiced, a breakthrough occurs. My wife and two children opened two Menchie's Self Serve Frozen Yogurt Shops in Athens, Georgia. There were already 4 other yogurt shops and 2 had been open for a year. We set a very high bar for every employee. We are not in the yogurt business; we are in the business of creating smiles on our guest's faces. Within 3 months, we were the #1 yogurt shop in Athens and were voted so by the readers of the Athens Banner-Herald. I am sure the other yogurt shops’ including the previous winner was not happy. Why were we chosen? We practice what I learned from the former President of the Ritz Carlton and good friend, Horst Schultz. The motto for every employee of the Ritz is simple but so powerful. "We are ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen." We strive every minute of every day to be the Chick-fil-A, The Ritz Carlton, or Saks Fifth Avenue of our space. How do we do this? The customer is always right and when not, they are. I could list 10 services we provide that our competitors have not thought of much less attempted. The key for us and for you is to explore what is unique, never been done, and maybe never dreamed of in your industry. Before we opened, I bought large umbrellas with the University of Georgia logo. When it rains, we walk our guests to their cars. Most of them are stunned. When was the last time a restaurant including the 5 Star ones walked you to your car with an umbrella? Has it ever happened? If you do not follow Seth Godin, www.sethgodin.com, you should. Seth is an expert in digging deep into this mind set. This way of serving others is not a strategy or a system; it is a way of life. If not, it is fake and everyone can smell a fake.

I will share more examples of Menchie's Athens service standards over the next few weeks as well as other aspects of my 40+ years as a networker. If you have subjects or ideas you would like me to address, do not hesitate to use the contact form on my webpage or send an email to ricky@rickysteele.net. 

It is my prayer that you find one new idea this year that creates magic in your business and in your life.

Ricky