Do You Do What You Say? : Miles Crisp

We currently have a broken garden pump;  apparently with a detached non-return valve. I phoned our service provider who came out to diagnose our problem pretty quickly. He informed me of the approximate cost of the replacement part, took sufficient cash from me and said he would be back the next day to fit it.

It has been more than a week now, and in that time he has not phoned me back once. I phone him every day – I now have the rundown (from him) on every emergency in my area, and for the last three days when I have phoned he has physically been on his way to my house. The last time I was treated to sound effects of the AA service truck helping him to fix his broken down bakkie as proof of his bad luck and goodwill. That restored my confidence in him immediately!

More than a week has now passed, he has my cash, and I will need to start to find another service provider before our pool evaporates completely and the garden gets scorched to death in the current heat wave. I don’t ever want him here again. When you bump into him in your local pub, he will be the one complaining about the economic downturn, and what that is doing to his business.

This incident made me think about one’s word, and about reliability.

You probably also get these special phone calls after each car service, asking you about your customer experience. I usually score my service agent 5 out 5 for everything, except for the thing that really bugs me – but then that is not on the questionnaire. You probably also get great service for the standard 100000km service ; car back clean, on time, old parts on the front seat in a plastic bag. When I asked for the left front mud-flap to be replaced, I was told, “We don’t carry stock of that, the part is on order, and we will phone you when we have received it.”

End of story.

The promise to phone back was a platitude to get me out of the door. Everyone knows it is just an expression, like asking, “How are you?”

I usually wait a week or so, and then go through a two to four week charade of begging pitifully for the mud-flap which is on back order. By the time I get the flap, every single person from the franchise CEO down knows that I have a new mud-flap. I tell them. I lie – I think I did get phoned back once.

Occasionally I encounter someone who actually does what he said he would – and I want to nominate him for a State President’s Award. I can even tell you well in advance which of my business colleagues and clients will be there on time when I arrange to meet them, and who will not. I have one client (and it does not seem to matter which person at this place I am seeing) who keeps me sitting in reception for at least thirty minutes every single time. This is presumably just to remind me who has the cheque book.

I think we could empty half of the cardio wards in town in one fell swoop, if we all suddenly just did what we said we would do.

I have re-resolved to do what I say I will do. After all, I am really the only person over whom I have control. I have re-resolved to think about what I commit to, because I hereby agree to enter into a contract with myself every time I give an undertaking. If for any reason I think I need to renege on my contract, I will communicate with affected parties straight away.

If you have read this, I invite you to join me. Put your hand on your heart, sing Nkosi Sikele, and repeat after me –

“I promise to do what I say I will do.”

If we all do this together, do not pass Go, you may proceed straight to heaven!

 Cover photo courtesy of eHow.com