“Only those who have learned the power of sincere and selfless contribution experience life's deepest joy: true fulfillment.” Tony Robbins. We all serve in some fashion. But, have you noticed that some people serve better than others. They serve with more sincerity, with more willingness, while others seem to be serving out of some selfish motive. What a turn off. By way of analogy, let’s look at the worldviews of the dog and the cat.
Let’s look at the world through the eyes of a dog for a moment: The dog observes that the owner feeds, cares and loves him. Therefore, he presumes, the owner must be god, his master, the boss. The dog seeks to please his owner. The dog works for the owner.
Now the cat, on the other hand also notices that the owner feeds, cares and loves him. The cat concludes that HE must be god, the master and the boss. The cat wants the owner to please him. The owner, in a sense, is the staff of the cat. The cat considers that the owner is supposed to serve him, that he is entitled to this care.
Do you look at your service like a dog or a cat?
Sometimes in our desperation to get enough sales to make a living, we forget that our focus should be on serving well, not on making money. When your focus is on making money, you shift into cat mode. If you are not careful, your communication to the customers can be more about you than about them. Customers don’t like that, and they can sense when motives aren’t pure. Most likely, your customers will pass on to others that they were not pleased with your service, and you will lose money.
When your focus is on service, you jump into dog mode. Your attention shifts to the customer and their needs, and you become a people pleaser. The more you serve and seek to please, the happier your customers will be. These customers are more likely to spread the word about you and your service, which will lead to more customers for you to serve. Happy customers lead to more money.
Do you have a service that you want to provide to more and more people? Do you know that your service can really make a difference in someone’s life? Put on the lens of a dog and serve selflessly.
I want to believe that focusing on service to customers is the key to making a business successful. There are days when I tell myself to just do my job, everything else will fall into place. As a lawyer and small business owner, however, I get distracted by the sense that I could market better to get more money (the cat). My goal is to try to remain confident in success and give my client's my best.
ReplyDeleteThe cat mentality is always pulling at us. I agree that it is hard to trust that serving selflessly is tough. But, I do believe that it works better than 'cat' mentality marketing. Thanks for your comment Ellen.- Patty
ReplyDeleteThis was an excellent analogy! I am happy to say, I am truly a dog in this scenario! Though as a new business owner, I can see and feel how the cat can pull at you.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment Stacy. You are right that for business owners, the cat can have a mighty pull. But, the dog mentality is where we need to work toward.
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