The Daily Disciplines of Being Client Driven

I admit it. I am a list maker. It isn’t just about getting that task done, but the dopamine hit I get when I can cross it off my list. With that confession made, it won’t surprise you that I have well-organized lists to support almost every aspect of my life. Based on an outcome I am looking to achieve, my lists are categorized by year, quarter, month, week, and day. I set forth an expectation of what I need to accomplish and why.

Some of the tasks on my list may change over time as events change, new opportunities develop, and new ideas are formed. One thing that has stayed consistent is to have six daily disciplines. These are those “must-do every day” actions I need to be at my best to tackle the day. This practice keeps me grounded and focused so I can respond to the opportunities and challenges each day grants us. I won’t list them all, but these disciplines are simple to do, and for me, they make a difference in my mindset: meditation, movement, water, reflection, etc. It is about setting an intention of who you want to be so you show up ready for those around you each day.

What do these daily disciplines have to do with being customer driven? You may recall my prior Customer Driven article about why the airlines tell us to put on our masks before helping others (Customer Service Starts with You, August 16, 2019). We talked about how you need to take care of yourself before you can care for others, like your clients. I was thinking about this concept and realized that taking a few steps at the outset of every day to ensure that you and your team are prepared can make all the difference.   

As in most things in life, it should start with you. How do you want to show up for your clients today?  Are you ready? Focused? Once I check those items off my daily disciplines, I check in with my team. Are they ready? Focused? What is in their way that could prevent them from serving their own teams and in turn our clients? I then encourage my teams to check in with other teams across the company. After all, no one person or one team services our clients alone. For most organizations like ours, we are one team and should be connected. And now, we are collectively prepared to focus on our clients. Full attention, oxygen mask on, and ready to serve. That is customer driven.

Originally published by Fleet Management Weekly.