Thank a Veteran

www1.va.gov/opa/vetsday/

Today, November 11, is the day set aside to honor our veterans. In my church our pastor recognized our veterans and they received standing ovations. That is how it should be. I’m humbled to think of the scores of men and women who have put their lives on hold to defend freedom in far parts of the world. I googled Veterans day and found a site full of information on this day and other American traditions. Below find a few of the things the site explains. Learn about what has been done throughout our nation’s history to uphold our freedoms and help other countries enjoy those freedoms as well.

The Origins of Veterans Day -- World War I ended on November 11, 1918. On the same date three years later an unknown soldier from that war was buried at Arlington National Cemetery. November 11 eventually became the date when America honors all who have served the United States in war.

* The History of the Purple Heart Award -- It is one of the most recognized and respected medals awarded to members of the U.S. armed forces. Introduced as the “Badge of Military Merit” by General George Washington in 1782, the Purple Heart is also the nation's oldest military award.

* The Flower of Remembrance -- Learn how a simple red flower came to symbolize a perpetual tribute to those who have given their lives for the nation's freedom.

* The Story of Taps -- Based on a French signal to end the soldier's day, the melancholy bugle call now is also heard at military burials and memorial services.

* Arlington National Cemetery -- America's best known national cemetery still buries service members and some veterans.

* The United States Flag -- How "The Stars and Stripes" design has changed since 1776.

* The Pledge of Allegiance -- The words, and how they are delivered, have changed several times since 1892.

* "The Star-Spangled Banner" -- Francis Scott Key's poem and a British tune became the national anthem.

* "Old Glory" -- The story behind the affectionate name for the U.S. flag.

* The Origins of Flag Day -- The Continental Congress established the basic design of the U.S. flag on June 14, 1777, but many years passed before America officially observed National Flag Day.

* Guidelines for Display of the Flag -- Do's and Don'ts to correctly show respect for the national banner.

Don’t let this day end without thanking a vet for their sacrifice.

Still learning,

Honey Shelton

http://www.interaction-training.com

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Continual Improvement

I never have understood those who want to go to work and do as little as possible. Or those who want to stay home and do nothing. I’d go crazy. I need to be busy. I travel an insane amount of time training in many states. The busyness helps me appreciate my downtime all the more.

When you work with some one who aims for middle of the road or worse yet has total apathy towards work, it can be quite easy to catch the lazy bug…or feel bitter that you are carrying their load. Just as their laziness can be contagious, so can your enthusiastic approach to work. Resist the urge to get bitter… instead keep getting better. The only person we can change is our self. When we work towards improving our self, others will notice. Hopefully they will recognize the contentment you find in putting in a good, productive, positive day of work.

Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing.” Theodore Roosevelt 1903

Still learning,
Honey Shelton

http://www.interaction-training.com

CHECK out our website, sign-up for our free newsletter and follow our blog and shop in the store, FREE training tools!

Free Stuff

I offer free training materials through my web store. I enjoy training and am always looking for ways to pay it forward. You can’t know how to improve something unless you know what is not working. I have developed many surveys that will help a bank or credit union supervisor find weak spots in their customer service.

Here’s a list of free stuff up at my web store right now: The Teller Observation Form, The Drive Thru Teller Form, Customer Management Form, Training Diagnosis Survey, Supervisor Self Evaluation Survey and the Team Effectiveness Survey.

Take a moment and download some or all of these free surveys. Use them and encourage your co-workers towards excellence. They will enjoy their work more thoroughly when they do their job with excellence. Customers will recognize the improvement. Everyone comes out ahead.

Still learning,
Honey Shelton

http://www.interaction-training.com

CHECK out our website, sign-up for our free newsletter and follow our blog and shop in the store, FREE training tools!

Training Adjectives

I am honored and humbled when one of my client’s writes to tell me their experience in one of our training courses. I have been training for a long time and sometimes wonder if I am as effective as I used to be. One of my “non-financial” clients wrote this about us:

“Versatile, customized, powerful, humorous, effective, thought-provoking - those would be the adjectives I would use to describe the training services and coaching we’ve engaged InterAction to provide for almost 20 years.”

Cindy Marion,CEO

Marion, Montgomery, Inc.

Is the training you are getting in your workplace impactful? I know humor is very powerful and thankfully God gifted me with an ability to be light-hearted as I present messages that impact the workplace.

Next time you decide to set up some training for your employees, co-workers and associates give me a call or shoot me an email. If I don’t think Interaction Training is the right solution I will give you tips on how to decide on who/what would be most effective for you.

Still learning,

Honey Shelton

http://www.interaction-training.com

CHECK out our website, sign-up for our free newsletter and follow our blog and shop in the store, FREE training tools!

Training Needed

Not everyone needs the same training…but everyone needs training.

I’m not that young, young at heart yes, but when I count my years I realize I’ve been riding around this planet many decades. So I can sometimes feel like I’ve learned all I need to learn. In fact, there’s plenty of stuff I know that I’ve not put to practice as yet.

I’ve been a trainer for many decades as well. So you think that of all people I would feel I’ve learned all I need to learn... but it ain’t so. I google a lot because I need more information on this or that. I’m intrigued by the bookstore and the library…so many words I’ve not read. I’m motivated to keep my brain active because I’ve read that helps stave off Alzheimer’s and dementia. There are many reasons to keep on learning, keep on seeking training to advance your career, expand your mind and be inspired by the stories of others. So I challenge you to find fresh and interesting ways to work out your brain muscle.

I’m in the process of producing training CD ROMS and making some training programs available by download on our website of some of the most popular courses I teach.

Sign up for my email newsletter; you’ll get my newsletter and I’ll send you a line when a new product hits the store.

Still learning,
Honey Shelton

www.interaction-training.com

Check out our website, sign up for our free newsletter, follow our blog and shop in the store, FREE training tools.

Why I Blog

I started this blog a bit ago but am now purposing to actually post more often. The reason I started to blog is to encourage my clients in their endeavors to build the best workplace.

I’d also like a little interaction from those who have been in my training.

I am starting to produce more products for my web store. Tell me what you’d like to see there.

I travel quite a bit, training mostly in banks and credit unions, but much of what I teach is applicable in most any industry. One of my best abilities is in answering tough questions about work situations that aren’t effective.

So send me a question you have and I’ll answer it on my blog. I will send testimonials from time to time from great people who have benefited from the training I offer. So feel free to comment on any of my blog postings, tweet or Facebook me. The great thing about social media is the conversations that ensue.

Still learning,
Honey Shelton

www.interaction-training.com

Service Check Up... How Are We Doing?

Best Practice #1

“How are we doing?” needs to become the mantra of your culture. Express and demonstrate a high desire to know what the customer has to say about your business. Seek and create opportunities to ask that question. It’s the groundwork that must be laid to know where you need to improve, it's the lead up to asking for a referral, and it’s the very best way to remind a satisfied customer what they like about doing business with you.

Designate days at the company as “Gotta Know” days. There are two types of “Gotta Know” days – one will be when you collect feedback from customers calling or coming in; the other will be targeted outbound calls to select groups of customers. Circle three days of the month’s calendar that are designated as ask the customer coming in days and three others that are call the customer days.

Prepare a simple survey postcard for incoming customers to complete and mail back or drop in a box before they leave. When a customer calls in, you can ask if they’d be willing to answer a few questions about the quality of the call and complete the survey with the customer on the phone. When you acquire a new customer, let them know there is a strong possibility that they will be contacted or asked from time-to-time to offer feedback; explain the “How Are We Doing?” program.

All Customer Contact personnel including the Call Center employees need to be trained to follow guidelines when requesting feedback from the customer. Make it a priority that everyone understands the importance of not leading the customer to say what we want or expect them to say.

“How are we doing?” You must find your way of finding out the answer from your customers. One time I had a client tell me, “Not sure I want to know, we’re accustomed to believing our own story. That idea scares me!” I applauded his honesty and told him to get busy and adopt this discipline and he did. As it turned out, reality wasn’t nearly as bleak as he anticipated. He has had great success celebrating the positive feedback and has found out about disappointments and customer issues he knew nothing about. You can’t change anything you can’t see.

Next week I’ll talk about what to do with the feedback and more on customer service best practices.

Want a sample survey? Email me honey@interaction-training.com.