I’m fortunate enough to travel to some great places to serve my clients. During those travels, I can’t help but have many customer service interactions from which to draw lessons.

Here, I’ll share how barbecue, airplanes, and coffee can teach you a few things to do (or not do) to create a better experience for your customers.

Coffee

Last week I was in Chicago and Memphis, Tennessee. In Chicago, I showed up early for a breakfast meeting. I got there 15 minutes before the client team arrived. The restaurant was still setting up the private room for breakfast. The wait staff was running around doing last-minute preparations. I decided to stay out of their way and await the client’s arrival.

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