I just received this from a PTA source, but I think it speaks well to any of us that are helping as volunteers, anywhere. I had heard about this hospital's story before, but it is worth sharing.
WANTED HAPPY HELPERS: MUST LOVE CHILDREN
Sometimes in volunteer work we come across difficult people. We may wonder why they want to volunteer and be part of a service oriented organization if they are not invested in those outside of themselves.
Recently, a children’s hospital in Florida reviewed their evaluations. They were dead last in patient satisfaction in the whole country. Wanting to change that very dubious distinction, they turned to The
Happiest Place on Earth. They contacted the Disney corporation and asked for help in turning things around at their hospital. They learned some very valuable lessons in customer satisfaction.
At Disneyland and Disneyworld their employees who meet and greet people all day have two faces, their backstage face and their on stage face when they are serving ice cream or dressed up as a Disney
character. The Backstage face may carry the cares and worries of the individual. They may be moody or self absorbed, tired or feeling under the weather. But when they step on stage, they become actors who are the happiest people on the face of the earth and who are only concerned about the customers, who are the visitors at Disneyland and Disneyworld. The on stage face is one of concern ONLY for making their customs smile and feel happy. The on stage face considers the customer the most important person on the earth. It is their express duty to get a smile from everyone they meet. Disney emphasizes that to work at Disney you must LOVE children.
The hospital took a page from Disney and began training their personnel to become completely concerned with the feelings of their patients (Customers) and what would make them smile. They greeted sick children arriving for surgery with a ukulele playing character from Jungle book. For a moment the fears of the child and worry of the parents disappeared and they smiled. Staff was trained to reach out with their hearts. To serve children they must love children. The hospital customer satisfaction went up to over 80%, one of the highest in the nation.
We should also take a page from Disney as we work diligently to serve children. Instead of deciding how we think we can make things better for children, perhaps we better check our egos at the door and discover what Children really need from us. We should not just serve children but love children.
As we try to make All children smile with the joy of learning and hope for the future, let’s make PTA
the “Happiest Place on Earth”. --UtahPTA.org
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Friday, October 7, 2011
Bonus: Thoughts of an American Genius
Pardon the commercial at the front. Steve Jobs will be missed. And his words from his Standford commencement address, given in 2005, ring even more true now that the world has lost him to cancer.
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Oh, Yeah...We Should Have Told You That
I attended our Stake Youth Temple Month kick-off event last night. Our stake committee of 10 kids is pretty fantastic, and a little too confident now in their leadership abilities. I think we may have created a monster.
This activity was the kick-off for a month's worth of weekly congregational activities that have to do with the temple. our committee designed a "Commitment Path" with varied stops along the way to discuss--in age groups--standards of friends, honesty, dating, and personal purity with all the groups ending up together for a concluding talk by a member of our stake presidency about the temple and the value in being worthy to go there someday.
Well, we have worked with this group of kids since about March or so. They planned and pulled off our terrific Stake Youth Conference in June. We have taught them leadership skills throughout the year. Apparently they are learning well. The last two meetings about this activity last night, the adults weren't invited. They called and held the meeting without the adults.
Herein lies the monster.
The activity they planned was a hike to a location that overlooks the city and from which you can see the temple in the distance. The trouble was not everyone could make that hike due to the physical limitations each may have. For example, one young man is recovering from heart surgery for a congenital heart issue. Another young woman has avoided knee surgery after an injury but is doing very careful physical therapy and hiking is out for her.
I figured the answer would be for a rain out, then all the kids int eh stake could attend. The message being more important than the physical activity--at least in my eyes. And rain it did! But the committee still held out hope they could do it as planned. After several hours of rain, they resigned themselves to Plan B, which was to stay at the pavilion at the trail head and hold their discussions in the corners of the pavilion and then come together at the end, as planned. The clouds covered the view, so that wasn't a reason to be outdoors doing this activity any more. But the kids persisted.
We still had probably close to 200 people there, youth and their leaders. It was cold and wet, but they wore coats and brought flashlights, umbrellas and even water. (Some came thinking they were still hiking!) And you know what? The messages were shared. The messages were received. The event was successful and though required a bit of last minute, thinking on your feet, the kids did a great job.
So, just because I (as an adult leader) would have done it differently, and communicated a Plan B option earlier, the task is complete and that is what is important.
This activity was the kick-off for a month's worth of weekly congregational activities that have to do with the temple. our committee designed a "Commitment Path" with varied stops along the way to discuss--in age groups--standards of friends, honesty, dating, and personal purity with all the groups ending up together for a concluding talk by a member of our stake presidency about the temple and the value in being worthy to go there someday.
Well, we have worked with this group of kids since about March or so. They planned and pulled off our terrific Stake Youth Conference in June. We have taught them leadership skills throughout the year. Apparently they are learning well. The last two meetings about this activity last night, the adults weren't invited. They called and held the meeting without the adults.
Herein lies the monster.
The activity they planned was a hike to a location that overlooks the city and from which you can see the temple in the distance. The trouble was not everyone could make that hike due to the physical limitations each may have. For example, one young man is recovering from heart surgery for a congenital heart issue. Another young woman has avoided knee surgery after an injury but is doing very careful physical therapy and hiking is out for her.
I figured the answer would be for a rain out, then all the kids int eh stake could attend. The message being more important than the physical activity--at least in my eyes. And rain it did! But the committee still held out hope they could do it as planned. After several hours of rain, they resigned themselves to Plan B, which was to stay at the pavilion at the trail head and hold their discussions in the corners of the pavilion and then come together at the end, as planned. The clouds covered the view, so that wasn't a reason to be outdoors doing this activity any more. But the kids persisted.
We still had probably close to 200 people there, youth and their leaders. It was cold and wet, but they wore coats and brought flashlights, umbrellas and even water. (Some came thinking they were still hiking!) And you know what? The messages were shared. The messages were received. The event was successful and though required a bit of last minute, thinking on your feet, the kids did a great job.
So, just because I (as an adult leader) would have done it differently, and communicated a Plan B option earlier, the task is complete and that is what is important.
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
That's What She Said
Some days, I could imagine Genius Golfer in this exact situation. But then, I'd have to make him a lunch, which I don't. Otherwise, it is totally us. Sorry, hun.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Sounds Good
Yesterday I heard a topic on the afternoon talk radio station that made me think. The hosts were talking with a family/marriage counselor about relationships. Something the counselor said resonated with me all night and throughout today.
He said "You can't talk your way out of something you acted your way into."
What I got from that was no matter what word you use after you display bad behavior, there is nothing that will completely erase that behavior from memory. It kind of goes with the "Do as I say, not as I do" mentality.
How often am I judged by those around me--my family, my friends, my neighbors, and total strangers--bases solely on what actions? I know when I have made mistakes and then apologized as quick as I could, in the back of their minds they could have been still doubting the sincerity of my apology. And really I don't blame them.
I believe what I see you do for a lot longer than I believe what you say you'll do, or think, or whatever. Is this proof of my judgemental-ness? Maybe. But I think we all make snap decisions about those with whom we associate--and that is generally formed from their actions.
"You can't talk your way out of something you acted your way into."
There is truth in that statement. Like, the kind of truth that gets embroidered on throw pillows; Yes, that kind of truth. Makes me want to do better. Again.
He said "You can't talk your way out of something you acted your way into."
What I got from that was no matter what word you use after you display bad behavior, there is nothing that will completely erase that behavior from memory. It kind of goes with the "Do as I say, not as I do" mentality.
How often am I judged by those around me--my family, my friends, my neighbors, and total strangers--bases solely on what actions? I know when I have made mistakes and then apologized as quick as I could, in the back of their minds they could have been still doubting the sincerity of my apology. And really I don't blame them.
I believe what I see you do for a lot longer than I believe what you say you'll do, or think, or whatever. Is this proof of my judgemental-ness? Maybe. But I think we all make snap decisions about those with whom we associate--and that is generally formed from their actions.
"You can't talk your way out of something you acted your way into."
There is truth in that statement. Like, the kind of truth that gets embroidered on throw pillows; Yes, that kind of truth. Makes me want to do better. Again.
Monday, October 3, 2011
Girls' Night, Of Sorts
The Girl and I got invited to my SIL's place for a Girls' Night craft party during the priesthood session of conference this weekend. Well, my week was so crazy last week that I never got to SLC to pick up the crafty project basics, so The Girl brought her leaf collection project fro her AP Biology class and worked on that. I decided to come and just visit.
Our niece and niece-in-law and their babies joined us, along with Grandmama and the other SIL and her girls. Plus one of niece's friends who is going to school at BYU, from what I gathered.
It was good I didn't have something to concentrate on after all. I discovered in my visiting--when I could get a word in--that one of my brothers-in-law had changed jobs and had shoulder surgery. Two nephews double in a group of 15 couples for their Homecoming dance the week before. Another nephew just got a job andnow has his dad's car to get from school to work and home again, and the missionary nephew gets 2-3 packages a week at the MTC. That answered the "Did he get my box of cookies I sent?" question I had. Maybe he didn't even notice them among all the other things he received.
In conferences past, we have tried to do this sort of thing. Actually we began with the "let's go out to dinner" idea. But I think that got a little crazy when niece married and the families' women combined a few times for the night out. Plus--while I like the extended extended family--I didn't get much visiting with my own extended family done that way. That and I think each matriarch had differing ideas of what they wanted to do. So we are back with our family-unless you count the random friends-again.
Sometimes I think it is easier when The Girl has plans with her friends and I can just stay home and veg out. But I am trying to connect with GG's family as often as they'll have me. And from the amount of info that was new to me, I guess I had better try harder.
Our niece and niece-in-law and their babies joined us, along with Grandmama and the other SIL and her girls. Plus one of niece's friends who is going to school at BYU, from what I gathered.
It was good I didn't have something to concentrate on after all. I discovered in my visiting--when I could get a word in--that one of my brothers-in-law had changed jobs and had shoulder surgery. Two nephews double in a group of 15 couples for their Homecoming dance the week before. Another nephew just got a job andnow has his dad's car to get from school to work and home again, and the missionary nephew gets 2-3 packages a week at the MTC. That answered the "Did he get my box of cookies I sent?" question I had. Maybe he didn't even notice them among all the other things he received.
In conferences past, we have tried to do this sort of thing. Actually we began with the "let's go out to dinner" idea. But I think that got a little crazy when niece married and the families' women combined a few times for the night out. Plus--while I like the extended extended family--I didn't get much visiting with my own extended family done that way. That and I think each matriarch had differing ideas of what they wanted to do. So we are back with our family-unless you count the random friends-again.
Sometimes I think it is easier when The Girl has plans with her friends and I can just stay home and veg out. But I am trying to connect with GG's family as often as they'll have me. And from the amount of info that was new to me, I guess I had better try harder.
Sunday, October 2, 2011
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