Healthy Chicks

My first job was a barista at Panera Bread when I as 16 years old. I took the job so that I could save enough money to go on a school trip to Mexico with my Spanish class. While I didn’t particularly love working at Panera (angry customers who NEED THEIR COFFEE NOW, Witch-like boss, and scattered management system), I still took it very seriously and went into each shift with a positive outlook.

There were days when I’d rather crawl in a hole and hide than be serving Asiago bagels all day with my Scary Boss on my back, but I always remembered to do one thing: SMILE at customers. Even on those days where things weren’t going so well in my personal life, I made sure to bring my A-Game to work especially for the customers.

I’d sneak broken chocolate chip cookies to little kids, smile at strangers and entertain people as they talked about their days. I knew every single thing about every single cookie, bread, and coffee and soon become a customer favorite, having to turn down tips because we weren’t “allowed to accept them.”

Why did I do this all? Well, for one it was my job and I didn’t want to get fired but it was mostly because my parents taught me at a very young age the power of being nice.

Unfortunately, people seem to have lost this power of late. Take the other day for example. A friend and I had purchased a LivingSocial to a soap-making class just outside Boston, about a 45-minute trip from my apartment. I had booked and confirmed the class, and my friend took the day off from work for it. We were especially excited to learn, because we want to start making our own all-natural beauty products one day, so this was a BIG day for us.

When we walked into the store, smiles and coffees in hand, we were greeted by the owner in an unexpected tone. “What are you doing  here?” she said, almost accusingly. “Um, we’re here for the soap making class, the one that starts at 11:30! Sorry we’re a minute or two late!”

“There is no soap making class right now. It started at 10 a.m. You must have the wrong day!” she said, roaring with laughter. Suddenly, the entire class started hysterically laughing at us, as we stood there completely in shock. She told us we must have booked for the next day, and sent us along on our days.

After doing some quick research (um hello, I went to journalism school) and cooling down a bit (we were rather appalled), I found the schedule online with the class listed just as we had thought: 11:30. Turns out she had changed the time because she wanted to get the class done earlier, and failed to inform some of the group.

Needless to say, we got our money back from LivingSocial (who by the way has incredible customer service). However, that’s not the point. The point is, who treats customers like that? How is “What are you doing here?” any way to treat someone who just walked into your store to give YOU business. Now, I will never go back to her store again but if she had smiled, explained the situation or showed a little sympathy, the story would have been different.

Yesterday, I witnessed the exact opposite while shopping for Christmas gifts at Harvard Square’s Holiday Craft Fair. I met the most intriguing woman, who makes all her own beauty products from massage oils to soaps. I’ve never seen someone so excited and passionate about what they do, letting me try samples of all her scents and ready with answers for any questions I had. Her positive energy and aura drew me in, making me feel comfortable and safe.

While the business owner was simply just being herself, it led my boyfriend and I to purchase about $40 worth of products. Yes, her products were incredible but it was the POWER OF BEING NICE that really got us.

I want you all to take these stories as a testament to treat people in the kindest ways you possibly can. If your job is turning you into a person you don’t even like yourself, consider shifting careers or finding little ways to be happier at work. After all, if you don’t believe in your company and do everything in your power to pamper and love up your potential clientele, no one else is going to buy into it either.

Nice people really do finish first sometimes after all.