How two cashiers handled my suggestion very differently…

Today I went to my local Acura dealership to have the oil changed in my car.  It is a nice dealership as it is new and is kinda like a generic shared workspace.  I used to work at a dealership over 25 years ago in my hometown. They have come a long way to make customers comfortable with TVs, Wifi, massage chairs and show shines.  This dealer even has a barista that will whip you up an espresso for free. I guess that is why I pay so much for an oil change!

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At the end of the maintenance session, the service advisor comes to me with a full blown report of what was done to my car.  It is on paper and emailed to me. Technology has really upped the ante these days in vehicle maintenance. All this slick state of the art communication is cool to me.  I see how the experience at the dealership can be an positive event. They even showed me a picture of my dirty air filter that needed to be changed. Nice! Of course I have to pay for this stuff so I am walked to the cashier station.

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Every time I pay at this dealership, something bothers me and it’s not the amount I have to pay.

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I will pay any day for great service and amenities. The thing that bothered me over and over again is a quick survey the cashiers put in front of me every time I finish up there.  The survey is actually on a half piece of paper and looks like it have been copied one thousand times over. It looks like a survey from 1995. I always thought about mentioning a different way to implement the survey to the cashiers.

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Today I made that suggestion to improve.

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I suggested having an iPad or Touch Screen on the counter at the cashiers station to take the survey.  I suggested that the offer all this technology communicating with my car and it’s workings, then I get a pencil and half sheet of paper to fill out a survey at the end.  My last experience is a PAPER and PENCIL. I walk out remembering the paper survey rather than the awesome technology and state of the art communication of my service manager.

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That’s just the design thinker in me.

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It was interesting how the two cashiers reacted.  One looked at me kinda in a scowling way and said that would not work with the iPad and went back to writing something down. The other cashier stopped and thought about it for a moment. He then said that would really help out with the speed of entering the result into a database.

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I get these two types of reactions in the classroom and in life often.  It is the difference between the growth mindset and the fixed mindset.  One individual will quickly balk at change because there is learning and growth involved.  That takes some work. The other individual will see the idea and think about the overall opportunity even with a some work up front.

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Finding opportunity in everything is something I urge you to look for and to teach your children everyday.  A positive outlook on change and growth mindsets even with work involved will help you and your kids grow to discover all kinds of better ways to do things in this life.

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Another way to #disrupteducation.