The Motivational Speaker in Home Depot
Posted on December 10th, 2009 by Cynthia D'Amour
Fired me up.
Yesterday I ran an errand to Home Depot.
- Had my list of questions.
- Looking for options.
- Asked a woman named Tommie.
Tommie had amazing patience with me.
- She escorted me to a variety of departments.
- Gave me advice.
- And inside scoop.
I mentioned I needed a toilet replaced.
- Wondered who to call.
- And what to look out for.
- She didn’t buy it.
“You can do this yourself.”
- Tommie dragged me to the toilet area.
- And decoded the tags.
- Piece by piece.
She helped me narrow my choices.
- Showed me how to install it.
- What to look for.
- What to upgrade.
Then I got a motivational pep talk…
- I am capable.
- I am smart.
- She is there if I need more help.
I walked out feeling empowered - I love Home Depot!
Makes me think of chapter leaders…how do you seize training moments to help fuel your members’ enthusiasm about your chapter?
Filed under: Keeping members
Cynthia, I love this post! Home Depot is one of just a handful of companies I can think of with such excellent customer service. (Amazon also immediately comes to mind.) I feel like the majority of Home Depot employees truly care about the company and the brand, and they’re so great at showing customers through their actions. Association leaders should never lose that “spark” - there are always opportunities to get members fired up.
Thanks Shannon. It was a great experience. We would have a different world if all the volunteers felt as empowered and pumped as I did leaving that store.
But what if you should not do it by yourself? What if you’d get better results hiring someone to do it for you?
Empowerment is about making people feel they can cause something positive to happen. They don’t have to do it themselves.
You are right David. There are times when I should not do things by myself. Tommie and I talked about what it would take to replace the toilet - including the help I would need.
I don’t have a home tinkerer background. This stuff is foreign to me. As a result I often feel more vulnerable when dealing with contractors. I also make things bigger in my mind than they may need to be.
Whether I do it myself or not really doesn’t matter. Knowing how to do it is what makes me feel empowered. Although I’ll probably give it a run for my money…