Here is a tasty tidbit for a Monday.  John Moore at BrandAutopsy Twittered me about a store with a great customer experience, Mighty Fine Burgers in Austin, Texas.  Here were some of John’s comments about them: ”…friendly front-line faces, all food prep in full-sight (incl. grinding/hand-forming patties), simple decor, upbeat vibe.”

I was standing in line at my favorite sub shop. I cringed every time the guy next to me spoke. “I want tomatoes, onions and hot mustard.” Seconds later: “Gimme more pickles.” And then “Make sure you don’t get that other stuff on my sandwich.” (Exactly what “other stuff” did he mean??)

Recently I learned something about customer service from a London cabbie. Actually I met the cabbie two years ago. But it wasn’t until a few weeks ago I fully understood the lesson he taught me.

It was spring 2008 and I was spending a week in London doing training for a client. Because I was not driving in London (I could barely walk across the street without getting killed – seriously) I used a cab to get around. To make things easier, I engaged the services of the same cabbie the whole time I was there.

“Oh-crap-oh-crap-oh-crap!”

Those were the exact words that burst out of my mouth as the 7-foot high rolling shelf came crashing down just outside the kitchen door at Sparkspace. Apparently, as I was moving the shelf, one of the four casters on the shelf had decided to fail, and fail spectacularly.

As you can see, this monumental structural collapse also involved about fifty cases of soda cans. A surprising number of cans exploded on impact, others died a slower, spraying-all-over-the-place kind of death.

Yes you did. You probably don’t care. At least that is how it appeared to me.

I came into your store. Oh, I bet you don’t think of it as YOUR store. I imagine you just think of it as the place you work. Which is probably part of the problem. But, I think of it as your store. And you ignored me. I walked in looking confused but interested. You were talking to your friend. I know you saw me. You just thought your friend and your friend’s boyfriend were more interesting. You looked at me without acknowledging me or greeting me. You never stopped talking to your friend for a minute.

A foundation of my philosophy (in business and in the rest of my life) is that we need to treat everyone well. Another way to look at this is we’re here to serve others. And the best way to serve others (or at least, the best way to start) is by putting others first. This means treating them with courtesy, dignity and kindness. It also means putting their interests ahead of ours.

I while ago, my wife and I traveled to Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia). It was a wonderful trip where we mixed business, fun, the thrill of seeing new places and the warmth of making new friends. But, as we stood in line to re-enter the USA I reflected on how tired I was (tired of flying) and how good it felt to be home.

This is a short article, but it may just be the most important one I’ve ever written.

My kids and I recently stopped at a donut shop on our way to church. We stepped up to the counter and placed our order. As I reached for my wallet, I discovered it wasn’t there. If you’ve ever done that, you know how I felt. Now multiply that feeling times ten for the “I’m sorry kids you, can’t have your donuts because dad was a bonehead” factor.

Today started out kind of sad (great way to start an article, huh?). You see, I hauled our swing set to the dump this morning. It was the final step in a multi-day process of taking apart the swing set my kids have played on since birth.

A friend of mine helped me today. I had a minor decision to make yet I found myself stuck. So I asked her for help. Rather than give me her opinion, she gave me a process. She said:

“Ask yourself which is more important.”

This would be ideal: simply want something really bad and you’ll get it.

Want to lose weight, earn more money, stop smoking, be a better parent or build a successful business? Just want it really bad and you’ll get it.

Sounds silly doesn’t it? It is.

The issue is never how bad you want something — everyone raises their hand when asked if they’d like to be successful. The issue many hate to face is the fact wanting success isn’t the secret to getting it — the secret is doing what it takes to be successful.

I rushed down to the lobby of the SE Hotel in San Diego a couple weeks ago to grab a cup of coffee for myself and hot tea for a friend. It was 7:00 a.m. and I was on a tight schedule. As I whisked toward the elevator, a hotel employee dashed from behind a counter to push the elevator button for me. “Thank you,” I said, “I hadn’t figured out how I was going to do that with both hands full.” He then entered the elevator with me, and asked what floor I was going to. He pressed the button for me, then stepped back out of the elevator, wishing me a good day. I was delighted. Before I even knew I had a need, he noticed what was coming, and stepped in to help.