FRED Friday...Meet Brandan, the Problem Solver

FRED Friday…meet Brandan, the Problem Solver

Brandan...the Problem Solver

(And, yes…that’s how he spells it…)

Last weekend, on Sunday I had a little issue with my car.  I hopped in the driver’s seat, turned the key…and…nothing happened.  Nothing…nada.  Dead.  I tried to jump the battery, yep, still nothing.  Dunzo.   I resorted to calling a tow truck and visiting a nearby car care center.

That’s when I met Brandan…

Brandan met me with a smile, leaned over the counter, and right off the bat gave me a, “Hi there…how can I help you today?”  I gave him the rundown, explained the situation, and gave him all the information for my beloved 2002 Toyota Camry…AKA, The Black Pearl.  Looking back on it, I think Brandan definitely picked up on what undoubtedly came across as my sheer terror, concern, and stress for my car. 

It’s no secret…I know nothing about cars, other than I like them to start, run, and play country music and/or AM Sports Talk Radio as I drive them from A to B…and I happen to love The Pearl.  She’s a beauty.  Brandan had an almost calming demeanor as he took care of the initial paperwork to get things entered into the system. 

I, of course asked Brandan forty-eight questions, including - What do you think could be the problem?  Do you think we could get it fixed today?  How much do you think it will cost?  How long do you think it will take?   

I was a nervous wreck, as usual…concerned for the future of the Pearl.  Brandan gave me answers to all of my questions, set me up in the computer, told me how it works, and promised to give me a call to, at a minimum tell me what the diagnostic tests show. 

His team was extremely busy.  Every other car care center in our part of town is closed on Sundays.  So as I looked around I saw cars in every bay getting fixed, cars lined up outside on deck, next to be fixed, and multiple cars parked along the side of the parking lot in what seemed like a queue line waiting to be fixed.  At this point, I had zero faith in my car being fixed by the end of the day. 

After about an hour, I called to follow up.  Brandan was busy, but his colleague promised to give him the message that I called.  Fair enough.  About another hour passed, so yep…I called again.  Persistence wears resistance, remember…This time I got Brandan. 

“How we look’n, B-Man”, I asked him…Brandan told me that one of his guys was under the hood at that very moment, and he would definitely have answer for me as to exactly what the problem is with the car before 6pm…but he said it may be the following day before his team could have it fixed.  I wasn’t thrilled with that last part, but I was glad they were at least looking at it.

Another hour and a half passed, and just when I was about to breakdown and call him back for an update…sure enough, Brandan called me. 

“It’s your starter…you’re going to need a new one put in…which we can do for you, but it’s already 5:30pm, and I’m still in the weeds with several cars before yours.”   He gave me the price for the part, the labor, and laid out how long it would take to complete the task. 

Then…he went OneMoreStep…

“Would this be bad if you didn’t get your car back tonight?” Brandan asked me.  I told him that I’d love them if they could squeeze me in so I could have my car on Monday, but if they couldn’t fit it in…I’d totally understand.  Brandan said ok…and asked if he could call me back in 15 minutes.  I said no problem.

Then…he went even OneMoreStep…

Brandan called me back in 15 minutes on the nose…I answered the phone as if it were an old buddy calling me…our relationship had reached that level in only a few hours, thanks to his personality.  Brandan was excited to tell me that my car would be fixed before he and his team left for the night…

“Nice…so you have the staffing?” I asked.

His response…”Nope…I’m gonna do it myself…I want you to have your car tonight so you don’t have to worry about it tomorrow.”  Mind you, Brandan is not one of the mechanics.  He manages the customer service out front...he truly went OneMoreStep.

The Black Pearl...she lives to sail another day

FRED…Linchpin…a OneMoreStep that made my day…

Brandan didn’t have to do that.  He didn’t have to take the time to rearrange his team’s schedule, his own schedule…nor did he and his team have to stick around over two hours passed the end of their closing time to put the finishing touches on their customers’ cars.   

They did it anyway.  They solved problems for people…problems that they didn’t create…the solved them anyway. 

Thanks to Brandan and the team at Tire Works Total Car Care on Silverado Ranch Blvd in Las Vegas…you created value, you solved my problem, and you have a customer for as long as I live in Las Vegas because of it. 

Meeting Brandan and experiencing his service truly inspired me this week to seek out ways to solve problems for people…even the problems that I didn’t necessarily create.  Think how great it is when people solve problems for us…now think how much of an impact we can make if we do the same for our coworkers, bosses, Guests, students, clients, and customers…

When you think you’ve done enough this week…Go OneMoreStep, and solve a problem you didn’t necessarily create.

“Freds create value by doing more than is necessary and exceeding our expectations – most of the time for no extra pay.” – Mark Sanborn, The Fred Factor

Have a great day, and Happy FRED Friday…

Taylor

 

What is FRED Friday?

In my favorite book, The Fred Factor, Mark Sanborn tells an inspiring story of how a man named Fred goes OneMoreStep after OneMoreStep in his role as a Postman for the United States Postal Service.  I love this book.  Since my mom sent it to me in 2004, I've purchased the book for friends, coworkers, and girlfriends...I've even purchased and hand delivered copies of the book to several executives at both Wynn Las Vegas and The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. 

Fred Friday is a series in which the OneMoreStepRevolution blog will showcase a real life "Fred" on select Fridays.   Reading The Fred Factor definitely leaves us with a desire to to be more Fred-like ourselves, but I also love looking for Freds.  Freds are everywhere. I love it when I experience a real life Fred.  I'm inspired just as I am every time I re-read the book.  I thought it would be fun to spread the magic of Fred to our OneMoreStepRevolution community.