That's the way I am: Summer's here
Staff writer
Summer is upon us and that means there will be some changes here in the Hillsboro Star-Journal office. Sara Hill will step in my position and help during the months of June and July. This is about the ninth year she and I have done this and it has worked out — benefiting both of us.
I hope you the readers will have a rewarding and productive summer. This May column will probably be a hodge podge of thoughts I have been thinking about these last few months.
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At first, I thought I would write about something that has been "getting my goat" lately. And then write a long "dissertation" on what I term as the cruel automation of customer service in the business world.
Sara and I have discussed at length various times of how at large companies it seems virtually impossible to talk to a human being.
If you want to talk to a particular person, you have to press this series of numbers to get a particular department or you have to speak to someone's voice mail.
With some companies you may be on hold for 15 to 20 minutes. So what if it is a toll free number — it's my time that is valuable!
I have talked to many, especially, senior citizens, who have been frustrated to the point of crying and just giving up on trying to contact a business to have their questions answered or their concerns addressed.
As you can see, I can go on and on about this subject but I decided to leave it alone and try to leave for the summer on a positive note.
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Two weeks ago, our daughter, Rachael, graduated from Wichita State University with a degree in elementary education. We had our parents fly in from Ohio. We had a reception for her and got reacquainted with old friends and met some new ones. We had a very nice time, but I'm glad it is over and things are slowly getting back to normal.
Now, it is time to help her look for a place to stay.
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I want to thank our readers for being patient in coming to our back door to get their papers. We thought about placing them on the table in back in the garage, so you won't have to travel so far. (Many have said they did not realize how long our building was.)
I took an unofficial survey, and it was about half and half the number of people who came in the back and those who came in the front. So, we decided to just leave them in the front where everyone is used to picking up the paper.
If you want us to change them to the back, just let us know, and we will make the change.
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We have had several customers and subscribers comment on how they are enjoying the newspaper and encouraging us to keep up the good work. Thank you to those who took the time to say those words. It means a lot.
A couple of weeks ago at the Hillsboro Chamber meeting, Rod Koons was the speaker, and he talked about good customer service. That has been something I hold very high on my priority list.
One thing that has continued to stick with me, and Rod addressed it at the chamber meeting, was that people can go anywhere to get their goods and services. He went on to say that how they are treated by you the employee will determine whether they will come back. (Cathy's paraphrase version)
When a customer comes in our office, we try to give them the best service so they will keep coming back. Getting to know people and calling them by their name has always been very important.
One subscriber who comes in and I address her by name, always comments, "How do you remember everyone's name?"
I guess it is part of being a teacher. I had to learn the names of my students, and so it is with our subscribers.
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The last subject I will address before I leave for the summer is slightly connected to the paragraph on encouragement.
As I have stated in previous columns, I really don't consider myself a journalist — just a former teacher who enjoys writing a few things.
I don't always follow the rules of the journalistic styles of writing. Neither do I want to be compared to others in the field of journalism.
No award or plaque mean much to me. What gives me the utmost joy is when customers come in the office and say "I like what you said. Keep it up." Or "you have a different perspective on things than most of us in Hillsboro — coming from a different vantage point."
On one occasion, I was having a very hard and stressful week. One of our subscribers who collects different sayings and exchanges them with her friends stopped by. She gave me a copy of one of those sayings with a cartoon character on it. The caption read, "Don't ever give up!" She had no idea how much of an encouragement and a blessing that saying was to me. Thanks Alice.
Most of the encouragement has come from the older population of our community.
Those who have come into the office, stopped me on the street, or called me on the phone to congratulate me or encouraged us are all the accolades I need. Those comments mean more to me than any award or plaque could ever give.
So thank you for the words of encouragement. I wanted to let you know that this writer appreciates them very much because that's the way I am.
