southern girl on emotional labor

"How dare you? How can you squander even one more day not taking advantage of the greatest shifts of our generation? How dare you settle for less when the world has made it so easy for you to be remarkable."
- Seth Godin, Purple Cow

"Being noticed is not the same as being remarkable. Running down the street naked will get you noticed, but it won't accomplish much. It's easy to pull off a stunt but not useful."
-Seth Godin, blog

     I've been reading a lot of Seth Godin lately. Seth tells me that I can be an artist. Seth tells me that in order to succeed in this rapidly changing world that I have to pursue art in my very being, go against my "lizard brain", and stop being a cog in the corporate machine that America's old system has raised me to be. Seth inspires me! Seth frustrates the dog out of me. (First Southernism of the day.)
     For all this and more read Linchpin: Are You Indispensable? by Seth Godin.

     I didn't start this blog today to rave on about Seth and the many things he has to teach us as a society. He can do that himself. But what I do want to address is the art that he so frequently writes about. You have to be an artist to get ahead. Does that mean I have to learn to paint? photograph? draw? sculpt? No. It means that whatever you do, you should strive to invest emotional labor into it. That's what sets you apart from others. That's what people will remember you for, will cause them to remark about you later. The art is the emotion in the mundane.

    A remarkable man came to speak to my 8:00 AM Introduction to Hospitality class a couple of weeks ago. (He actually introduced me to the works of Seth Godin.) His name is Michael Chaffin and he is the general manager of the Capital Hotel in Little Rock, Arkansas. (http://www.capitalhotel.com/site/. Book a room today!) He is an emotional laborer. You can look up his bio online and here's a link to his blog, http://www.starinthemargin.com/, all about the art of hospitality. Since hospitality is the calling I have answered, his insights very much intrigue me. Anyway, the point is that he also introduced me to the existence of Willie the Walmart greeter of Maumelle, AR. Yes, you read correctly. Willie is a Walmart greeter who has a profound affect on people's lives. He actually....wait for it....WELCOMES you to Walmart and not only that, he makes you feel good about being there and shopping, making the whole experience a little easier to stomach. That's talent, right there. Talent and effort combined can produce an explosive reaction. Rumor has it that children's whole day can be ruined if they go to Walmart and don't get to see Willie. (I have a feeling adults may feel the same way, but aren't as readily admitting it.) Here's a short clip of Willie in action.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyiZ4lAZ4E8

 

This is Willie in a picture taken from the Arkansas Democrat Gazette. It's one of my goals to go shopping in Maumelle and meet this man. Anyone who can make me not hate my Walmart shopping experience has to be a miracle worker. (No offense Walmart.) He's a local legend!

    This tells me that Willie is an artist. He's perfectly happy being a Walmart greeter. He invests in it emotionally and he reaps the benefits. So does everyone else. 

    It has never been my dream to be a Walmart door greeter, nor will it ever be, but I can learn a lot from this man, from the Willies, Michael Chaffins, Seth Godins, Steve Jobs's, Jack Whites, Harper Lees, etc. of the world who produce art and create emotional inspiration, in the things, tasks, and people they touch.  

   So, here's a question, how can I, you, me, we be the emotion, the innovator, the piece that hold things together wherever we are in life? Is my job at the Embassy Suites as a banquet server really that important? Would the whole place fall apart without me? How about as a graduate student? Would the program sincerely miss my presence if I dropped out tomorrow? What scares me the most is that the answer to these questions is "NO". Today and for the past few weeks I have lived in a state of inspiration. I have to figure out how to add to these places. Seth taught me to always start investing emotionally where I am currently. Don't wait for the perfect situation to come along, because the truth of the matter is, it never will come. You have to make it so. I have to make it so. That's hard! 

    I'm trying to adopt a new hospitality philosophy. I'm attempting to combine my at home hospitality views with my at work hospitality views. It's hard to change a 25 year mentality y'all. When you come to my house, I want you to be comfortable. I want you to feel at home. If I don't offer you something to drink within the first 5 minutes, shame on me. "Need a beverage?" "Are you cold, how about a blanket?" "How's your mom and them?" Southerners are supposed to be warm and welcoming and put guests first, as per my raising (the way I was raised). But at work, do I act this way? Not usually. I just do my job and go home = cog in the machine. People want to be treated with warmth. Not like they are in one big, cold convention center or hotel where the food magically appears in front of them and magically disappears. That's not personal at all. I may not chat them up like I would if they were guests in my home (since they're usually at an event for reasons other than talking to the wait staff) but I can make them feel at home while they're there. You want coffee?! I've got coffee! And if I don't, I'll go make you some with a smile on my face and spring in my step as I go. That's the goal (but many times not the reality). 

    Michael Chaffin told my class that he adopted the philosophy of being an innkeeper early in his career. He's not a general manager in the big bad business sort of sense. He's an innkeeper. His job is to keep the inn and make sure the guests feel at home. Not only the guests, but the employees as well. He said in his blog post, "Treat People Like Family," that he treats subordinates at work like family. It's not in what you say, but how you say it. If you wouldn't say it to the people you love, don't say it to the people you work with. What powerful insight. It must be working since The Capital made the 2012 TripAdvisor Traveler's Choice Top 25 Hotels in the United States. Not too shabby. http://www.tripadvisor.com/TravelersChoice-Hotels

  I take all of this to mean that everyone in hospitality should be a little more Southern. Okay, okay, what I really mean is that traditionally and culturally Southerners are known to be welcoming and hospitable. That's what this industry is looking for. And as for the rest? Well, even if you work at the Quik Sak on the late shift you should look for ways to enhance people's lives while you're at it. You will reap the benefits of that mentality. That's the kind of thing that makes you indispensable.

   I have friends who are actual artists. In fact, I am drawn to them like a moth to a flame. I like to think, no, I know that all of my close friends are artists to some degree or another. They are all passionate about what they endeavor to do, be it their jobs or when they're crafting at home (as many of them tend to be rather crafty.) One of my friends is an actual artist by trade. Here is a sample of her work: http://jordankennedy.500px.com/. She's brilliant and beautiful and she inspires others to be passionate about things they might never pursue otherwise. (Love you Jordan.) And there are others: Lacey Gebhart, Jillian Johnson, Rachel Acosta, Stacey Perry, all the Ashleys, my little brother Clint, my parents, the list goes on and on making me realize how much of a blessing these people are to my life. They are essential to my being, and they spread their gifts to those around them, wherever they are and whatever they're doing. (At least three of them live halfway across the country from me.) 

   Pardon my friend rant. What I want the few readers of this blog post to take away from it is that you have the capability to be useful, unique, and bring emotion and art to the areas in which you participate, no matter what they are. Whether it be working at a museum, in the science department of a university, as a resident director, a stay-at-home mom, an actual artist, or a kid in the band; we as people are now on the market for emotion, as well as skill. Bring it to the table, or spend a lifetime wondering what could have been. Self-fulfillment starts with us. Challenge accepted.