Exceed Expectations | Joel Brookman

I arrived at the Ritz Carlton in Naples, Florida, after an exhausting day of travel. The bellman took my suitcase on the way in, and I proceeded to the front desk to check in. A very professional young woman got me registered and I proceeded straight to my room. All I could think about was getting out of the suit, putting on a pair of shorts, and relaxing. Ten minutes went by and the bellman still hadn’t arrived. I called the front desk and I asked if I could come down to pick up my bag. I explained that I was not trying to be difficult, but I was tired and just wanted to change and relax. Her response, “I’m so sorry Mr. Brookman, several of our bellman are out sick and we are short staffed.” I will have your bag to you within 2 minutes.

Just over a minute later there is a knock at the door. It’s the woman that checked me in. She has my suitcase in her hand. I thanked her profusely, handed her $20, then called the General Manager to tell him how wonderful she was.

It’s great to have stories to tell in business and in life. It’s amazing when you can make such an impact on someone that they tell other people. It’s even better when they’re telling your story for years to come.

Last year I was skiing and I found a wallet on the lift line. I picked it up, looked inside and saw that there was $8 inside. I took a $10 bill out of my pocket, put it in the wallet and handed it to the lift attendant. If this person ever got their wallet back, they would certainly have a story to tell. How often do you lose your wallet and get it back with more money than when you started.

Think about your daily life both inside and outside of work. What can you do to blow people away?

Your project for this week: find a way to exceed expectations. Give someone a story to tell. The biggest beneficiary may just end up being you.