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CHAPTER 1

Customer Service Doesn’t Come Naturally

Hidden Obstacles to Serving Customers

The cashier at the fast-food restaurant scowled as I handed him my payment. He looked at the $5 bill I’d given him, glanced at the $4.05 displayed on his register, and then looked back at me asking, “Don’t you have a nickel?”

“Sorry,” I replied. “All I have is that $5 bill.”

The cashier heaved a tremendous sigh, looked me in the eye, and said, “I hate people like you.”

I stood in stunned silence while he counted out my change from his cash drawer and slammed the coins on the counter. “There,” he said. “Now you have some cents!”

I was speechless and embarrassed. ...

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