Fourteen Days of Praise

Day 1

So many times in life we are quick to remember and keep in mind the hurtful experiences we have had, we do not for a moment pause and count our blessings. As the years speedily comes to an end I have thought it wise to take out a fortnight and be thankful for my many blessing these years.

As I ponder on the events of time pasts the lyrics in a song by Marvin Sapp – “Never Would’ve Made It” keeps on coming to mind over and over. I agree in my spirit and confess with my mouth I never would have made it without God and His Grace, Cover, Protection and His Abundant Love. In all that has happened in the course of Life’s journey, I’m in awe of His goodness and would for the days to come appreciate my Creator for distinct things each day.

• I’m grateful first and foremost for the gift of Life which has been freely given without charge even in all of my sins.
• His Grace. Your Grace oh Lord has been more than abundant in my every day Life, from dawn to dusk all I see is your Grace and mercy. Thank you Jesus for your amazing Grace and all you’ve done for me.
• I appreciate you Jesus for the privilege to be born into a Christian home. It is the greatest a child can have as that sets the pace for life’s journey in the right path.

With a heart of gratitude and thanksgiving I thank you for a day well lived in joy and praise.

 

Day 2

Today I woke up with a heaviness in my spirit and an uncertainty I can not fathom it’s source. In a rush I dashed into the shower and prepped for work, and in what has become a daily ritual my mum stopped me before I took the last step out of the building and bestowed upon me blessings and more blessings. I wished I could stop her but that is an impossible desire with a mama like her, the prayer continued and for another five six minutes. Well, I’m at work now and it is becoming a dreaded day but I’m going strong because of the words which had proceeded from the tongue of Heavens favorite daughter.

I am reminded of how much we take for granted the sacrifices of parents.

• Today I am grateful for a life with parents, the minor pinches, loud voices when scolding, tears rolling when I pull out my luggage to head to school or take a trip, the many nights I wake up and hear her cover each child of her with the Blood that is greater than every blood, releasing her strength into us and interceding on our behalf.
• As I seat and listen to each customer one after the other trying to figure out what I can do to alleviate their pain, I drift partially into thoughts and imagine what mama goes through thinking similar yet deeper thoughts on a daily. Thank you Lord for a strong woman for a mother.

It’s 7pm already and I feel as strong as I should have earlier in the day. The day went on well taking a different path all because a gentle soul took the pain to pray peace into my day. Thank you Mama.

 

Day 3

There has been in the past 11years three near death experiences caused by fire outbreak, with all three happening on the road in a vehicle with friends. It made me develop a certain kind of phobia for even as little as a match box for obvious reasons.

While attending to a customer earlier today, I perceived smoke in the office, looked around and didn’t see anything. I continued on my desk trying to take my mind off but oh boy I couldn’t, I beckoned out to a junior colleague and asked him to confirm where the smoke was coming from only for to look around and at the end of the hall was a dark cloud of smoke from the air conditioning system mounted on the wall, he switched it off and decided to go outside to see where it came from. He came back screaming to all to evacuate the building as the generator was on full blown raze. You can imagine my confusion at that time, I looked around, didn’t see my colleague and went looking for her, she was having lunch in such a relaxed state. I told there was a situation and she needed to leave the building.

We all evacuated, the security men on ground exhausted five fire extinguishers and yet the fire was increasing instead of otherwise. This experience is my last I decree. In a flash I remembered my dreams, desires, wishes and plans with my sister mum and darlyn ( yes! darlyn), I know it wouldn’t end this way, there are lots of unconquered territories.

• Those prayer lines of protection resounding in my ears in the subconscious had a deeper meaning today. I silently echoed “Amen” over and over and “Thank you Jesus” till I heard the fire was gone. Thank you Heavens for safe guarding our lives in delicate times such as this.
• For keeping me safe for over 15,696 days of waking and going to work in darkness. It can only end in praise….!!! Halleluyah, thank you Jesus.

 

The Emotionally Intelligent Customer Service Officer

The mechanisms of business can be overwhelming. Even the simplest problems can splinter into energy-sapping challenges-rife with internal hurdles like politics, communication problems, or lack of support. In customer experience management those challenges can threaten how we relate to customers as people. In our embrace of data points—armed with our head-down, hurdle-jumping mindset – we can turn our noble cause into an awful lot of work….George Jacob 

Emotional intelligence is the ability to sense, understand and effectively apply the power and acumen of your emotions and the emotions of others in order to facilitate higher levels of collaboration and productivity.

As a Customer Service Professional you would have at some point, encountered irritated, angry and even irrational customers; however, tuning into customers’ emotional needs is a prerequisite for achieving customer engagement and satisfaction. This is absolutely important because engaged customers are the ones that stick around for years. They bring in new business with their ebullient recommendations, ultimately boosting organization’s profit margin, share price, and ROI. Customers’ emotions aren’t one-size-fits all and in order to figure out what each customer wants, front-line officers must have tools that help them maximize their own emotional intelligence.

There are five dimensions of emotional intelligence: self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy and social skills.

• Self-Awareness – the ability to recognize and understand your moods, emotions and drives, as well as their effect on others. Accurate assessment of who you are.
• Self-Regulation – the ability to control or redirect disruptive impulses and moods, and the propensity to suspend judgment to think before acting. Being conscientious.
• Motivation – a passion to work for reasons that go beyond money or status and a propensity to pursue goals with energy, drive, passion, and persistence.
• Empathy – the ability to understand the emotional makeup of other people.
• Social Skills – a proficiency in managing relationships and building networks.

It is easy to see the connection between EQ (Emotional quotient) and Customer service. When your staff is better equipped to understand their own emotions, they can more effectively temper their reactions to deal with the issues of the customer.

Likewise, being able to better understand customers’ emotions will help Customer Service Professionals see through the clouds of reaction and approach each customers problem more clearly.

Customer Contact Officers must remember at all times that customers today aren’t just guided by traditional market drivers, but are equally influenced by emotional experiences with a brand. If Customer Service Officers are upbeat and empathetic to their customers, there’s improved customer engagement. Engaged customers will not only boost profit margins, but bring business for years to come.

Ultimately, the essence of customer service is empathy, our job is to help them, so they will come back again. If we can show more value, treat them kindly, and make their lives easier, then we’re giving them reasons to come back. Customers are people, with needs to satisfy and problems to solve.

Customer service is an attitude not a department. It is the onus of every staff of a corporate body to be customer centric, after-all we are in business and it’s because of our customers.

DO MEN LOVE

♥Does it only baffles me how in a minute he is all over you

He’s calling,

He’s texting,

He’s visiting, and always wanting to be just by your side

…..then boom he wants to disappear♥.

Is there something we do as women unconsciously that push our men away?

Are men just plain irresponsible?

♥Do we really come from different planet (Venus – Mars) and as such can’t co-habit?

The big question is….what do men really look out for in relationships?

 

 

My journey to the naturals

Woke up with the need to have a different look as NYSC was coming to an end.

I colored my tips wine red, yet, I wasn’t satisfied so I thought to myself “why not cut it all off and start from bottom up, but……..I couldn’t get myself to loosing all my very nourished hair of so many years, so I decided to take it one month after the other.

When it was time to visit the salon and apply relaxer, I washed it instead and h*ll yes, I felt crazy.

Anyways it’s been 10 months down the line and this is what I have to show for it….A very spongy full blown African woman hair.

Kudos to muah. The journey has just begun.

I will trim off the tips as I progress with my growth.

Voila!

MY MOTHER

How you swung me in that cradle

Singing lullaby to make me sleep

Oh! So gentle I lay in your arms enjoying the warmth and security therein

So much care you gave and made me grow so healthy and strong

Even nights when I kept up you tendered to all my needs and beamed with smiles

For all those many times you held my tiny hands and laugh just looking at me flutter my tiny legs

So much joy you felt thye day I took my very first step said my first word

Thank you mom for love so pure

Cares and attention undivided, advice that kept me straight.

…Prayers that kept me safe.

Thank you mom for all you are and all you always will be.

I love you

Happy birthday Maiworld!

The Emotionally Intelligent Customer Service Officer

The mechanisms of business can be overwhelming. Even the simplest problems can splinter into energy-sapping challenges-rife with internal hurdles like politics, communication problems, or lack of support. In customer experience management those challenges can threaten how we relate to customers as people. In our embrace of data points -armed with our head-down, hurdle-jumping mindset – we can turn our noble cause into an awful lot of work – George Jacob 

Emotional intelligence is the ability to sense, understand and effectively apply the power and acumen of your emotions and the emotions of others in order to facilitate higher levels of collaboration and productivity.

As a customer service professional you would have at some point, encountered irritated, angry and even irrational customers; however, tuning into customers’ emotional needs is a prerequisite for achieving customer engagement and satisfaction. This is important because engaged customers are the ones that stick around for years. They bring in new business with their ebullient recommendations, ultimately boosting organization’s profit margin, share price, and ROI. Customers’ emotions aren’t one-size-fits all. In order to figure out what each customer wants, front-line officers must have tools that help them maximize their own emotional intelligence.

There are five dimensions of emotional intelligence: self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy and social skills.

• Self-Awareness – the ability to recognize and understand your moods, emotions and drives, as well as their effect on others. Accurate assessment of who you are.
• Self-Regulation – the ability to control or redirect disruptive impulses and moods, and the propensity to suspend judgment to think before acting. Being conscientious.
• Motivation – a passion to work for reasons that go beyond money or status and a propensity to pursue goals with energy, drive, passion, and persistence.
• Empathy – the ability to understand the emotional makeup of other people.
• Social Skills – a proficiency in managing relationships and building networks.

It’s easy to see the connection between EQ and customer service. When your staff is better equipped to understand their own emotions, they can more effectively temper their reactions to deal with the issues of the customer.

Likewise, being able to better understand customers’ emotions will help them see through the clouds of reaction and approach each problem more clearly.

Contact centers must remember that customers today aren’t just guided by traditional market drivers, but are equally influenced by emotional experiences with a brand. If customer service officers are upbeat and empathetic to their customers, there’s improved customer engagement. Engaged customers will not only boost profit margins, but bring business for years to come.

Ultimately, the essence of customer service is empathy, our job is to help them, and so they will come back again. If we can show more value, treat them kindly, and make their lives easier, then we’re giving them reasons to come back. Customers are people, with needs to satisfy and problems to solve.

.

Mentorship

Mentor-ship : A collaborative process to embrace the person you want to be and create the life you want to live.

Source: Mentorship

Mentorship

photo credit : lifepalette.com

For most of my adult life I’d wanted a mentor but didn’t know how to find one. It wasn’t until five months ago sitting in a cafe with a friend over a cup of coconut ice cream which by the way is my favorite that it dawned on me.

Finding career mentors may actually be easier than you think, but asking someone you don’t know to be your mentor can be intimidating. A lot of factors contribute to it.

We have been together for most of that sunny Saturday and she had listened to me whine and whine over and again. Little girl as she fondly calls me, I think you have been getting this all wrong from the start.

There are certain things you should put into consideration before setting out to look for /contacting a prospective mentor. Questions you should ask and answer.

Here are a few:

• What kind of mentor do you want, in what areas of life do you need mentorship – career, personal, or business?
• What are your specific expectations and the role you want a mentor to play for instance, in your career?
• Do you want someone who can help your stalled networking attempts, assist you in learning more about a certain industry or provide guidance on how to be a successful entrepreneur?

Clarifying your expectations, goals and objectives will ensure that you find the right mentors and that the relationships benefit your professional goals.

• Think outside the cubicle and don’t restrict yourself.
• Set up a meeting.
• Be clear with a mentor – Once you’ve found someone who agrees to be your mentor, make sure you share the same commitment to your expectations.
• Overcome your jitters, mentors don’t bite.

After an evening of tête-à-tête I left with a better understanding and knew it was time to put pen to paper.

IT’S MORE THAN JUST A FUSS

Every now and then a man would do little things such as litter dirty clothes on the floor, not remember to keep the toilet seat closed, and leave wet towel on the mattress. Over and again his woman would say things like “Can you please stop dropping the towel on the mattress and all over the house?”

It isn’t a big deal to him, truth is, and it might never be

I have heard a few men talk about this and it seem to them that she is just nagging and by the way what is in a wet towel being on the floor or on the couch or even in the kitchen. It takes only a few seconds to put it in a proper place; she doesn’t have to make an issue of this. We should be having a wonderful Saturday but instead she chooses to spoil it with her little batter here and there

Truth is you don’t have to understand WHY she cares so much about that stupid toilet seat after all.  Unfortunately, most guys don’t know that she’s NOT fighting about the seat and wet towels. She’s fighting for acknowledgment, respect, validation, and his love

I think a lot of times, women don’t think it’s possible that their Men don’t know how their actions make them feel because they have told him, sometimes with tears in her eyes, over and over and over and over again how upset it makes her and how much it hurts

And this is important, not because she just says it but because as a woman I know it truly hurts. The ache goes deep and almost feels like a physical pain.

All she wants really is for him to Listen and feel and not say “I have to do this bullshit thing for my woman/wife again. It’s: “I’m grateful for another opportunity to demonstrate to my woman/wife that she comes first and that I can be counted on to be there for her, and needn’t look elsewhere for happiness and fulfillment

One very important factor of note is the feeling of appreciation and respect by one’s better half as this is essential to living a purposeful and meaningful life. A man would love to have the respect of his wife and there are things we can do as women to help them as an olive branch instead of blaming them for every breakdown. I would talk about this in series two

Once someone figures out how to help a man equate the towel situation (which does not, and will never, affect him emotionally) with DEEPLY wounding his wife and making her feel sad, alone, unloved, abandoned, disrespected, afraid, etc.… Once men really grasp that and accept it as true even though it doesn’t make sense to them?

Everything changes forever

Points to note:

• Telling a man something that doesn’t make sense to him once, or a million times, doesn’t make him “know” it any better
• Men are capable of behavioral change—(even when they don’t understand us or totally agree with our thought process)—can have a great relationship
• Since none of us are psychic and no one talks to us about these things, we’re usually flying blind….so give him the benefit of doubt

Above all, LOVE is seeking the good of the other at the expense of the self without expectation of return as the love given by one must be voluntarily reflected back

Every relationship should be rooted in open and honest dialogue. When you choose to love someone, it becomes your pleasure to do things that enhance the well-being of the other party

If as a woman you find yourself in this situation, learn to forgive and love him regardless unconditionally….He’s your baby

 

 

HOPES AND EXPECTATION

Sometime ago I read a post on unconditional love in relationships and marriages.

Truly, I think that exist only between a parent and a child. This kind of love is sacrificial and warm and tender and void of expectations from the child, till of course at a certain age.

In relationships, people talk about expectations as if they are a bad thing. In my mind, they are necessary and even healthy. When I commit to someone, I expect that it is exclusive.

They are committing to me, and I to them. I expect them to not want to do certain things that would hurt me, or at least recognize when they are almost in situations where that can happen, and removing themselves beforehand.

“I expect them to care about me, and both consider and respect my opinions and ideas. I expect them to listen to me. I expect them to know when to push further, when to hold me. I expect them to know when to press on, correct/guide and lead”

To me expectations are tied to boundaries. We all have them, and I think they are needed.

In a relationship we need to be able to understand and respect each other’s boundaries

That doesn’t mean we always have to agree. That doesn’t mean we have to always meet them. But they are still important

Boundaries and expectations are critical to relationship success enforced fairly

Love is important. It’s powerful. It’s at the root of all our close interpersonal relationships (as well a relationship with oneself). Love is absolute, in that you will always love the person. However love alone is not enough. For a relationship to exist and to be successful, expectations do exist

If I have boundaries and things that I need and they are constantly not being met, I have two options

First, take a good look at myself and determine if my boundaries are really what I think they are. Can they shift? Should they shift?

Often people in broken relationships are constantly redrawing their boundaries, putting up with more and more in an attempt to “hold onto the relationship”.

But there comes a point where you’ve given up too much, and the other person is showing that they are interested in a relationship with you only when it is on their terms. There’s no give and take, just give while the other takes.

And when that happens, if shifting those boundaries any more means giving up too much of yourself for the relationship then option two is to walk away. And say yes, I love you still. But while I will always love you, love alone is not enough to maintain a relationship

You can unconditionally love your partner every day forever, but if he/she abuses, manipulates, hurts, etc. at that moment the relationship is likely to end, and almost certainly should

I just want people to think about their relationships (ALL of them–not just their romantic ones) and when there is drama and dysfunction, really explore why

I suspect it’s because for at least one of them, the relationship is mostly conditional. It’s unhealthy, and people should be self-aware about these sorts of things. It helps us in every imaginable life circumstances involving others

Never push your boundaries beyond bearable limit; it would get to a point where you would not recognize you