Being Willing to Go the Extra Mile

One of the nose pads on my glasses fell off and went missing on Wednesday. I wore those glasses all day long while being uncomfortably poked by the empty wire with no pad on it. Since I’m in Austin, I had to find a vision center asap. So, Thursday morning I found the closest nearby eyeglasses center and expressed my dilemma.

Now, mind you, I didn’t get my glasses there so they could have just turned me away, especially when they didn’t carry my brand of eyeglasses. But, you would have thought I was a VIP to them. Not only did Gayle find a pad and put it on, but when I asked if I could purchase a backup pad, she gave me two. I was going into my purse to pay and she said, “Oh, that’s not necessary!” Then she tightened the wires on my glasses so the pads wouldn’t fall off so easily. Then, she sprayed them and cleaned them with an impressive cloth. I asked if they sold those cloths and she said, “No, not this size, but I’ll give you two smaller ones!” Oh. My. Goodness. I was taken back by this kind lady’s thoughtfulness, kindness, and generosity. I quickly texted my children and said: “If you need glasses, go here!"

That is what I call going the extra mile – above and beyond what I asked for – an all too unfamiliar experience these days. How often do business representatives appear to be bothered when we ask them a question? How often are we made to feel that we are taking advantage of them if they have to get up out of their seat to get something for us? Don’t they know I’m a valuable customer that helps pay their salary?

I heard the Benham Brothers ( benhambrothers.com ) talk about the way they started in real estate. They would go help banks manage their bank-owned properties, but they didn’t stop there, they mowed the lawns and fixed up the houses. They went the extra mile and their real estate business exploded. They said they teach their children to always go the extra mile. “If your teacher asks for a 10-page report, give her 11 pages.” If you’re mowing a neighbor’s lawn, go the second mile!”

That “go the extra mile” quote is found in Matthew 5:41 when Jesus was giving His Sermon on the Mount. He said, “If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles.” It was during that time that there was a law that if a Roman soldier came up to a Jew and asked him to carry his pack, the Jew, by law, had to carry it for one mile. Jesus was saying “When you are forced by law to carry that pack one mile, I want you to carry it two. The first mile fulfills an obligation. The second mile fulfills the Law of Love.” Customer service is in the Bible!

Customer service and satisfaction are BIG on my list. Being a people person having been in sales and marketing for many years, I notice genuine care and concern for customers. This experience with this optical business gave me hope for other companies and businesses becoming "customer-friendly and customer-focused", too. The greatest part of this experience was, once again, to take life in stride. Yes, I was bugged with those eye-glasses poking me and having to go out of my way to find a vision center. But, little and big stuff happens and when it does.....SHIFT the focus off of the stress, concern, and worry by picking up a penny, and reading IN GOD WE TRUST.

Oh, that’s what happened right after that eyeglasses repair. I went to another store and parked and when I got out of my car, there on the ground beside my car were seven pennies. Pennies from heaven! I could just hear God saying “There you go! Trust me in each and everything! Nothing is a surprise to Me. I noticed that you said 'God bless you' to the clerk! You gave Me to her. Great way to say “THANKS!'"

"All things work together for good to those who love God and are the called according to His purposes." Romans 8:28.