Today I had the pleasure of appearing as a guest on a television talk show. By the time I had spent 10 minutes in the station’s building I was struck by the fact that four separate people had gone out of their way to provide me with extra help on the premises.
First was a man who let me in through the back door with his personal entry card, then walked me all the way to reception and ensured that the security guard was taking over from there (I later learned this kind man was an anchorman on one of the shows).
The security guard signed me in, then physically walked me right to the elevator.
In the elevator, a man with a coffee cup in his hand told me he’d take me right to where I needed to go, which he did, compete with taking me to the coffee machine in the kitchen and seating me down. Then someone else happened to stroll into the kitchen to pick up their food and made sure to ask if I needed anything.
None of these people knew who I was or why I was there. They simply behaved as if their work environment was their very own, their own territory where every guest should feel oriented and comfortable.
If I came to visit YOUR organization, and you didn’t know who I was, and I happened to bump into you, what kind of welcome would you extend to me? And if you’re a leader… do your people have a strong enough sense of ownership, such that you can trust that they’d treat an unknown guest in the way that I was treated today?
