QUESTION: How can I quickly find out what customers think of our company?

BARBARA ANSWERS: Click Here

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QUESTION: How can I create an atmosphere where everyone feels valued and wants to give their best?

BARBARA ANSWERS: Click Here

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I recently had the opportunity to speak at The Asia Professional Speakers Organization in Singapore!

In attendance was this remarkable gentleman, Tim Hamons, whose talent is both brilliant and most unusual. His title is “Graphic Recorder.” However, this description, (while accurate,) does no justice whatsoever to his skill, nor to his mind’s capacity to completely capture and then visually translate and “retell” the story of my experience with his hands and some markers. His thorough representation so colorfully brought to life the very essence of the positive change I strive to convey in all my work, without missing any models, examples, or details, that I felt, in turn, inspired by him!

I am thrilled to share his creation with you! Please have a look for yourself and SEE my message in a whole new way! I know you will feel more buoyant and glean both the content and context of my message after admiring his stunning visual illustration!

Below is what he shared on his Facebook Timeline. So, please take a moment. Have a good look for yourself and then get back to me! What stood out to YOU?

From Tim Hamons’ Facebook Timeline:

How many ways can you say and demonstrate “I care” to your audience? The amazing Barbara Glanz modeled and showed us many ways.

Key takeaways:
1. Create a positive human level connection with every transaction,
2. Design creative “care packages” for your customer,
3. Focus on creative communications and action ideas to surprise and get your message across.
— with Barbara Glanz

And Tim couldn’t have been more kind and complimentary about how my presentation reached him, giving him actionable ideas and inspiration, which is always my promise and my goal.

Tim Hamons wrote: 10:32pm Aug 14
“Thank you Barbara, for your generosity, abundant soaring spirit, and inspiring models. You are such an inspiration and model of selfless giving, joy, trust. It was such a blessing to meet you and hear your stories and models for creating positive change. I hope to get the chance to work with you and to share our visual work with some of your inspiring learning events. “

I do hope that his graphic recording, as well as my words and ideas will truly inspire you to make positive changes today and every day in your work and in your life!

QUESTION: What do employees really want in today’s workplace?

BARBARA ANSWERS:

For more questions and answers with Barbara, visit Barbara’s Video Q&A

I recently received this email from a person who was in my audience at the Society for Human Resource Managers annual conference where I was speaking on “Spreading Contagious Enthusiasm™-Creating Workplaces of Passion, Purpose, and Productivity”:

Barbara,

Sincerely,
Cynthia Pearce
HR Director

I immediately wrote Cynthia to thank her for the affirmation and to encourage her with even more ideas of small things that cost little or no money. Just this week she wrote back with this reply: “In the spirit of appreciation, I asked the chef to save all of the leftover Ice cream novelties for me to share with my co-workers when I pass out paychecks tomorrow. It’s very warm here, so I’m hoping my ‘Ice cream (I scream) my appreciation of you’ goes over well! Thanks again for the motivation.”

One of the joys of my mission is helping people create fully engaged workplaces of caring, creativity, FUN and ultimately greater productivity, and the best news of all is that it DOESN’T have to cost money. Way to go, Cynthia — you are making a difference!

Go to www.barbaraglanz.com/ideas and check out the archives for even more ways to make your workplace a great place to be. You can also subscribe to my free monthly email newsletter, “Spreading Contagious Enthusiasm™,” for a new idea every month.

The people of Houston really know how to treat their guests! Recently, I was the closing keynote speaker for the Greater Houston Women’s Chamber of Commerce.

The night before, I had stayed in the Royal Sonesta Hotel about two blocks away from the conference hotel since that hotel was full from another convention.

The next morning I needed to be at the conference hotel at 11:00 to check out the equipment and do a sound check before my keynote at 3:00. I had had a late night and needed to do some work in the morning, so by the time I was ready to leave, I realized I would not have any time for breakfast, and I needed the energy to be at my best for my client.

When I got down to the hotel lobby, I quickly found the restaurant and hurriedly asked the waitress there if they had a banana, explaining my rushed and rather desperate situation. (I figured a banana would hold me until lunch!) She ran to the buffet, grabbed a banana, and brought it back to me. When I asked her how much I owed, she simply smiled and said, “You just have a wonderful day.” How long has it been since any restaurant EVER gave you something for nothing? I was touched. ( A huge thank you to the service at the Royal Sonesta Hotel!)

Again, I hurried out to the lobby to walk the two blocks to the conference hotel, lugging my big computer bag, a bag of “show and tell” things for my presentation, and my huge purse. When I got outside, the wind was blowing so badly that I panicked. I rushed back inside to see if I could possibly get their shuttle to drive me over to the hotel. You see, they were videotaping me that day, and the walk over would have completely ruined my hair! 😉

I ran to the front desk, literally begging for the shuttle as I explained my predicament, but the person on duty said he was sorry, but it had gone to the airport and would not be back for 30 minutes. Dejected, I began to leave to make the dreaded walk over when a limo driver who had been waiting in the lobby and who had overheard my pleas, came up, smiled, and said, “Ma’am, I would be glad to drive you over.” My hero!

He loaded all my stuff in the trunk, gave me a bottle of water, and said, “Don’t worry. I’ll get you there on time.” Because these hotels were on a one way street, he had to drive several blocks over and down and then make a U-turn to get back on the right side of the street, so it was no easy task.

When we arrived at the conference hotel, he let me out of the car and unloaded all my “stuff” as I thanked him profusely and held out my credit card. He just smiled, shook his head, and said, “This is my gift to you. You just bring all those ladies a message of hope and have a wonderful day.” And of course, I gave him a big hug right there in the driveway! (Just for the record, his name is Osman Omar of VIP’s Transportation. If you ever need a ride in Houston, you can call my hero at 206-724-8067.)

After these precious experiences and then the amazing women I met at the Greater Houston Women’s Chamber of Commerce conference, I can hardly wait to come back to Houston!

To read more wonderful customer service stories, check out Barbara’s books at www.barbaraglanz.com/products/books/.

I just read this poem and was struck by the depth of truth. As I have traveled the world and spoken on all seven continents, one of the most poignant lessons I have learned is that EVERYONE HAS A HEART. It is just more difficult to reach some than others, usually because of past experiences of not being loved. IF we could only internalize this truth, we could live in peace instead of in fear. Thank you, Maya Angelou, for these precious words.

“HUMAN FAMILY”
by Maya Angelou

I note the obvious differences in the human family.
Some of us are serious, some thrive on comedy.

Some declare their lives are lived as true profundity,
and others claim they really live the real reality.

The variety of our skin tones can confuse, bemuse, delight,
brown and pink and beige and purple, tan and blue and white.

I’ve sailed upon the seven seas and stopped in every land,
I’ve seen the wonders of the world not yet one common man.

I know ten thousand women called Jane and Mary Jane,
but I’ve not seen any two who really were the same.

Mirror twins are different although their features jibe,
and lovers think quite different thoughts while lying side by side.

We love and lose in China, we weep on England’s moors,
and laugh and moan in Guinea, and thrive on Spanish shores.

We seek success in Finland, are born and die in Maine.
In minor ways we differ, in major we’re the same.

I note the obvious differences between each sort and type,
but we are more alike, my friends, than we are unalike.

We are more alike, my friends, than we are unalike.

We are more alike, my friends, than we are unalike.

To learn more about Barbara’s work around the world, go to www.barbaraglanz.com

January 14

Today was a quiet day. I slept in, had breakfast and then worked on email and writing my journal on the front porch with the breeze blowing through the palm trees. At 12:30 I had another Indian Head Massage – nice but not nearly as good as the one at Octopus. Lunch was a special wood-fired pizza which we all enjoyed—we even saved the leftovers for a cocktail party that evening.

We found out that this resort is only 6 months old, so everything is new, and we heard that the prices will be going way up at the end of the year, so book your reservations NOW! 😉 Later in the afternoon we took a kayak snorkeling trip across the water to a new resort they are currently building. The most exciting thing I was were several very large bright purple starfish and a whole school of squid.
That night there was a kava ceremony and native music. Even though the young people continued partying, Nancy and I came back and read in our air-conditioned room!

January 15

Today we packed up to leave for the last segment of our trip. You put all your bags (we had 8 between us!) out on the porch and the poor staff guys have to carry them down to the shore where they go in a separate boat to load on the big boat, Ocean Dreams. Then we all boarded about 11:00 am and rode for 4 hours to Blue Lagoon, which is the furthest resort in the islands.

At this resort Nancy and I are slowly getting back to reality – although we have two bedrooms (they upgraded us), we have NO AC!!!! So, we did not sleep nearly as well here as at the other resorts. It is VERY hot and humid and not always breezes, especially at night, so we realized how spoiled we had been at the earlier resorts!

After lunch we snorkeled and swam, then read a bit and joined the group for cocktails at 6:30. It was quite interesting snorkeling here as the schools of fish, especially the little turquoise neon ones, just surrounded us and made us feel as if we were part of them. Many swam right in front of our masks and even bumped us occasionally. We saw some much larger fish here and some that we had not seen before. My favorites are the yellow and black angel fish. We have six marine biologists with us on this trip, so it is really fun learning from them all about the various species of coral and fish.

After dinner, they did a “Survivor” contest with some fun events – questions about Fiji, a puzzle, a throwing contest, and finally one super last question about all the resort stops on the boat. Our team, the “Monkey Fish,” won first place, a champagne breakfast on the beach!

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January 12

We left Octopus today on a small boat to Paradise Cove. This truly IS paradise! Although the coral is not as good for snorkeling, the water is much calmer, the waves are few, and there is more to do here. Everything is free except the diving – kayaks, paddle boards, guided hikes, snorkeling trips, and the food is wonderful.

Our bure is HUGE and gorgeous, and we are the only ones on the beach, so this has become the cocktail party place at 6:00. Unfortunately, it is also the most expensive one here, but Nancy and I waited too long to make our reservation, and this was the only place left. In the main room, it has a beautiful four poster bed covered with soft white curtains (just like you see in the movies), an L-shaped couch, and a large screen TV.

Our bathroom is also huge – open air with all kinds of plants, two showers, and double round sinks.

Nancy gets the big bed here, so I am sleeping in the back room which has twin beds, another couch, and a very small extra half bath. Every day the maid puts lovely fresh flowers on our beds and throughout the bathroom area as well as water and soda in the refrigerator. We decided that this is the perfect place for a Honeymoon! (And we truly are sharing Katie and Ashley’s honeymoon with them as they are traveling with us until the 17th when we leave for home.)

We arrived, had lunch (there are always several choices like rice paper wraps, sticky beef salad, chicken stir fry, and of course, hamburgers!) Then we all took out kayaks and paddled partway around the island, came back and snorkeled off the beach, and then swam before dinner. That evening was a movie under the stars around the pool with pop corn and ice cream. It is amazing how well we are all sleeping here. I guess no stress IS the recipe for happiness! 😉

January 13

Another quiet day—I got up about 9:00 (breakfast here is from 6:30 – 10:00, so we loved that!), had breakfast, worked on email and my journal, read on the porch, and then after lunch, we had our first big adventure here. They took us by boat to another area of the island where we snorkeled for over an hour. It was absolutely breathtaking to see all the brightly colored fish and coral! I saw an eel, “Nemo” fish, angel fish, jellyfish, and all kinds of different colored varieties from rainbow to neon blues, tiger stripes and polka dots. The coral ranged from fushia to lime green to all shades of purples, browns and tans.

Afterwards we came back and swam in the ocean in front of our bure. The view is so spectacular here that I want to cement it in my mind forever and ever! I feel so very close to God in this peaceful place. We showered, then read for awhile until the gang of 12 came over for our nightly cocktail gathering (mostly wine and beer…) Then, before dinner, we all hiked up to Sunset Point. Unfortunately, the sun was in another part of the sky so we couldn’t see it, but the view was lovely.

Dinner here has some choices unlike Octopus Resort, so I had risotto with muschrooms and prawns – delicious! We all laugh because whenever we cannot finish our meals, we just pass them to Ashley, the groom, and he polishes them off! 😉 After dinner we went back and read until our eyes began to droop. When I got up in the night to go to the bathroom, I just happened to look up (remember it is open air), and I saw more stars than I have seen for years – what a magnificent world God has created!

Stay connected for the continuation of the trip and added pictures. For more information on Barbara’s professional work, go to www.barbaraglanz.com

January 9

Today was “play day” for us all. The guys took a hike to the top of another very high mountain where Katie, the bride, and her accomplices had buried treasure for the groom to find. All the girls met for a spa day and fun bachelorette games. I had a massage and reflexology, and we learned lots about Katie and even more about Ashley (some things I think he would rather NOT have had us know…..;-)

Then we all met for lunch, snorkeling, swimming and reading. Nancy and I had a pina colada around the pool and ate deep fried banana chips (like potato chips). The food is all inclusive here, so we are all eating way too much – will have to work hard to lose it all when I get home, but it is worth it! 😉

We all met at 6:30 at Beth’s bure for cocktails and the wedding rehearsal. We nearly died laughing when Katie and Ashley appeared. Only a photo can explain their outfits! Oh, how I wish I had ever had a body like Katie’s – they looked like high class strippers…..and we were all delighted and envious of Youth. We encouraged them to wear the costumes to dinner to the delight of the whole resort. After dinner, everyone called it an early night and headed home for a great night’s sleep.

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