Times Up!
November 17, 2009
Being nice to strangers is a concept that seems to have gone out of style, but you’ll see how a nice gesture can make a difference in someone’s life.
Many people attend expensive and prestigious graduate business schools to learn the best ways to attract and retain customers. But sometimes, the best ideas come from the places you least expect them.
Last weekend, we took our 11-year-old daughter with us to see a craft show held in the plaza where we live. While my wife and I find this an enjoyable way to spend an afternoon, my daughter wasn’t particularly thrilled. But since she had no other plans, she decided to join us.
We parked our car, and used our “meter key” to pay for the parking. You can purchase this meter key at the parking bureau and keep it on your keychain instead of having to fumble around to find change to pay the meter. Each time you insert the key into the meter, it deducts 25 cents from your balance.
As we were walking form our parking spot to the craft show, my daughter noticed that the car we were passing was parked at an expired meter. She asked what would happen if he got caught. I explained that he would probably get a $20 parking ticket.
My daughter thought about this for a minute then asked if she could borrow my keys. ”Why?” I asked. ”You’ll see,” she said.
She then proceeded to put my meter key into the expired meter to put 20 minutes on the clock. ”Now if he’s a little late, at least he won’t get a ticket!” she said. Over the next few hours, she “saved” about a dozen cars from the possibility of getting parking tickets at a total cost to me of around three dollars.
Sure, it was my money, but it was worth every cent to see my daughter thinking about ways she could help people she would probably never meet. And it got me to thinking about the chance encounters we all have that sometimes turn into incredible opportunities.
Just like we publish this newsletter and distribute it for free, try to find something you can do for someone that will show your willingness to help without expecting something in return.
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