Setting expectations

It’s a terrible thing for an outstanding job to be met by a skeptical or disappointed client.  Time devoted to managing client expectations before job completion can help avoid this fate.

I often turn to this real world example to remind me what expert expectation management looks like.  Maybe it can help you, too.

 

I watched anxiously as the repair technician took apart my laptop.  This machine, splayed across the dining room table, represented a hefty investment and was my main tool for work. 

Imagining that it was probably unpleasant to be watched so closely, I excused myself to the kitchen to grab a glass of water.  When I returned to offer him something to drink, he was already done!  Everything, every tiny little piece was put back together.

Before handing my laptop over, the technician pointed to a plastic bin filled with a variety of tiny little screws.

“I have every size of screw I could ever need in here.”

He then went on to explain that when he was reassembling my laptop, one of the original screws was nowhere to be found.  He replaced it with one of his own, from his plastic bin.

“Good as new.  I just wanted to tell you so that when that screw turns up, you’ll know that there’s not a screw missing in your laptop.”

Isn’t that brilliant?  I’m pretty sure I would have been suspicious of the quality of his work had I found that missing screw without any word about it from him.  My confidence would have been shaken enough that a response of “Don’t worry about it, I replaced it with one of my own” would not have eased my concern.

This is only one aspect of expectation management, but it had a huge impact on my experience as a client.  Because of this encounter, I am even more careful to manage my projects in such a way that my clients are not likely to run into an issue without knowing about it first.  I hope the same is now true for you.

Playing with language

I may have mentioned before that word recall is not my forte.  Despite this, I love playing with language.  Games to play with a set of words that have fallen on my lap present themselves without warning, and often without reason either.

The rules usually develop as I go along, incorporating the use of homophones, metaphor, double entendre, or whatever else strikes my fancy.  Unless I happen to be in the right company, they often only make sense to me.

Whenever I dust off these two sentences, for example:

“Oh dear, you have stolen my heart.”

“Oh deer, you have stolen my hart.”

Christian just shakes his head.  The first few years of our relationship, I was convinced that explaining the rules of the game that led to their creation would help him understand why they please me.

No such luck.

….

Years ago, my best friend and I were discussing words with strong connotations that have, for the most part, taken over the word’s original definitions.  I remember we had lots of fun with this.  Here is one of the results:

“We won!  We won!” the quarterback ejaculated during the half time show.

“Now, don’t you think that’s a little premature?” chastised his coach.

(You’re allowed to groan if you need to.)

So, how about you?  Do you juggle with jargon?  Do you mess with meaning?  If you find yourself creating clever clauses that amuse yourself (and perhaps no one else), please share them with me.  Better yet, invite me to play along.

 

 

 

Why I don’t honk

I try to be a patient driver.  Although I see no reason to swerve from lane to lane between sets of traffic lights and think that heavily stepping on the gas only to have to slam on the brakes a few seconds later is silly, I keep my mouth shut horn quiet.

This apparently baffles some people.  Recently, my passenger was so outraged by some other driver’s bad decision-making that he demanded that I honk.  When I refused, he reached over and tried honking on my behalf.

This was not okay and I let him know it.

“But why won’t you honk?!”

1. If the driver I am directing my honk toward is purposely being inconsiderate, he really isn’t going to care about that honk.  A little toot isn’t going to magically make him say “Oh, you’re right.  I really should stop behaving so boorishly.  Thank you for pointing it out.”  If anything, it will annoy him, making him even more aggressive and inconsiderate.
   
2. If the driver being honked at is just plain clueless, he won’t even realize that the honk is for him. 
   
3. It’s possible that what may look like aggressive, uncooperative, or selfish driving could actually be the result of a genuine mistake.  Honking in this circumstance would only serve to make an already stressful situation worse.
   
4. Not just your target can hear your honk.  Other, alert drivers may assume they have somehow triggered your outburst and may become anxious since they will have no idea what they have done (or may still be doing) wrong.

I believe that honking out of anger, frustration, or any other negative emotional state can lead to road rage.  I don’t know about you, but I’m of the opinion that we would all do well to have less of this in the world.

The next time you are about to press the palm of your hand against the center of your steering wheel, ask yourself the following question: What do I want for this action to result in and what is the likelihood that it will?

If it turns out you are compelled to act out of gracious concern, knock yourself out and honk away.  Otherwise, keep your hands in the 10-2 position and take a chill pill for all our sakes.

Thank you!

Barred advice on Prince Charmings

At a favorite local restaurant, Christian and I overheard a bartender dispensing advice to a young, single woman, looking for a new guy.

“Stop limiting yourself!”

This statement, her pleading refrain, was peppered between observations regarding the single woman’s previous fishing attempts.   Why would anybody would look for love in a bar?  If you meet a guy at a bar, you end up with a guy who likes to go out drinking!

She began to offer alternatives.  Church, for example.  “Those guys are very well rounded.”  Taking up a new hobby was also an option.  “Then you’ll definitely have something in common.”  But my favorite recommendation?

“Go to college for a month!”

We joined the conversation at this point.  The women were friendly, and we had fun coming up with a few recommendations of our own.

That night, I started thinking about how that bartender’s advice can apply to more than just finding one’s Prince Charming.  If you don’t like the results you’ve gotten so far, no matter what you’re doing, you really have no choice  but to try something new.  And why limit yourself to what you’ve already tried or what you already feel comfortable with?

Since then, “stop limiting yourself” has been swirling around in my head.  In fact, as a direct result of this, I recently took on some contract work that I wouldn’t have considered before.  I plan to continue contemplating this piece of advice.  Although I have no idea what the outcome will be, I’m pretty sure it will lead to something new or different and that should make for an even more interesting year.