Where Does It Go?

In a city I previously lived in, my trips to the local post office required special preparation.

I had learned through experience what to expect: a very long line, a low staff-to-customer ratio and a tense atmosphere; the proverbial rules of engagement (how to navigate the space, engage with the staff etc.) seemed to change each time. Yelling, both from and to customers, was not uncommon.

No one was happy. The employees. The customers. Even the florescent lighting seemed a bit melancholic.

So when I had to go, I armored up; braced for anything with headphones in tow in hopes that a playlist would bring some ease as I waited my turn.

However, one thing always struck me.

Every so often, I would witness someone storm out of the building - sometimes after completing their transaction, sometimes fed up of waiting in line. And I would wonder as I watched them leave - where does that frustration go next?

They walked in to the building with a certain mental state, emotional state, perception of the world and/or perception of themselves, yet may have walked out with another, simply as a result of their interaction with that business on that day.

I believe how people are 'left' after interacting with a business is the real bottom line. The balance sheet or a signed employment letter is only part of the story. By how businesses are leaving people, I mean what is the mental, emotional, physiological, psychological state businesses leave the human beings that interact with it?

And where does it then go? How might that state influence

…their interactions with fellow commuters later that day?

...how they engage with their family when they return home?

...their disposition towards the first person they interact with at the next business they go to?

... their view of themselves?

This isn't about that one post office location, of course

When someone has spent hours trying to decipher the confusing instructions that came with the desk they brought online, where does that exasperation go?

When a person is repeatedly publicly berated by their manager at work - where does that shame go?

When some one has to read a piece of communication from an organization five times in a bid to to understand it - where does that agitation go?

How might that impact how they see themselves and ability to comprehend - even if for a few moments?

Alternatively...

When an individual navigates a website and finds it has accommodations for their learning disability (shoutout Experience Futures as this is one of its focus areas) - where does that gratitude go?

When an individual finds in their work environment a place where they can flourish holistically, where does that contentment go?

How are we as leaders - via our organizational cultures, products, services, experiences, leadership styles - leaving people?

I believe we must define success not only in dollars but also by the way each individual - be it a customer, employee, supplier etc. is left seeing themselves, their value and capacity for connection - timeless human needs which have only been exacerbated by the pandemic. Needs that when met, translate to unbridled levels of loyalty, advocacy and new sources of value for businesses. This is how people respond to love.

We may primarily think of 'job done' as delivery of a product or service or employment. What if the real opportunity we have daily is to leave people better through those things? With this as the outcome, indeed there is upside to financial, strategic and operational goals, and there is upside to each person, and potentially, other persons they will interact with.

There is an impact every single interaction leaves on the humanity of people (even if oh-so-subtle). We must be then intentional about what it is we want to reverberate.