On a business trip recently with a business associate, I noticed that he was bending over. Looking down to see what he dropped, my eyes exploded in amazement. He was picking up a piece of garbage in the hotel lobby.
A piece of paper discarded as unimportant property. None of the staff saw it as important. My friend did. My friend is in the hospitality business. He's one of the nicest, most genuine people I have ever known.
I asked why he paid attention to someone else's trash. His answer was that his behaviour may change the employees behaviour. Although the hotel wasn't a client, he had programmed himself to be a model for change. Even if it meant picking up a stray piece of paper in a hotel lobby.
Yesterday, I went to the local coffee shop to drink a green tea while I worked. Another friend owns the place and a third friend is the manager. I chose my nesting ground and plopped my laptop on the coffee table only to find a discarded plastic cup and two paper bags filled with something that possibly might have been muffins.
Learning from my hospitable friend, I picked up the three pieces of garbage and went to the nearest receptacle to dispose of my undesired treasure. To describe the garbage can as filthy would be a compliment. It hadn't been cleaned in days, if not weeks.
Upon returning to my leased out chair, the crumbs on the floor reminded me of pebbles on a beach. I wondered if they were all from today or if the employees hadn't bothered sweeping this week. Maybe the sweeping is on the same schedule as the cleaning of the garbage can.
In either case, I listened to my heart. I followed my friend's lead in doing my part in removing the recognizable stuff.
I worry for my two friends who depend on this coffee shop for their livelihood. It looks like they are missing out on systems or they are not paying attention to details. Either way, it's a slippery slope.
It's not a customer's job to pick up the garbage. My hospitable friend does it. So will I. But most won't.
No comments:
Post a Comment