But did you mean it?

Greetings BAye Hive!

Have you ever experienced this?

You walk into a place of business. The customer service representative greets you like so:

"Hello, how are you?"

You then perk up and respond ever so happily with:

"I'm (fill in the blank), how are you?"

Only to find that they've either turned away or returned their attention to what was previously occupying them.

These types of exchanges make my nervous system itch! I make it a point to return greetings and pleasantries at all times. When this happens, it leads me to believe those individuals are operating out of habit and their greeting is not genuine. 

If I ask someone how they are doing, I actually want to know how they are. It makes no sense to me to ask if you sincerely don't care or don't care if you receive a response.

The alternative would be to just say "Hello" or "Welcome" with a smile if course. Most sales based operations usually have a script that follows their greeting eliminating the "how are you" follow up. Scripted greetings are perfectly okay with me. I say "thank you" or "will do" and move on.

I am not okay with being asked a question and my answer treated as if it is not important. What to do? I typically readdress the individual with something like, "I asked, how are you?"

This usually causes a bit of awkward hesitation before attempting to respond. For some, a slight stammer or nervous laughter before I finally receive a reply. It also, if for a second, let's them know I genuinely care about them and how they are in that moment. You will never know what an extra 30 seconds of your time could do for a person until you've been that person. Trust me!

My takeaway: The first letter in my P.O.I.S.E.D acronym is "P" for Purposeful. I chose that word because I, you, we, need to get out of old habits so that we can embrace new things. Starting with something so simple as a greeting and response is a step toward being purposeful in your actions. I promise you, you might not only make someone's day, you may also change the course of their life. Say what you mean and mean what you say!

Until next time remain...

If you'd like to contact Professor Poised for an upcoming event you may be having in the Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas area, you can reach her at info@poisedaffairsevents.com or visit  www.poisedaffairsevents.com.