Wednesday May 4th, 2011 - Chicago, IL If I ever doubted that one single person and their words alone could make a difference, I no longer have to wonder. They absolutely can. I received a forwarded copy of a customer comment review via email today from a show I did last week at Zanies in St. Charles, IL. “I brought 8 friends with me to see Dobie Maxwell for my birthday. My husband and I had seen him before and described him as ‘rib-splitting’. Among my guests was my 86 year old uncle who laughed so hard he became short of breath. ‘Mr. Lucky’ appeals to all generations and never disappoints. Thank you for all the opportunities you have provided to enjoy this gifted comedian.” If that doesn’t put a little glide in the stride, nothing will. What made it even sweeter was that it came through Bert Haas, the General Manager of all the Zanies clubs in the Chicago area. It had filtered up all the way through the chain of command from the wait staff to the box office staff to the manager all the way to the boss. It never hurts to receive positive comments from customers but this one really stood out and I’m extremely flattered to get it. I’ve gotten similar kind words in the past, but they’re far between and each time they’re like a healing ointment that feels good to rub on a soul. Who doesn’t need to hear they’re doing a good job, or at least appreciated by someone? I’ve always tried to be the giver of words like this, but when they come back I understand just how much good they do. It doesn’t take much time to do, but it has long time staying power. I’m going to do this kind of thing even more after seeing how much good it did. One of my favorite things to do when I get especially good service in a restaurant (and it DOES happen, despite how much I bitch to the contrary at times) is on the way out of the joint casually ask to see a manager. Usually it makes the cashier’s face drain of blood and ask if everything was ok, but I calmly ask again to specifically see a management person. The manager always comes out with a similar look of “What did I do now?” expecting an ugly confrontation when I say “I just wanted to tell you in person how totally fantastic my experience was here today. EVERYTHING went right, and so and so was one of THE best servers I’ve ever encountered - and I eat out a lot. You’d better give that one a raise.” It’s worth it alone to see the look of relief on the manager’s face. Usually they shake my hand with such fervor I’m worried if I’ll get it back, and then immediately break out in an enormous toothy smile from ear to ear. I’ve done that countless times, and it never fails to make a significant difference. People need to hear when things go right, and it’s a thrill. I know it has a very positive trickle down effect, and now the same happened to me. I’m floating on a cloud right about now, and I could tell Bert Haas was very pleased to get this sent his way. It lets him know he’s doing a good thing by booking me, and I’m all for that on a regular basis. I may not be famous, but at least I’m winning people over by emails, if only one at a time. This one act of kindness made my entire day, and I’ll never forget it.
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Hey Dobie. A blast from the past. Kim (Galitz) Watters here. I used to work at Zanies in the 80's and am still friends with Alexis. Thanks for letting us know about Rick. If you go to his funeral please give my condolences to Barb and Bert and the rest of the crew that might still be around after all these years.
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