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Originally Posted by SleazyDream
30. What life lessons did you learn working in seedy hotels 2 years ago?
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I covered some aspects of this question already, in question #
13.
But there was also a very meaningful BUSINESS LESSON I learned during those 3 years behind a front desk -- the
Service Ethic.
Many different service jobs can expose you to large numbers of people every day.
But a hotel is
special for the breadth of people you meet, and for the fact that they are coming to you at a moment when they are hoping to be TAKEN CARE OF, HOSTED, MADE TO FEEL WELCOME.
I worked with some people at the hotel (and certainly we've all encountered them) who, for whatever reasons of temperament and personality, just CAN'T be nice to people who ask them for something.
I guess it makes them feel lower.
But I realized I could do
so much (both for the guest and for myself) by just smiling, meeting eyes with them, letting them know "I see you. You ARE a person."
This was especially powerful when the person was not expecting to be well-received.
You should see the way their eyes would light up when they realized I wasn't judging or presuming anything about them.
Seeing the reaction made me feel good, too.
During my three years behind the desk, I cultivated that in myself.
I learned to treat EVERYONE I meet with respect, consideration and attention.
In my current career (in THIS industry), that ability has made an incredible difference.
j-