Force of Passion
Kay Redfield looked around one day, noticed the extraordinary force of a rarely examined emotion, and wrote an enchanting book on the subject.
The subject is Exuberance.
You'll think of that title if ever you encounter the world's greatest maître d'.
His name is Giovanni Freelli, and his outpost is a cliffside hotel in Ravello, Italy, the celebrated Hotel Caruso.
He's easily noticed. Among other reasons, one notices his resemblance to Robert DeNiro in the movie The Godfather. His formidable Roman nose, forceful chin, olive skin and slicked-back black hair all trigger that association.
If you're lucky enough to spend several days at his hotel, you notice something else. You saw Giovanni late last night, during the fireworks display from the beach far below. You recall seeing him at lunch, too. Now he is greeting you for breakfast.
You begin to think, although it cannot be true, that he has been there every hour of every day of your visit.
You cannot resist asking.
"Are you working extra hours while they train the second maître d'?" (The hotel has recently reopened after a several-year renovation, and great maître d's cannot be easy to find in an Italian town so tiny.)
"No."
No? You realize your question was rhetorical; you knew his answer would be "Yes." But "No"?
You mention that you saw him at breakfast, lunch and dinner, and now at breakfast again. Perhaps there's another explanation: He works three or four days a week, 16-hour days, then the second maître d' takes over for the second half of the week. Is that it?
No. He says he works every day but Sunday.
Does he go home each day?
"Yes. For an hour at 4 p.m., to shower and change for dinner." (He wears a white coat before 4 p.m., and a black coat in the evening.)
"96 hours a week?" you ask, having multiplied the twelve hours between eight in the morning until midnight times six days a week.
"Yes."
Heavens! Why?
"This is what I love. I love to be with all of these people, in this place." And unforgettably he adds, "This is who I am."
One could argue that Giovanni became the world's greatest maître d' simply because of practice. Working twice as many hours a year as the typical person in his profession, he accumulated 40 years of experience in his 20-year career. But no doubt, there is something more.
He has found his passion, and you can feel it. You want to be around him, to be served by him, to feel your sense of life elevated by him.
You know he will do everything he can to make your visit perfect.
And he does.
May you live your passion, too.
Excerpts from Harry and Christine Clifford Beckwith's new book, You: A Field Guide to Selling Yourself (Warner Books September 2006).
With the holidays approaching, consider this.
Millions of companies send their clients and valued business associates holiday cards.
That's one reason you shouldn't.
People are besieged with these cards, during a season when they have too little time to read and appreciate them.
They hear from dozens of people, which makes it far less likely they will take a moment to remember you and your message. (A huge percentage of recipients throw the envelopes out, unopened.)
Worse, you'll find yourself sending out so many cards, during a season when you're rushed, that you'll be tempted to simply write, "Thanks and best wishes."
Imagine what that conveys: "Jane is so rushed that she said the same thing to me she said to everyone." The reader draws what seems an obvious conclusion: "I am one of hundreds to Jane. No big thing."
We crave to be treated as important. So unless you can write dozens of thoughtful and personal notes at the end of the year, don't.
Instead, find special occasions throughout the year to write to not 20 people -- but just one at a time. Choose a time uniquely appropriate to the client. Birthdays are good, but a card that shows you know more about the person works much better. Try the date of their first child's birth, for example, or the day after their alma mater wins a big game.
The most vivid way to show someone that they matter is to take time. You do want them to notice. So don't send expected messages at expected times. Send special, highly personal ones at special times -- times that are special to that person alone.
It's not just how you say thanks, but when and how well.
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Harry Beckwith is the best-selling author of Selling
the Invisible, which has been named one of the top
ten business books of all time, with over 675,000
copies sold in 14 translations. He is also author of
The Invisible Touch and What Clients Love, which
have sold over 275,000 copies in 13 translations. He has been a keynote speaker for 14 Fortune 200 annual sales meetings and the National Speakers' Association convention, and has |
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made presentations in Europe, South America and Asia. He is
cited regularly in national media including CNN,
The Wall Street Journal, Business Week, Entrepreneur,
Crain's New York Business and numerous
American, European and Asian newspapers. A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Stanford University, Harry resides in Minneapolis with his wife Christine Clifford Beckwith. He is the father of six children. |
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