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Of all people – managers, directors, presidents and CEO’s are the ones who need to be approachable; both to their customers AND employees. So, it absolutely made my day when I walked into my hotel room and saw this: It was a welcome note with the General Manager’s business card in it! You can’t get more approachable than this. It was like the GM was saying, “Howdy! Welcome to…

We’ve all had our share of experiences with service providers who weren’t approachable. Fortunately, some professions are taking preventative measures against future complaints. I found a great article from the spring 2005 issue called Japan Tests Medical Students for Approachability. The article comes from StudentBMJ, a monthly international medical journal for students with an interest in medicine. “Japanese medical students must prove that they are approachable before they can…

I’ll give ’em one thing: those Texans sure know how to make a guy feel welcome! Last week I spent a few days speaking at two Hyatt properties. First I went to the Hyatt Regency Hill Country Spa and Resort in San Antonio. I was scheduled to deliver a speech at an all-staff meeting. The night before the program, I went down to the restaurant to grab some dinner….

After San Antonio, I headed out to downtown Austin on I-410 to the Downtown Hyatt. But before I got too far, I passed by the famous North Star mall where I saw The World’s Largest Cowboy Boots. Wow. I guess everything really IS bigger in Texas. AND…since I had my trusty cardboard cut out in the back of my rental car, I figured Alright…I’ve gotta get a picture of…

Just finished speaking at the Downtown Hyatt in Austin. Great hotel. Their facilities and view of the city make it obvious why they’re so busy! And as far as the city itself, I think it’s the only airport I’ve ever been to that had a live band by the gates. Guess that whole “Live Music Capital of the World” is no joke. Thankfully they didn’t play any life-size cardboard…

What makes Colchester, CT so unique? On Monday, September 26th (yesterday) Colchester celebrated its first annual Nametag Day. According to the Nametag Day website, it was an effort to continue to find new and innovative ways to help people make connections and to welcome new people into the community. It was sponsored by Colchester Parks and Recreation, with the creative help of my friend Jay Cohen. And here’s the…

I am That Guy. And I didn’t even mean for it to happen. It just did. Because after the first 6 months of wearing a nametag 24-7 to make people friendlier, something changed. People didn’t just call me Scott anymore. They called me “Scott, that guy with the nametag.” That’s when it all began. That’s when I became That Guy. And I never looked back. So now, as a…

I had the great honor of attending B.B. King’s concert last night. And since it was the first time I’d ever seen him play live, I finally figured out why he’s the greatest bluesman the world has ever known: it’s because he’s not a guitar player. He’s not a singer. He’s not even a musician! He’s a storyteller. And his stories throughout the night captivated an audience of 5000…

In light of the St. Louis Cardinals’ recent division clinch (woo hoo!), I wanted to say a few words about Tony La Russa. This picture perfectly captures Tony’s demeanor during every Cardinal game. He’s like stone. Dark glasses. Very little emotion. A perfect baseball poker face. Now, he does that strategically. And that’s one reason he’s the second highest winning coach in Cardinals history. Off the field, however, Tony…

When I worked in guest services at The Ritz Carlton, I noticed some employees had a tendency to overuse guests’ names. Unfortunately, after a certain point, it worked in reverse. (Especially in conversations under 7 minutes) Name overkill doesn’t just happen in the hotel industry – it’s everywhere. Sure, we know people love to hear their names more than any word in the dictionary. But there comes a point…