I’m the coauthor of a book that just came out, The Platinum Rule to Customer Service:
Treating Customers the Way They Want to be Treated (available on Amazon,
btw!). I’ve been feeling pretty good
about that fact. I quit my teaching job and
decided to live the rest of my life being happy. Writing makes me happy, so I thought the
universe was giving me a ‘thumbs up’ sign that the day I turned in my
resignation, “my” book came out.
For the sake of honesty, disclosure, whatever… I have to
confess that I’ve been harboring a little inner feeling of being, oh, what’s
the word, - hot shit - since the concept of “published author” entered my
psyche . The book is about providing
outstanding customer service and twelve of us each wrote a chapter. Think Chicken
Soup for the Soul, only the focus is on making clients a priority. I’m only one of twelve but the other eleven
are phenomenal so I was pretty jazzed about being considered “one of them.”
Well, the universe, much like the stock market, had a little
correction; knocking me down a peg or two.
For the last month, whenever KC and I would go out and
witness or personally experience bad customer service, I would mutter to him, “They
need a copy of my book.” Earlier in the
day, I had gone to my former school’s end of the year party and the assistant
principal didn’t even acknowledge me – ouch.
But then I saw the email and everything changed. “I don’t need her stupid acknowledgment,” I said
to myself.
I was so excited when I opened the email and saw it came
with a JPEG of the cover and a Kindle version of the actual book content
attached. I immediately opened the attachment
with the cover. It was the most
beautiful sight in the world… there it was – my name – on the cover of an
actual book. Annnnd, since I came first
alphabetically, I was listed first. ‘Oh
yeah, this is just all falling into place,’ I thought with much satisfaction. Facebook had to see this. After posting a picture of the cover, I then
opened up the Kindle version of the book and started going through the
pages. The first chapter’s author is
listed as Brenda Carver; nope, not me. I turn the page and something familiar
catches my eye. I begin to read
further. Wait! This is MY chapter!! I think you could literally hear the air
going out of my ego. I go through the
pages and there’s my picture and bio, with the right name, so at least that
part was right. I flip further and find
Brenda’s chapter is next. My shining
moment was not supposed to go like this.
I think a little tear streamed down my face. I go back to Facebook and humbly take down
the picture of the cover. It was late at night,
so thankfully/hopefully not many people had seen it yet. I fire off an email to the book’s coordinator
and then proceed to have panic attack.
I woke up this morning, hoping it was all a bad
dream. Nope, it definitely was not. I get back an email from the book
coordinator. It was a little curt,
probably deservedly so. It would be
fixed. I whine, in my head, “But I wanted to take it to
Michigan with me!” I then ask myself, “Why do you want to do that?” And since I was talking to myself, I really had no choice but to be honest, “To show off.” I then begin
to analyze the events, along with my attitude, and realize I most likely
deserved this.
Well done, universe.
Well done.
