Minute With Mallon: Leadership Lessons From a Fishing License!
Welcome to Minute with Mallon!
Something I Taught:
A couple of weeks ago, I was working with a client who lives on Lake Lanier who enjoys fishing off the end of his dock. He catches a lot of fish, and it got me thinking about how much I enjoyed the hobby when I was younger.
So I decided to get a fishing license.
I used to buy my hunting and fishing licenses at outdoor shops so I went to a local gun shop to see if I could buy one there.
There was an older man and a young lady around 14 years old behind the counter. I asked if they sold fishing licenses, and they told me it was now done online.
The young lady asked me if I knew how to do it and I told her no. Then she asked me if I would like her to help me. I said, "Yes!" with a big smile on my face. So she asked me for my phone and typed in the URL which directed me to the correct website.
Well here's the truth – Since I’m sixty-odd years old, I now qualify for the senior license!
It's $4!!! 🫣
And – perhaps not unrelatedly – I also found out that the font on my phone was too small for me to read it properly. 🤣 So she asked me if I’d like her to fill out the form for me. I said YES!!! and she went after it. Over the next 4-5 minutes she asked me a ton of questions, her little fingers flying over the screen. She was so sweet and helpful.
After we had completed everything, she told me what to do when I got home and handed the phone back to me with a big smile!
I asked her what I owed her. She told me "Nothing sir, it was my pleasure," again with a smile. I told her I had something for her in the car.
I ran out to the car, grabbed a little cash, and came back in. I held out my hand to shake hers, and then placed the money in her hand.
"Oh no sir! I don't need that!" she told me.
"Young lady, you were so very helpful and kind to me today. Do that for the rest of your days and I promise you that you'll live an extraordinary life. I just want you to have this as a token of my appreciation. Well done!!!"
I looked over at the older man behind the counter. He had a big smile on his face and gave me a wink. (I bet he was her grandfather!)
So what does this have to do with you becoming a better leader, manager, supervisor?
Tons!
It's important to recognize people when they do things for you or for others.
In today's job market, the scarcity of skilled labor has given employees unprecedented leverage. Addressing the retention challenge in the corporate world has become a pressing priority, and for good reason.
I read a statistic this week in a book called The Dream Manager by Matthew Kelly that 85% of people who leave a job leave because of their relationship with their direct supervisor!
Here's a quote from the book:
"And when you ask them about their relationship with their supervisor, they almost inevitably say that he or she didn’t appreciate them or their contribution. The predominant concern of employees isn’t money or benefits, and it’s not hours. They want to feel appreciated.”
So appreciate your people!
And know (and live!) this:
What gets recognized gets repeated!
I know my comments had a very positive effect on the young lady. There's no doubt that our interaction reinforced the message that being helpful "above and beyond" is something to continue to strive for.
In addition, the kindness shown by the young lady not only helped me with my fishing license but it also left a lasting impression. There's no way I'd ever go anywhere else for outdoor equipment when the need arises.
So I have two questions for you:
Who can you serve today?
Who comes to mind who needs praise for a job well done?
Go do it right now!
And enjoy the experience my friend!!!
Something to Ponder:
"You can have everything in life you want, if you will just help enough other people get what they want."
Zig Ziggler
Something I Learned:
From James Clear who wrote the book Atomic Habits:
"If you're having trouble sticking to a new habit, try a smaller version until it becomes automatic. Do less than you're capable of but do it more consistently than you have before."
What small, consistent step can you commit to today that will move you closer to your goal?
Something I Saw:
My two grandsons will undoubtedly be wearing high numbers on their football jerseys when they grow up!!! 😆
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Hope you have an incredible week my friend!
Robert
