Compgeek Handout

The Compassionate GeekMastering Customer Service for I.T. Professionals

soundtraining.netaccelerated i.t. training

© 2011, Don R. Crawley, All rights reserved.

Based on the book

soundtraining.net (206) 988-5858

© 2011, Don R. Crawley, All rights reserved. [email protected]

The Compassionate Geek: Mastering Customer Service for I.T. Professionals




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01 Two Important Points

As members of an organization, our goal should be:

To achieve a positive outcome for the organization, ourselves, our co-workers, and our customers.

Always be authentic.

During this presentation, I’ll be sharing some very specific words and language for use

in dealing with other people. The words I’m sharing are my words and the words of other writers.

Use these words and statements not as scripts, but as idea starters to help you create your own

language for dealing effectively with other people.




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02 Interactive Exercise: Remembering the Good, the Bad, and the Awful

Heroes Villains







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03 What are The Benefits to You of Providing Outstanding Customer Service?

1. _________________________________________________________________________________

2. _________________________________________________________________________________

3. _________________________________________________________________________________

4. _________________________________________________________________________________

5. _________________________________________________________________________________

04 The Four Star Traits of The Customer Service Masters

1. _________________________________________________________________________________

2. _________________________________________________________________________________

3. _________________________________________________________________________________

4. _________________________________________________________________________________




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05 How to Become More Compassionate

1. _________________________________________________________________________________

2. _________________________________________________________________________________

3. _________________________________________________________________________________

4. _________________________________________________________________________________

5. _________________________________________________________________________________

06 Empathetic Statements That Can Diffuse Emotionally-charged Confrontations

1. _________________________________________________________________________________

2. _________________________________________________________________________________

3. _________________________________________________________________________________

4. _________________________________________________________________________________

5. _________________________________________________________________________________







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07 How to Tell If You’re Respecting Someone or Treating That Person With Respect—There Is an Important Difference

“We teach our children that everyone is entitled to respect and dignity.

How pathetic it is when adults cannot abide such as basic lesson in humanity.

How unconscionable.”

--David E. Kelley

To respect someone:

To treat someone with respect:

It’s not necessary to respect someone to treat him or her with respect.




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08 Emotional Intelligence (Emotional Maturity)

Characteristics

1. _________________________________________________________________________________

2. _________________________________________________________________________________

3. _________________________________________________________________________________







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09 Emotional Responses Interactive Exercise, Part 1Think about how you have responded ineffectively in the past to these emotions in

others. Pick two items from the following list and write a brief (one or two sentences) description

of how you responded to them.

n Anger

n Hostility

n Sadness

n Jealousy

n Excitement

n Pride

n Nervousness

n Skepticism




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10 Emotional Responses Interactive Exercise, Part 2Now, thinking about the same incidents as in part one of this exercise, think about

whether your past responses were the best way to deal with those emotions in others. Write one

or two sentences to describe a better way to deal with people who are showing the emotions you

selected above.

n Anger

n Hostility

n Sadness

n Jealousy

n Excitement

n Pride

n Nervousness

n Skepticism

Human beings are amazingly adaptable and resilient. We have tremendous learning powers. We can

make a commitment to change and actually do it!







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11 Emotional Intelligence Personal Reflection ExerciseBelow are the behavioral habits of emotional intelligence. As you read these,

rate yourself on each behavioral habit.

Always Usually Sometimes Seldom Almost Never

5 points 4 points 3 points 2 points 1 points

Behavioral Habit Score

1. In all circumstances I respect other people and their feelings.

2. I can easily identify my feelings.

3. I take responsibility for my own emotions.

4. I can maintain control of my emotions.

5. I find it easy to validate others’ feelings and values.

6. I am non-judgmental of other people and situations.

7. I don’t apply labels to other people.

8. I do not try to manipulate, criticize, blame, or overpower others.

9. I constantly challenge my habitual responses, and I am willing to try considered alternatives.

10. I live in the present, learn from experiences, and do not carry negative feelings forward.

Scoring:44+ = High level of emotional maturity, awareness and control. You have a positive and inspiring impact on others.

38 - 43 = Higher than average level of emotional intelligence. Concentrate on self-awareness and control, and developing increased empathy for others.

32 - 37 = You have a base line awareness of what emotional intelligence is. Be alert for opportunities to increase levels of self-awareness and empathy toward others, and to refine responses.

31 or lower = Now that you’re of aware of emotional intelligence, monitor your emotions and their impact on you and others. Notice how your behavior impacts others and get feedback on how to modify behavior which has a negative effect.

Building Leadership Skills: Leading Teams Winter 2006-2007—This exercise is based on material created by Andrew Sanderbeck for the Infopeople Project [infopeople.org], supported by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act, administered in California by the State Librarian. Any use of this material should credit the author and funding source.




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12 Two Emotional Intelligence Techniques That Help You Maintain Your Calm Demeanor in The Face of Turbulence

Short-term solution:

Long-term solutions:

When we’re calm, we make better decisions. Not only that, our calm demeanor has a calming

effect on those around us.







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13 How to Be a Better Listener

1. _________________________________________________________________________________

2. _________________________________________________________________________________

3. _________________________________________________________________________________

4. _________________________________________________________________________________

5. _________________________________________________________________________________

Where is your focus?




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14 Your Listening Skills

Part I: What do others think?

How do you think others would rank your listening skills—on a scale of 1 to 5, with 1

being a terrible listener and 5 being a great listener?

Rating on a scale of 1 to 5 (5 is best)

Yourself

Your customers (users)

Your boss

Your co-worker

Your closest friend (not spouse)

Your spouse or significant other

Total

Scoring:5 or less = Isolation chamber

20 or greater = Great listener







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15 Your Listening Skills

Part II: Self-Evaluation

Read the following list of poor listening habits. Mark each one according to how often

they apply to you.

F=Frequently S=Sometimes R=Rarely Rating

I pretend I’m paying attention when my mind is drifting off.

I cut people off or finish their sentences because I know what they’re going to say.

When someone is speaking to me, I look around the room to see what else is happening.

I shuffle papers on my desk or start doing some other task when someone talks too long or too slowly.

When someone is speaking, I plan what I will say next.

When a person speaks too fast or uses words I don’t understand, I let it go and listen only for what I do understand.

When a person speaks too fast or uses words I don’t understand, I just pretend to understand.

Total

Any characteristic marked with a “F” or “S” is an area that could use improvement. Write down

ONE thing to do during the coming week to improve your listening skills:

____________________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________________




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16 Flow for Handling User Calls (or Visits)

1. _________________________________________________________________________________

2. _________________________________________________________________________________

3. _________________________________________________________________________________

4. _________________________________________________________________________________

5. _________________________________________________________________________________

6. _________________________________________________________________________________







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17 How to Say “No” Without Alienating Your End-User

1. _________________________________________________________________________________

2. _________________________________________________________________________________

3. _________________________________________________________________________________

4. _________________________________________________________________________________

5. _________________________________________________________________________________

18 Communicating Through Email, Chat and Texting

1. _________________________________________________________________________________

2. _________________________________________________________________________________

3. _________________________________________________________________________________

4. _________________________________________________________________________________

5. _________________________________________________________________________________




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19 Differences Between Good Stress and Bad StressEustress (good stress)

Distress (bad stress)







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20 Five Ways to Manage Your Stress

1. _________________________________________________________________________________

2. _________________________________________________________________________________

3. _________________________________________________________________________________

4. _________________________________________________________________________________

5. _________________________________________________________________________________

The Serenity Prayer

“God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to

change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.”




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21 Recognizing Your Stress Exercise

Source of Stress and SolutionIs it under your control?

High-intensity, Low-duration

Low-intensity, High-duration

1. Source ❏ Yes

❏ No

Solution ❏ Yes

❏ No

2. Source ❏ Yes

❏ No

Solution ❏ Yes

❏ No

3. Source ❏ Yes

❏ No

Solution ❏ Yes

❏ No

4. Source ❏ Yes

❏ No

Solution ❏ Yes

❏ No

5. Source ❏ Yes

❏ No

Solution ❏ Yes

❏ No

If it is under your control, what can you do about it to achieve a positive outcome? If it is not

under your control, your best course is to accept it and “let it go”.







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From authors Don R. Crawley and Paul R. Senness, MBA

Now in its second edition, The Compassionate Geek was

written by tech people for tech people. There are no frills,

just best practices and ideas that actually work! Filled with

practical tips, best practices, and real-world techniques, The

Compassionate Geek is a quick read with equally fast results.

Here’s what you’ll find:

n Best practices for communicating with email,

including examples

n The four intrinsic qualities of great service providers

n Best practices for communicating using chat and texting

n How to listen so you’ll understand

n How to keep your emotions in check

n A flow chart for handling user calls

n What to do when the user is wrong

n How to work with the different generations in the workplace

All of the information is presented in a straightforward style that you can understand and use

right away. There’s nothing “foo-foo”, just down-to-earth tips and best practices learned from years

of working with I.T. pros and end-users.

Available in paperback and Kindle editions through Amazon and other channels.

ISBN: 978-0-98366-070-5, 164 pages

soundtraining.net/bookstore • doncrawley.com/amazon • [email protected] • (206) 988-5858

Books for I.T. Professionals

from author Don R. Crawley

The Compassionate Geek: Mastering Customer Service for I.T. Professionals, now in its second edition, is written especially for today’s overworked I.T. staff! Filled with practical tips, best practices, and real-world techniques, The Compassionate Geek is a quick read with equally fast results. Learn how to speak to the different generations at work, manage your own emotions and influence the emotions of others, say “no” without alienating the end-user, what to do when the customer (user) is wrong, how to cope with the stress of the job, and more! All of the information is presented in a straightforward style that you can understand and use right away!

ISBN: 978-0-98366-070-5 $20.00 (Also available in Kindle edition)

The Accidental Administrator: Cisco ASA Step-by-Step Configuration Guide is packed with 56 easy-to-follow hands-on exercises to help you build a working firewall configuration from scratch. Filled with practical tips and secrets learned from years of teaching and consulting on the ASA, it’s the most straight-forward approach to configuring the Cisco ASA Security Appliance. The essentials are covered in chapters on installing, backups and restores, remote administration, VPNs, DMZs, usernames, transparent mode, static NAT, port address translation, access lists, DHCP, password recovery, logon banners, AAA (authentication, authorization, and accounting), filtering content, and more.

ISBN: 978-1-44959-662-0 $40.00

The Accidental Administrator: Linux Server Step-by-Step Configuration Guide is packed with 44 easy-to-follow hands-on exercises plus numerous command examples and screen captures to help you build a working Linux server configuration from scratch. It’s the most straight-forward approach to learning how to configure a CentOS/Red Hat/Fedora Linux server (the book is based on version 5.4 and 5.5). The essentials are covered in chapters on installing, administering, user management, file systems and directory management, networking, package management, automated task scheduling, network services, Samba, NFS, disk quotas, mail servers, Web and FTP servers, desktop sharing, printing, security, routing, performance monitoring, management tools, and more.

ISBN: 978-1-45368-992-9 $40.00 (Also available in Kindle Edition)

BRAND-NEW!Tweeting Linux: 140 Linux Configuration Commands Explained in 140 Characters or Less is a straight-forward approach to learning Linux commands. Each command is explained in 140 characters or less, then examples of usage are shown in screen captures, and details are given when necessary to explain command usage. You’ll see the most commonly-used commands plus a few gems you might not know about!

ISBN: 978-0-98366-071-2 $30.00 (Also available in Kindle Edition)


Books for I.T. Professionals

from author Don R. Crawley

n Keynote speaking …

n Breakout sessions …

n Half- and full-day workshops …

for speaking engagements:

Call (206) 852-4349 • doncrawley.com • Email: [email protected] technical training:

Call (206) 988-5858 • soundtraining.net

Don R. CrawleyAuthor, Speaker, Trainer for the IT Industry

Author of The Compassionate

Geek and other books for I.T. professionals


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© 2011, Don R. Crawley, All rights reserved.

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Compgeek Handout