By: Narayan Patnaik
Never underestimate your Clients' Complaint, no matter how funny it
Might seem!
This is a real story that happened between the customer of
General Motors and its Customer-Care Executive. Pls read on.....
A complaint was received by the Pontiac Division of General Motors:
'This is the second time I have written to you, and I don't blame you
for not answering me, because I sounded crazy, but it is a fact that
we have a tradition in our family of Ice-Cream for dessert after
dinner each night, but the kind of ice cream varies so, every night,
after we've eaten, the whole family votes on which kind of ice cream we
should have
and I drive down to the store to get it. It's also a fact that I
recently purchased a new Pontiac and since then
my trips to the store have created a problem.....
You see, every time I buy a vanilla ice-cream, when I start back from
the store my car won't start. If I get any other kind of ice cream,
the car starts just fine. I want you to know I'm serious about this
question, no matter how silly it sounds "What is there about a Pontiac
that makes it not start when I get vanilla ice cream, and easy to
start whenever I get any other kind?" The Pontiac President was
understandably skeptical about the letter, but sent an Engineer to check
it out anyway.
The latter was surprised to be greeted by a successful, obviously well
educated man in a fine neighborhood. He had arranged to meet the man
just after dinner time, so the two hopped into the car and drove to
the ice cream store. It was vanilla ice cream that night and, sure
enough, after they came back to the car, it wouldn't start.
The Engineer returned for three more nights.
The first night, they got chocolate. The car started.
The second night, he got strawberry. The car started.
The third night he ordered vanilla. The car failed to start.
Now the engineer, being a logical man, refused to believe that
this man's car was allergic to vanilla ice cream. He arranged,
therefore, to continue his visits for as long as it took to solve the
problem. And toward this end he began to take notes: He jotted down
all sorts of data:
time of day,
type of gas uses,
time to drive back and forth etc.
In a short time, he had a clue: the man took less time to buy
vanilla than any other flavor. Why? The answer was in the layout of
the store.
Vanilla, being the most popular flavor, was in a separate case at the
front of the store for quick pickup. All the other flavors were kept
in the back of the store at a different counter where
it took considerably longer to check out the flavor.
Now, the question for the Engineer was why the car wouldn't start
when it took less time. Eureka - Time was now the problem - not the
vanilla ice cream!!!! The engineer quickly
came up with the answer: "vapor lock".
It was happening every night; but the extra time taken to get the
other flavors allowed the engine to cool down sufficiently to start.
When the man got vanilla, the engine was still
too hot for the vapor lock to dissipate.
Even crazy looking problems are sometimes real and all problems
seem to be simple only when we find the solution, with cool thinking.
Don't just say it is " IMPOSSIBLE" without putting a sincere effort
What really matters is your attitude and your perception
and here is an inspirational quote:
Ability is what you're capable of doing.. Motivation determines what you
do. Attitude determines how well you do it..
- Lou Holtz
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