Anything Less is Just B.S.

Sure, knowledge and technique are important aspects of service, but without sincerity any attempt at service is just a load of you know what.?

Most people have a well-calibrated sense of phoniness and quickly pick up on any attempt to be “snowed” or “conned.”?What makes this so critical during service situations is that insincerity destroys the trust that underlies every human engagement.?A genuine person exudes a sense of helpfulness and desire to be of service, while a lack of sincerity gives a definite perception of ulterior motive, pretense, and just going through the motions.

Most of us have experienced this at one time or another.?What stands out most in my mind is the restaurant server who drips kindness and concern, but whose only motivation is to extract the largest tip possible from our encounter.?“Oily” and “smarmy” are two words that come to mind when I recollect such experiences.?While I am happily prone to reward warm, friendly, helpful, and sincere servers with a generous tip, I’m less inclined to do so when I sense the service was insincere.

From the other side of the coin, I recall my own days of waiting tables and listening to some servers complaining bitterly about being “stiffed” by tables they served.?The restaurant manager’s response to these complaints has long resonated with me, “Stop obsessing about the money and just focus on the quality of your service.”

Sincerity is defined as “The quality or state of being sincere; honesty of mind or intention; freedom from simulation, hypocrisy, disguise, or false pretense.”??It’s a good bet that you can’t teach sincerity to a person who is not authentic.?While clubs typically make great effort to hire those with a genuine service attitude, all employees can benefit from training that stresses and reinforces sincerity in their service teams by:

• Discussing the meaning and purpose of service and the important role of providing assistance to members and co-workers alike.
• Stressing the critical importance of sincerity in every service situation.?
• Creating and reinforcing a strong culture of service through well-defined and continually reinforced organizational values.
• As managers and leaders, setting an unimpeachable example of service in all your dealings with members and employees.?The sincerity of your example will be far more effective than anything you can say to them.
• Organizing work areas and work practices to reduce chaos.?Employees are more disposed to sincere good cheer when not under the duress of a chaotic work environment.
• Providing service etiquette training for the expectations of a private club environment, focusing on sincerity and the appropriate behaviors of key “touch points” with members.
• Ensuring your service employees understand the importance of body language and tone of voice in conveying the appropriate attitude of service.
• Discussing the rules of engagement for member service interactions.
• Reviewing the concept of mental environments for various areas of the club.
• Reminding employees of all of the above on a continuing basis.?Service on the Go is the perfect tool for training and reminding.

The gist of the above training is the recognition that while some employees are inherently sincere in their dealings with others, some will need help, and all will certainly benefit from the conscious effort to make sincerity a central standard of every service situation.