Two months after my beloved Beetle convertible was totaled in an injury-free accident, we were able to find a capable used-car at a not-ridiculous price (quite a combination if you’ve tried it recently). All that was left to do was to get the car registered with the state.
The owner at the repair shop who sold us the car promised to detail it while we waited to get the plates. Several days later, when the Massachusetts Department of Motor Vehicles finally got around to our order, we got a call to say everything was ready.
So, one week after buying the car, Allison drove over with one of the girls to bring it home. About an hour later, a strange car pulled into the driveway and my wife hopped out.
No, in fact, the car was not ready as promised.
First, she had to wait for someone to finish an unnecessarily long conversation ordering toner. When her existence in the room was finally acknowledged, it was merely to tell her, “The plates are over there.”
Grabbing the package and firing lasers through the man’s skull with her eyes, Allison proceeded to the lot to get the car.
The still-dirty car.
No, in fact, the car was not detailed as promised.
Deliver and delight. A longtime friend and client of mine used that phrase today and it caught my attention.
How difficult would it have been for the garage owner to run a vacuum through the car, clean the windows, and make it at least presentable. Further, is it really that much work to stick the plates on the car? We would have been delighted!
It doesn’t take much to do the bare minimum and I guess that’s more than we can expect these days. As sad as that statement is, it’s good news for the rest of us. With the bar set that low, keeping your promises going just a bit beyond expectations can bring delight to every delivery.
Aim high.
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