Do you go the Extra Inch?

Look back over the past few years and try to pick one or two days that have shaped the path you're on right now. For me an obvious one was the day I was in the front office, chatting with two of our team on reception and almost loitering behind our front counter. A purchaser of a property came into the building to sign a contract or pay a deposit - who even knows now. All I really remember is that I was drawn to this young man, and now he's my husband. If I'd been at my desk that day, or at lunch, or in the bathroom - or anywhere but that location - who knows if we ever would have met. It's hard to believe my marriage relied on such a coincidence.

Consider this - how many of these opportunities are you potentially missing out on each day. I'll share with you an example I know of, where someone has had one of those days that has altered their path.

Let's call our example Jane (that's her name so it's kind of easy for me!) Jane worked in a local camera and photography shop and worked in sales and providing customer service to customers in the shop. One day another young lady - we'll call her Kirsty (because it was me) dropped off some photographs to be processed. I thought nothing more of the transaction except perhaps a passing thought that Jane was pleasant to deal with. I dropped back with a friend of mine to pick up the photos later on and Jane and my friend had a chat. Again - nothing remarkable. Jane was pleasant and courteous.

I collected my photos and left with my friend walking out of the shop only for my friend to receive a phone call about 30 seconds after we had left. It was Jane saying that we had missed one packet of photographs. We said fine and that we'd walk back to the shop and turned around to head back. We'd walked no more than about 10 steps when I saw Jane running down the street in full corporate attire, heels, hair flying with my photos in hand and a huge smile on her face (the huge smile I would find out later is just part of Jane's permanent uniform).

I was blown away with the extra effort Jane had gone to - she'd created the wow factor with me by not waiting for me to come back to the shop - but by stepping out and finding me. I instantly said to my friend, if Jane ever wants to make a move into real estate - tell her to give me a call. She called, she switched careers and is one of the most fabulous young women I've had the pleasure to work with.

There are two really important factors to consider here:

1. Jane created a wow factor with me as I'm sure she did with a lot of her other customers. She didn't do it to try and get a job or a tip. She did it because she excels in providing great service and going the extra mile. The door opened simply because she showed a willingness to create that moment between us.

2. Jane had never considered real estate before, she only went through that door because she was open to new ideas and suggestions.

If someone wanting to offer you a fabulous new opportunity (be it a relationship, a career opportunity, a promotion in your current job, a partnership) watched you in your every day work - be it with customers, your team or concerning your work ethic or work quality would it make them want to open new doors to you?

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