Do you inspire joy?

Dance We spent the weekend in New York City.  While we were there, we saw the new play, Curtains.  It’s a whodunit musical and well worth the ticket price.  The performances, singing, dancing and choreography were really something to behold.

As I stood watching people spill out of the theatre, a young girl about five years old literally came dancing up the aisle.  Her face was one of pure joy.  At that moment, she *was* on that stage, dancing to the roaring crowd.  You could see it all in her eyes.

My first thought was, "I wish the cast could see her.  They’d be reminded why they chose this profession.  Because they inspire joy."

My second thought was for you.  (And me.)  Do we inspire joy in our work?  Does our product or service make our customers want to dance?

It’s really easy to dismiss that question with a "We don’t sing or dance, we build websites.  Or we sell checking accounts …or we  insure their families."  But that’s a cop-out.

Every one of us has the capacity to create a joyful experience.  Haven’t you ever hung up the phone with a big smile on your face because someone exceeded your expectations?  Haven’t you ever finished a meeting with a business partner and felt so good about the work you’re doing together that you wanted to do a little jig?  How about that little song of relief that wants to burst out when you realize that someone really and truly "gets" you and your work?

If not…you need to find new business partners.  And if we’re not inspiring our clients, so do they.

What could you do that would inspire joy in your clients this week?

And now, for your viewing pleasure…some shots (off their official website) of Curtains.  The lead in the play is David Hyde Pierce (Frasier’s brother Niles). 

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9 comments on “Do you inspire joy?

  1. This is a great question. We leave an impression on our customers/clients everyday. For some this is good…for some this is bad. This post has compelled me to take a look at how we inspire our customers.

  2. Charlie says:

    Marketers can change the world by creating customer experiences that generate excitement, enthrallment, optimism, community etc., etc.

  3. Nic Darling says:

    This reminds me of sitting in an interview with our CEO. He is so excited about our company and our product that I find myself thinking, by the end of the interview, “man, I want to work with that guy” even though I already do. It seems like “spreading joy” to your employees and customers is about being joyful yourself. You can’t spread what you don’t have.

  4. Scott,

    When you took the time to look at how you do/could inspire your customers, what did you see?

    Hey — would you be willing to be a test case on this blog? Let us tell all these smart marketers a little about your business and maybe they can help you come up with some new ideas?

    If you are interested — e-mail me.

    Drew

  5. Lewis,

    Without a doubt — it starts with the employees. If they don’t feel the love, they don’t have love to share. That’s sort of the basis of our brand love affair visual. The person who we want to give the love, has to get some first.

    Drew

  6. Charlie —

    I think you are right. We can change the world. Or perhaps more accurate — we can change someone’s world. Why wouldn’t we want to do that?

    The question I think isn’t why don’t more companies do it. I think the real question is, how can we teach more companies how to do it. I don’t think it’s that they don’t want to. I think it’s that they don’t know how to.

    Drew

  7. Howie,

    It does feel good to be the person who puts the smile or the joy on a person’s face. Or reassures them when they’re worried or solves a problem that’s been bugging them.

    The next step is to figure out how to do that within the brand of your company and how to teach every employee that it is their privilege to spread the joy.

    Drew

  8. Helen,

    And…we also know all buying decisions are born in emotion. SO not only are we making someone feel special/good but we are also setting ourselves up to increase sales.

    Everyone wins.

    Drew

  9. Nic,

    Wow…that is a very cool and very unusual thing to say about one’s boss. You are exactly right about not being able to share/pass on something you don’t possess.

    What is it, do you think, about your boss that give him that level of passion?

    Drew

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