Clients First: The Two Word Miracle

What All People Want

In 1600, Shakespeare wrote, “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” Clients First assertions are similar: A client is a client is a client. Clients come in all sizes, shapes, colors, ages, and dispositions. Clients have varied needs, wants, desires, and dreams. They come across softly. They boom. They demand. They plead, cajole, laugh, and cry. No two clients are the same, and it is in this marvelous variety that JoAnn and I find much enjoyment.

We love getting to know our clients. We chat with couples about how they met. We ask about their careers, hobbies, children, and memorable experiences. With some clients, it is a gradual process; with others, it all comes tumbling out. Yet they all share something of themselves because we are interested in them. We care.

Labels don’t matter. They are clients, and we treat them all with respect and honesty. All this talk about social networking is really just a search for the truth. People seek the reassurance of others in that quest for the best answer to any question. Whether they use a computer to access the search engine Google or ask their mothers or rely on handshakes, people want the truth.

I don’t care whom the client is, that person will resent slipshod service, whether it is from a clerk who misses the customer’s hand and drops coins on the floor for lack of attention to the client or from a doctor who removes the wrong kidney. Clients want competence. Old folks ...