I made a trip to the Genius Bar at the Apple Store the other day to check on my laptop, which was exhibiting the Spinning Beachball of Death way too often

As usual the store was packed but since I had an appointment, I was confident I would be seen in a timely manner. When I checked in, however, the maître d told me that they had just one genius at the bar, he was jammed, and I may have a bit of a wait. He looked at me and in a genuine tone told me that he appreciated my patience.

I found a seat near the bar, waiting for my opening when another staff member came over, confirmed my name and thanked me for understanding the situation and my  patience.

I decided to use the time to do a little meditating, which was quite fascinating as I closed my eyes, focused on my breathing and listened to the sounds of voices floating about the store. As I got lost in the reverie, it seemed like I could hear conversations from across the room.  Soon, my little exercise was interrupted when someone came over, thanked me for my patience and invited to take a stool at the Bar

I could hear the genius doling out shots of wisdom to the customer sitting next to me before he moved onto the 3^rd guy at the table, sharing a laugh while he rebooted his machine. When he came back to me, he thanked me for my patience, checked out my computer and soon identified the problem which he promised to fix if I just left it there a few days.

Before I left, he thanked me again for being a customer, apologized for the wait and for (you got it) my patience.  While I probably didn’t need the 6 or 7 reminders, it just showed me that a little extra effort helps stave off frustration and aggravation on the part of customers.

There is nothing better than being the customer of a resilient organization except, perhaps, to work for one.  Hope you are finding patience and appreciation in your world.