I get a real kick out of people.

In particular, I’ve had some recent experiences with insurance agents that have left me smiling. (And confused.)

How often does someone get homeowner’s insurance in their lifetime? On the high end, maybe 10 times, maybe. For most of America, it’s a few times. Ever.

Needless to say, the general public is not the most versed in acquiring such a service or knowing exactly what steps to take. This should be obvious based on the national stats of how infrequently we make this setup transaction but I digress.

I have to remind myself when handling customer service concerns, and we’re all in “customer” service of sorts, that I’m familiar with my systems and processes and others aren’t so much. Communicate accordingly. Don’t assume, ask questions to clarify, and be liberal with the phrases like, “so our next steps are,” and, “here’s what we need to do next.”

This applies to professional and personal interactions.