“Gentleness is a velvet-covered brick.” Abraham Lincoln
Sometimes you need to be tough with employees or customers. We can sometimes take the easy road and just let people walk over us. But if you’re going to have to be tough.
You don’t have to be a jerk about it. All it takes is some diplomacy and planning to say the right words with the right tone. And then you stick to your guns. You have to be a velvet-covered brick.
This is something I’ve had to learned over the last 11 years of running my own business. One of the things I’ve developed is something I call “Principles of Working with Green Chair.” It’s a two-page document I give to employees and contractors that outlines how we work with customers and how we treat each other.
Here are a few examples of the principles:
Communications: Timely project communication is key to our customers’ satisfaction and ultimate loyalty to Green Chair; so communication is at the center of every relationship we have with Customers and Contractors.
Attention to Customers: Every customer is entitled to our attention. This means returning all customer calls or emails every day. There are no exceptions.
On Time: Green Chair customers have the right to expect our on-time deliveries of their work … every time. We recognize many deadlines are dependent upon customer approvals and this needs to be communicated respectfully to the Customer if they are not responding to your need for approvals.
So, those are just a few of principles. If you’d like to see a copy of the full document, send me an email at dave@greenchair.net and I’ll send it to you.
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