The Customer Is NOT Always Right

Yes I said it and you read it correct, “the customer is not always right”. Most of us are led to believe the customer is always right but you know from your practical experience that this is an absurd thing to say.

So, at close analysis I would like to say “the customer is always right in his/her world”. You see the customer has a certain perception of the level of service he/she is expecting. We necessarily are not always aware of this and make an assumption based on experience, company policy and other factors on what the expectation could be. Sometimes, we under value the expectation or their expectations are beyond our capacity.

We need to realise the customer is always right in his/her world and we are right in our world. So, there is a misalignment of thoughts from both parties. The challenge here is the customer or we “assume” the expectations. Remember this word assume is a dirty word and simply means “making an ASS out of U and ME”

Please stop being in this state of “assume”. Just be more aware of your customers needs and wants which leads to letting them know the flexibility and limitations of your services/ products. Always remember to clarify your expectations as well to the customer. 

This in turn is the foundation to eliminate the creation of a difficult customer. 

My name is Rohit Bassi and I am the founder of In Learning. My mission is about sowing the seeds of passion to help you outperform yourself by enhancing your core critical skills of communication, leadership and collaboration. I have delivered workshops to the likes of Oracle, Harley-Davidson, Emirates NBD, Emaar, Alshaya, Baskin Robbins, Mazda and many more. Please feel free to contact me via rohit@in-learning.com or call on +971-(0)55-553-2275.

Six Golden Rules In Minimising Difficult Customers

The six golden rules of Dale Carnegie are the key to minimizing issues with difficult customers.

1. Become genuinely interested in other people – Be responsive towards a customer especially when the situation is tough. Acknowledge the customer and make them feel you are there to resolve the issue at hand.
2. Smile – This certainly helps with any kind of interaction. It makes the customer feel welcome and comfortable. Remember on the other hand the same smile is road to aggravation for the customer if you are not providing the customer with acceptable resolution.
3. Remember that a person’s name is, to that person, the sweetest and most important sound in any language – Knowing your customer name and using their name with courtesy during such scenarios will play an important part in diffusing difficult interaction.
4. Be a good listener - Encourage others to talk about themselves – A great listener always allows the other party to express their thoughts and gives them time to vent out their feelings. When you interrupt a difficult customer during his talk it will make the matter worse.
5. Talk in terms of the other person’s interest – When a customer hears you say “the company policy is...” his or her immediate reaction could be a negative one as you are not paying attention to his or her need. You have not listened to them or are not interested about their concern. This a danger zone to avoid.
6. Make the other person feel important – and do it sincerely – Amazingly this can be easy but a number of professionals have fine-tuned the art of ignoring and not listening to the customer. When you make the customer feel welcomed, comfortable and acknowledge them, you are now on the path of making them feel important.

Every customer who interacts with your organization provides you with a chance to provide Soul Based Service Excellence. Dealing with difficult customer truly tests yours skills in providing such a high standard of service. 

My name is Rohit Bassi and I am the founder of In Learning. My mission is about sowing the seeds of passion to help you outperform yourself by enhancing your core critical skills of communication, leadership and collaboration. I have delivered workshops to the likes of Oracle, Harley-Davidson, Emirates NBD, Emaar, Alshaya, Baskin Robbins, Mazda and many more. Please feel free to contact me via rohit@in-learning.com or call on +971-(0)55-553-2275.

Five Secrets of a Great Listener

A music group called Mike & The Mechanics sang a line in one of their songs which said “You can listen as well as you hear”.


The line is so true as most of us have a habit to hear and this differs to listening. Listening in simple terms means you make a 100% attempt to understand the other party. You avoid assumptions and actively listen to what the other is expressing.
The five secrets of a great listener is no rocket science, they simply are:

1. Active Listening – It’s about making a decision to listen. This means to let the other speak and you through repeating, paraphrasing and reflecting to understand what the other has said.
2. Stop Interrupting - Always let the other finish what they are saying. This is the easiest way to give respect to them. It shows you are giving the them time to process their thoughts and the opportunity to express these thoughts by letting them speak.
3. Body Language – Ensure your eyes are focusing on the person rather than wandering around looking at other things or people. You body posture and hand gestures should come across as helpful rather than being aggressive. Nodding while you listen is a great sign of keeping rapport with the customer.
4. Write – Most of us tend to forget things quickly. So, carry a small notebook/pad to jot notes of your discussion. Always let the other person know you will be taking notes thus indicating you are taking their permission to do so.
5. Ask Questions – Always remember to ask appropriate questions. In other words it should be related to the others needs and wants. It allows you to display to the person you are interested in what their requirement is and by eliciting questions you are clarifying their requirements. Too many questions may come across as an interrogation, so please be careful.

Ideally, we need to be aiming for compassionate empathic listening. 

My name is Rohit Bassi and I am the founder of In Learning. My mission is about sowing the seeds of passion to help you outperform yourself by enhancing your core critical skills of communication, leadership and collaboration. I have delivered workshops to the likes of Oracle, Harley-Davidson, Emirates NBD, Emaar, Alshaya, Baskin Robbins, Mazda and many more. Please feel free to contact me via rohit@in-learning.com or call on +971-(0)55-553-2275.

Power of Three: Secret of a Quality Voice

“It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it”? 

Our voice can easily communicate the wrong message to the other person. This wrong use of the voice combined with unfriendly words and body language can make the situation worse.

The three secrets of a quality voice are simply:

1. Pitch Power – When your pitch is high it often informs the person you are anxious or upset. You may come across as unfriendly and are unaware of how to behave with others. A medium pitch comes across as more serious and authoritative. Great to have but some people may see it as being autocratic and rigid. Be careful, a smile will help here. A low pitch could make the other person feel you lack confidence and may not trust you.
2. Tone Truth- I have often heard my close friend say to me in anger “I don’t like that tone of voice!”. This basically refers to the combination of various pitches being used to set a scene or a mood. Listening to the tone of the voice you are able to envisage whether you are friendly or unfriendly. In essence they portray your feelings.
3. Speed Strength – When someone speaks as fast a speeding train it is extremely difficult to understand him or her. This will especially make the other person feel you are anxious and in a rush. While someone who speaks at a moderate pace it certainly is easier to comprehend him or her. Speaking very slow will surely make the other person lose interest and many a times the other person will believe what you are saying is not at all important.

Our voice tends to mirror our inner feelings and great caution is advised on how you use your voice. Remember when your voice comes across as annoyed, impatient, or condescending, the listening party could easily get difficult with you. 

My name is Rohit Bassi and I am the founder of In Learning. My mission is about sowing the seeds of passion to help you outperform yourself by enhancing your core critical skills of communication, leadership and collaboration. I have delivered workshops to the likes of Oracle, Harley-Davidson, Emirates NBD, Emaar, Alshaya, Baskin Robbins, Mazda and many more. Please feel free to contact me via rohit@in-learning.com or call on +971-(0)55-553-2275.

Pain of Rejection

In recent years I have learnt and been taught that "rejection is a divine redirection, towards something beautiful beyond my imagination". Is this really the truth or a fantasy conjured up to make one feel happy and sane. 

For many of us know that rejection after rejection has a great blow to our confidence. We feel the devastation deep within ourselves. The feeling of lack drowns us and we are unable to comprehend the so called divine plan that is unfolding for us.

In that moment of rejection and beyond that moment nothing makes sense. Our emotions override so called common sense. We are engulfed in the thick layer of misery and self pity. 

No matter how painful the experience someone tells us that we are where we are meant to be. We are told to have that trust and leap of faith in the universe that everything is just fine.

My name is Rohit Bassi and I am the founder of In Learning. My mission is about sowing the seeds of passion to help you outperform yourself by enhancing your core critical skills of communication, leadership and collaboration. I have delivered workshops to the likes of Oracle, Harley-Davidson, Emirates NBD, Emaar, Alshaya, Baskin Robbins, Mazda and many more. Please feel free to contact me via rohit@in-learning.com or call on +971-(0)55-553-2275.