To succeed in business, we need to be fair, friendly, and do the job right the first time. At the same time, we can’t afford to “give away the store”. Today I was talking to a HVAC tech who had successfully been in business for over 40 years. He shared a story with me that I will long remember. Here is what happened…
It was the heart of winter, and Roger responded to a service call regarding no heat. He inspected the furnace, and discovered the heat exchanger was in pieces. It was not safe to operate the furnace. It had to be replaced. The owner of the home lived alone. Her husband was in the service serving as an intern. She had no money. Roger said, “Let me work on this and get back to you”. He called his supplier and told them the story. They immediately picked up on it, and agreed to supply the materials if Roger would do the labor. They thought this would be a nice story for their newsletter. It was a deal. The homeowner was eternally grateful. It was one of those feel good moments.
Several months later the husband returned from the service and began his practice. He never forgot the kindness that Roger had shown, and Roger says that he has received more referrals from this person than any other single source over the years. We know the beauty of this: Roger did this expecting nothing in return. For him, it was just the right thing to do. He was thinking of the other person. When we give, it is amazing what comes back to us. This is just another example to illustrate this fundament of business.
