A Good Day at Work

Yesterday, I was reminded of why I enjoy my job so much. Sure, I have to deal with angry people and petty complaints, but I also get to meet and talk to some very interesting people. Fortunately, last night was very pleasant. All of the guests I spoke with were very pleasant, and very appreciative for the service I gave them. It's funny how many people don't realize that if you want something done, the best route is to be nice and pleasant and friendly to the person who could do it for you.

Case in point: a man and his wife checked in. They had requested a room with two beds on the back of the hotel, and I put them in the only one that was left (which happened to be handicap-accessible). Then he called down and said that they needed a bathtub, instead of a walk-in shower. So I told him the options (move upstairs or to the front side, or stay on the back in a room with a king). He chose to move to a room with a king, and I told him I would bring the keys back to him. When I did, he and his wife were so nice. I helped them move their bags to their new room, and left feeling good.

Second scenario (this did NOT happen last night - as I said, last night was a good night): A guest walks in without a reservation and asks for a room with two beds. I check him in, and give him his keys, and direct him to his room, which is on the second floor. He throws the keys at me (no kidding - they hit me on the chin) and almost yells, "Put me on the ground floor. I'm not hauling my stuff upstairs." Now, we had some ground floor rooms available, but he didn't know that, and he didn't say anything about a ground floor room when he checked in. So I told him we didn't have any ground floor rooms left with two beds. So he did, indeed, end up hauling his stuff upstairs, and I was quite happy to see him do it.

Maybe I'm a terrible customer service person. But honestly, if he had been just a tad nicer (read: NOT thrown his keys at me), I would have happily moved him downstairs. I do like to make people happy. That's what I enjoy most about my job - helping people have a good experience in our hotel. But every once in a while, that little passive-aggressive tendency that I have, that I try so hard to silence, gets its fix.