Happy New Year!

With 2011 nearing to an end, it’s a good time to reflect on the past year. What have you accomplished?  What did you set out to achieve and did you achieve it?  

New Years is typically the time we set goals, also known as "resolutions".  So, how do we keep those resolutions?  One thing this past year has taught me is to live ‘proactively’ and not ‘reactively’.  The key to living proactively is to set goals and stay committed to them. 

As I reflect on the past year, I’m amazed at what I have accomplished both personally and professionally.  You could say “it was a record year for me”.  I don’t think I’ve ever looked back on any year in my life and felt such a sense of accomplishment.

Honestly, every milestone reached could not have been possible without the support of the “great motivators” in my life.  You know who you are.  Thank you for believing in me, for pushing me to reach new levels and for your constant support.

I NOW BELIEVE!  When you surround yourself with positive people who believe in you and inspire you, anything is possible.

Risk of Home Fires Significantly Higher During the Holidays

Over the years, I can’t tell you how many devastated families I’ve met who've lost their home due to a fire.  They look to DelSuites as a temporary home while their house is being restored, or in some cases, rebuilt.

Sadly, the incidence and severity of fires is significantly higher during the winter holiday season.  Use of decorations, candles, fireplaces and Christmas trees contributes to this increase.

It amazes me how often this occurs and, of course, has caused me to become overly cautious.  I unplug our Christmas lights when we’re not home or when we’re sleeping, I’ve switched from wax candles to battery operated tea lights and even invested in a fire proof safe where we keep those hard to replace documents. 

You might be thinking, “This would never happen to me.”  A quick bit of research left me with some startling statistics.  Ontario averages 6,000 preventable home fires annually!

From my personal experience, I wanted to share these simple tips this holiday season to keep your home and loved ones safe:

1)  Test your Smoke and Carbon Monoxide detectors - today!
2)  Never burn wrapping paper in your fireplace. It can cause a chimney fire.
3)  Use flameless candles.
4)  If you have an artificial tree, be sure it is fire retardant.  If you have a real tree, keep it 3 ft. away from any heat source and water it daily.
5)  Always turn off Christmas tree lights before leaving home or going to bed.

Have a safe holiday and a happy New Year!

Give And Ye Shall Receive

In the madness of the holidays, you may have encountered some rude behavior or bad customer service.  Where I found this particularly noticeable this year, was at 2 of the 3 Canada Post outlets I visited.

After back to back encounters with very rude Canada Post employees, I realized something.  The Christmas season puts an increased work load on these people and it’s obvious how unhappy they are in their jobs.  I really felt sorry for them.

As I entered the 3^rd outlet store, I braced myself for the anger that was about to be unleashed.  As I stepped up to the counter, all I could think of was how much pressure this employee must feel from the miserable, never-ending line up of rushed customers she had to deal with.   I realize

Then, she looked me in the eyes with a smile and asked “How may I help you?” She was so pleasant… so helpful… and smiling!  I was so surprised that I didn’t quite know how to react.  I blurted out, “You’re the nicest Canada Post employee I’ve ever met!” 

She wasn’t at all surprised by my comment.  She confidently replied, “Thank you.  You’re the 3^rd person to say so today.  My coworkers tell me stories of rude customers and mean people every day.  I don’t have such stories.  I believe you get treated the way you treat others.”

Simple and true is the golden rule - Treat others the way you would like to be treated.

Think how different everything would be if everyone followed this simple principle. Granted, we cannot control the actions of other people, but we can control how we behave.

So, if you want to keep the peace this holiday season (INNER peace that is), smile.  Chances are, people will smile back.

Over The Top

As I set the table for our guests, my husband asked, “Why does everything you do have to be so over the top?”  Perhaps it was the napkins folded into swans that set him off?  


The pursuit of perfectionism can be exhausting and stressful.  I’ve often wondered why I make myself crazy trying to do everything better than anyone ever expects.  Perhaps it’s a lifetime working in hospitality - or perhaps I was just born this way.  


Honestly, I take great pleasure in the reward of a job well done.  The opportunity to “wow” someone is most often the driving factor behind why I put so much pressure on myself to go beyond expectations.


The challenging part is when those self-imposed expectations become unmanageable.  Take last week for example…


A client reached out to me in need of a furnished apartment in Markham.  The trouble was this particular client had a very large dog and the property’s pet policy would not allow it.


Determined to find a solution, I reserved a dog camp for the pet, their first night in a suite hotel and a large vehicle to pick them up at the airport – all included in the rate.  I even offered to personally assist with their move from the suite hotel to our corporate housing location the next day (once the pet was boarded).  The client was very impressed and I was so thrilled to have been able to make it all happen.  Perfection!  


And that’s when it happened.  In my furry to go beyond all reasonable expectations, I made a simple scheduling error and the client was left waiting at the airport for a pick up that wasn’t coming – until the following day. 


It was a painfully long wait for the car service to dispatch an immediate pick up.  I’m not sure who was more stressed about the wait, the caged dog - or ME!  I felt absolutely sick. 


Thankfully, the client was wonderful.  Clearly HE understood something I needed reminding of.  We are human.  Mistakes happen.  Good intentions and quick resolutions are what really matter.


For most of us, doing a 90% job is good enough – great, in fact.  Further, a conscientious perfectionist’s 90% may be 100% acceptable or even outstanding to her colleagues and supervisor.


Give it a try: let go of the 10% that exists between what you must do and how perfectly you imagine it can be done.


Then look around and see if the sky is falling.

Inspiration

There was a time, not so long ago when I was afraid of the internet.  It's true.  The fear was not from getting information (I'm not THAT old)... it was from sharing information.  You have to admit.  There is something a little weird about opening up your world to strangers.  And now, here I am blogging.


So what inspired me to do the unthinkable? 


A close friend lost a loved one yesterday after a 2 year battle with cancer.  He was my age and left behind 4 children.  I didn't know him personally.  But the day he died, I read his blog.


What a strange feeling to be reading the thoughts of someone I've never met and yet be so inspired?   As I read "his story", I realized a few things.


1) Life is short.  So live.
2) Whatever the problem.  It's small in the big picture.
...and
3) Leave the world a better place - because of you.


I don't think anyone will read this blog.  Doesn't matter.  A young man I never met inspired me to share MY story.  This is where it starts.


RIP Anthony Biagi
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=605890093