. . . the story goes . . . :
“When a cab pulled up, the first thing I noticed
was that the taxi was polished to a bright shine.
‘Smartly dressed in a white shirt, black tie,
and freshly pressed black slacks,
the cab driver jumped out and rounded the car
to open the back passenger door for me.
He handed me a laminated card and said:
'I'm Wally, your driver.
While I'm loading your bags in the trunk
I'd like you to read my mission statement.'”
Taken aback, I read the card.
It said: Wally's Mission Statement:
To get my customers to their destination
in the quickest, safest and cheapest way possible
in a friendly environment.
This blew me away.
Especially when I noticed that the inside of the cab matched the outside.
Spotlessly clean!
As he slid behind the wheel, Wally said,
'Would you like a cup of coffee?
I have a thermos of regular and one of decaf.'
I said jokingly,
'Actually I'd prefer a soft drink.'
Wally smiled and said,
'No problem.
I have a cooler up front with regular and Diet Coke,
water and orange juice.'
Almost stuttering, I said, 'I'll take a Diet Coke.'
Handing me my drink, Wally said,
'If you'd like something to read,
I have The Wall Street Journal,
Time, Sports Illustrated and USA Today.'
As we were pulling away,
Wally handed me another laminated card.
'These are the stations I get and the music they play,
if you'd like to listen to the radio.'
And as if that weren't enough,
Wally told me that he had the air conditioning on
and asked if the temperature was comfortable for me.
Then he advised me of the best route to my destination for that time of day.
He also let me know that he'd be happy to chat
and tell me about some of the sights or,
if I preferred,
to leave me with my own thoughts.
'Tell me, Wally,' I asked,
'have you always served customers like this?'
Wally smiled into the rear view mirror.
'No, not always.
In fact, it's only been in the last two years.
My first five years driving, I spent most of my time complaining
like all the rest of the cabbies do.
Then I heard Wayne Dyer on the radio one day.
He had just written a book
called "You'll See It When You Believe It".
Dyer said that if you get up in the morning
expecting to have a bad day,
you'll rarely disappoint yourself.
He said,
'Stop complaining!
Differentiate yourself from your competition.
Don't be a duck.
Be an eagle.
Ducks quack and complain.
Eagles soar above the crowd.''
'That hit me right between the eyes,' said Wally.
'Dyer was really talking about me.
I was always quacking and complaining,
so I decided to change my attitude and become an eagle.
I looked around at the other cabs and their drivers.
The cabs were dirty,
the drivers were unfriendly,
and the customers were unhappy.
So I decided to make some changes.
I put in a few at a time.
When my customers responded well,
I did more.'
'I take it that has paid off for you,'
I said.
'It sure has,'
Wally replied.
'My first year as an eagle,
I doubled my income from the previous year.
This year I'll probably quadruple it.
You were lucky to get me today.
I don't sit at cabstands anymore.
My customers call me for appointments on my cell phone
or leave a message on my answering machine.
If I can't pick them up myself,
I get a reliable cabbie friend to do it
and I take a piece of the action.'
Wally was phenomenal.
He was running a limo service out of a Yellow Cab.
I've probably told that story
to more than fifty cab drivers over the years,
and only two took the idea and ran with it.
Whenever I go to their cities,
I give them a call.
The rest of the drivers quacked like ducks
and told me all the reasons
why they couldn't
do any
of what I was suggesting.
Wally the Cab Driver made a different choice.
He decided to stop quacking like ducks
and start
soaring
like eagles.” 1
“When a cab pulled up, the first thing I noticed
was that the taxi was polished to a bright shine.
‘Smartly dressed in a white shirt, black tie,
and freshly pressed black slacks,
the cab driver jumped out and rounded the car
to open the back passenger door for me.
He handed me a laminated card and said:
'I'm Wally, your driver.
While I'm loading your bags in the trunk
I'd like you to read my mission statement.'”
Taken aback, I read the card.
It said: Wally's Mission Statement:
To get my customers to their destination
in the quickest, safest and cheapest way possible
in a friendly environment.
This blew me away.
Especially when I noticed that the inside of the cab matched the outside.
Spotlessly clean!
As he slid behind the wheel, Wally said,
'Would you like a cup of coffee?
I have a thermos of regular and one of decaf.'
I said jokingly,
'Actually I'd prefer a soft drink.'
Wally smiled and said,
'No problem.
I have a cooler up front with regular and Diet Coke,
water and orange juice.'
Almost stuttering, I said, 'I'll take a Diet Coke.'
Handing me my drink, Wally said,
'If you'd like something to read,
I have The Wall Street Journal,
Time, Sports Illustrated and USA Today.'
As we were pulling away,
Wally handed me another laminated card.
'These are the stations I get and the music they play,
if you'd like to listen to the radio.'
And as if that weren't enough,
Wally told me that he had the air conditioning on
and asked if the temperature was comfortable for me.
Then he advised me of the best route to my destination for that time of day.
He also let me know that he'd be happy to chat
and tell me about some of the sights or,
if I preferred,
to leave me with my own thoughts.
'Tell me, Wally,' I asked,
'have you always served customers like this?'
Wally smiled into the rear view mirror.
'No, not always.
In fact, it's only been in the last two years.
My first five years driving, I spent most of my time complaining
like all the rest of the cabbies do.
Then I heard Wayne Dyer on the radio one day.
He had just written a book
called "You'll See It When You Believe It".
Dyer said that if you get up in the morning
expecting to have a bad day,
you'll rarely disappoint yourself.
He said,
'Stop complaining!
Differentiate yourself from your competition.
Don't be a duck.
Be an eagle.
Ducks quack and complain.
Eagles soar above the crowd.''
'That hit me right between the eyes,' said Wally.
'Dyer was really talking about me.
I was always quacking and complaining,
so I decided to change my attitude and become an eagle.
I looked around at the other cabs and their drivers.
The cabs were dirty,
the drivers were unfriendly,
and the customers were unhappy.
So I decided to make some changes.
I put in a few at a time.
When my customers responded well,
I did more.'
'I take it that has paid off for you,'
I said.
'It sure has,'
Wally replied.
'My first year as an eagle,
I doubled my income from the previous year.
This year I'll probably quadruple it.
You were lucky to get me today.
I don't sit at cabstands anymore.
My customers call me for appointments on my cell phone
or leave a message on my answering machine.
If I can't pick them up myself,
I get a reliable cabbie friend to do it
and I take a piece of the action.'
Wally was phenomenal.
He was running a limo service out of a Yellow Cab.
I've probably told that story
to more than fifty cab drivers over the years,
and only two took the idea and ran with it.
Whenever I go to their cities,
I give them a call.
The rest of the drivers quacked like ducks
and told me all the reasons
why they couldn't
do any
of what I was suggesting.
Wally the Cab Driver made a different choice.
He decided to stop quacking like ducks
and start
soaring
like eagles.” 1
How about us?
No one can make you change your attitude.
You make the choice.
Choosing the way you want to live
is a choice.
Smile,
and the whole world smiles with you . . .
frown
and you’re on your own.
The ball is in your hands
The choice is yours.
No one can make you change your attitude.
You make the choice.
Choosing the way you want to live
is a choice.
Smile,
and the whole world smiles with you . . .
frown
and you’re on your own.
The ball is in your hands
The choice is yours.
Life is too short
to spend your precious time
trying to convince a person
who wants to live in gloom and doom otherwise.
Give lifting that person your best shot,
but don't hang around long enough
for his or her bad attitude to pull you down.
Instead, surround yourself with optimistic people. 2
The colossal misunderstanding of our time
is the assumption that insight will work
with people who are unmotivated to change.
Communication does not depend on syntax,
or eloquence, or rhetoric, or articulation
but on the emotional context
in which the message is being heard. 3
to spend your precious time
trying to convince a person
who wants to live in gloom and doom otherwise.
Give lifting that person your best shot,
but don't hang around long enough
for his or her bad attitude to pull you down.
Instead, surround yourself with optimistic people. 2
The colossal misunderstanding of our time
is the assumption that insight will work
with people who are unmotivated to change.
Communication does not depend on syntax,
or eloquence, or rhetoric, or articulation
but on the emotional context
in which the message is being heard. 3
DawnStar graphics library
The greatest discovery of our generation
is that human beings can alter their lives
by altering their attitudes of mind.
As you think,
so shall you be. 4
is that human beings can alter their lives
by altering their attitudes of mind.
As you think,
so shall you be. 4
Credits:
[1] - Duck or Eagle - Harvey Mackay’s wonderful story about a cab driver's customer service,
that proves an important point). (Excerpt from: The Simple Truths of Service,
by Ken Blanchard and Barbara Glanz)
[2] ~Zig Ziglar
[3] ~Edwin H. Friedman
[4] ~William James
[5] ~Charles Prestwich Scott
Media: Different Drum
Contributed by Diana Warman
[1] - Duck or Eagle - Harvey Mackay’s wonderful story about a cab driver's customer service,
that proves an important point). (Excerpt from: The Simple Truths of Service,
by Ken Blanchard and Barbara Glanz)
[2] ~Zig Ziglar
[3] ~Edwin H. Friedman
[4] ~William James
[5] ~Charles Prestwich Scott
Media: Different Drum
Contributed by Diana Warman
| Eagles come in all shapes and sizes, but you will recognize them chiefly by their attitudes. 5 |
For empowerment workshops, seminars and lectures, see: http://www.dawncoveabbey.org/healing-circle
To submit comments, requests or materials,
contact me at outreach@dawncoveabbey.org
contact me at outreach@dawncoveabbey.org
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