Finding Delight in the Little Things
When we all went into some form of "lockdown" about a year ago...my best guess as we went through the summer was that by February or March of 2021 we would be back on the road. I think we can all agree that I am no fortune teller and pretty crappy at predicting the future as I am now revising my forecast to this time frame in 2022. Do YOU have a better guess?
The Set Up
I'd also admit that even though I have been "working from home" for about 6 years now I never really committed to a home office. I was perched at a small desk in the corner of our spare bedroom for the days I was home but a more formal setup seemed unnecessary given I was on the road a lot. We have enjoyed many visitors over the years and when they come from Canada they are here for a while (given the distance and time differences) so the bedroom was an obvious choice. That was until... well...a global pandemic. Given my set up wasn't geared to be seen by colleagues and customers, I quickly adjusted early in the lockdown to setting up a "zoom background" and the spare bedroom turned into a dark cave hosting a small movie like set up.
The Incident
Now...most of my calls start early in the morning (given I am on the West Coast) and my favorite coffee mug is one I got at Harrods on my last trip to Europe when we were celebrating Jon's 50th birthday. As my last blog post indicated...I have been spending a lot more time in my converse sneakers and basically abandoned my "cool girl" shoes. Before the holidays...I had arranged lunch with a former colleague and friend to catch up. I made the fateful decision to don some "cuter booties" with a slight heel. We had a great lunch and I was feeling emboldened and cocky when I got home in my "dress up" shoes. As I left my movie set office and dodged all the wires to exit the bedroom and get a fresh cup of coffee before my next call I rounded the corner to head into the kitchen...as if I was in my sneakers... and I turned over my ankle in the heel and went crashing to the ground along with my precious Harrods mug and a half a cup of cold coffee. Luckily I was not injured other than my pride...a wall and floor full of coffee and the numerous pieces of my beautiful mug shattered over our tile floor.
Finding The Way Forward
After my meetings and washing the coffee out of my hair I took to the Harrods website to order a new mug but alas the mug was no where to be found. I have to admit it did not help my holiday mood or the frustration with myself for my foolish incident. I stewed for a few days and racked my brain on who I might know in London who could "drop by Harrods" to see if a new one could be obtained but that was truly impractical given the timing.
As this was all transpiring...my husband and daughter were indicating that for Christmas they planned to finally set me up with a proper office as my gift. They had been plotting for a while and felt it was time to bring me in the loop so we could collaborate on the design. You'll be shocked to know that the first thing that jumped to mind was the pretty blue and gold of my recently shattered coffee mug. As I surfed the internet over the break for inspiration for my new office... I took one last ditch effort to look at the Harrods website to see if there was another way to get the mug...I happened upon a page that indicated that they had "personal shoppers" and that there was no minimum purchase (my mug was only $15). So I took a chance and contacted them.
I have to tell you I had the most amazing and uplifting customer service experience from my personal shopper Monika. Here are a few things about it:
even though I only needed a mug she was happy to help - she made me feel as if my purchase was much greater than it was
she was able to locate it in the store in record time and made me feel eager to leverage their service again
I had told her that it wasn't a Christmas gift but she said she would try hard to get it to me before the 25th because the UK was about to go on lockdown again due to the pandemic
when I expressed concern for her and her coworkers she was very personable and said that helping others took her mind off of all that was going on in the world...making things feel more normal for a while
Monika contacted me on the 20th and I had my new mugs in my hand by the 24th (I ordered 2 so I could have a backup)
Delight in the Little Things
So... I know it's just a mug but I believe it was the overall experience and the delight in the little things that have helped me smile even with all the pain that is going on in the world. It has been a tough week for the United States and my heart hurts for this moment. I know there are reasons to loose faith as we watch all the disruption and discord but if we can find delight in the little things...reasons to smile and ways to connect with others (like my new friend Monika) there is hope that maybe tomorrow will be better.
The renovation is finally complete and this is my first post from the new set up. My Harrods mug has a place of honor on my new desk and now matches the room. The cabinets behind me are beautiful (after coming in through the window because they were too tall to come in through the door)... the painting that frames my new "zoom background" was lovingly created by my incredibly talented daughter... and it was all made possible by all the hard work of my husband who painted...rewired and engineered it all.
I'll finish with my final prediction... no different than every time you wash your car it rains the next day... now that I have a proper office we will all be able to travel and I will need the bedroom back for visitors. No need to thank me... it is my gift to the world!
Leadership Questions of the Week for YOU:
When the pandemic first started and we were told to work from home... what was YOUR prediction on when we would return to travel and the office? What is YOUR current prediction?
How have YOU been navigating the work from home set up? Are you perching or do you have a dedicated space?
What little things over the past few months have delighted you? Do YOU have something that makes you unexpectedly smile (like my mug)?
Can you think of a recent customer experience that not only exceeded your expectations but also gave you a moment of connection and humanity that you did not anticipate?
How have YOU been feeling given the recent events and what advice do you have on how we can all find ways to reset, smile or motivate ourselves?
Thanks for reading….and remember…YOU make a difference!
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