Chances are, your Box has its own lexicon: a mini-language of slang, acronym, and inside jokes. Good for you.
There's a good chance that your staff does, too. In the insurance world, clients are usually identified during conversation by their initials only, and every single form has its OWN title that sounds like a random Captcha password. "Did you do the OCF-18 for MP yet?" Means something to me...but may not to you, if you haven't used HCAI before.
The beauty of slang is that it doesn't have to mean the same thing - or even anything - to anyone outside its intended audience.
We've been studying the effect of perception and PRE-ception for the past month. When we're doing Ignite!, it's important that we 'set the stage' beforehand. When you hear, from a friend, that Jim is a terrific guy; salt of the earth, really; well, you're willing to give Jim the benefit of the doubt.
This is another reason why advertising doesn't work: there's no context. A brain can't remember an ad for long, because there's no story anchoring the "Big!BIG!BIIIIIG! SALE" to the reader's memory.
How do you refer to the 'members' at your Box? I call ours 'The Family;' 'The Tribe;' 'members;' 'clients;' - almost interchangeably. Outsiders sometimes call us 'The Cult;' 'Followers;' etc. But 'member' and 'client' aren't words that carry a charge.
What if we all started calling our "members" GFPs? It would certainly change the conversation.
"Hey Chris - this member says there's something messed up with her account."
"Coop - I have a GFP here who needs your help...." - a bit different.
"Chris - can you print me off a new-client enrollment form?"
"Chris - we've got a new GFP in the house!"
Even if the GFP is angry, or posting sarcasm on facebook, or refuses to give you a reference on LinkedIn, you're still dealing with a GFP. And that simple trick of context changes everything about your relationship with that person.
Annoying clients .....well, aren't. Not anymore. How could a GFP be annoying? If a GFP has a beef, it must be legitimate, because they're a GFP!
Wolfgang Puck says we should treat each interaction as if it were our first and only chance to make an impression. The concept: "Every Night Is Opening Night." It's a common speaker's trick to imagine that you know everyone in the crowd, and everyone in the crowd is a GFP. When you know that everyone in the room is a GFP, conversation is easy. You're all friends.
You can deal with clients, or you can spend your days talking to GFPs. I prefer the latter.
***okay, you haven't solved it yet. GFP = Great F* People.
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