Who could have imagined what was to come following the offer to provide this book review and how apt my choice of ‘Service Habits’ by Jaquie Scammell ended up being amid the pandemic crisis of COVID-19.
The resulting change in our work environments and how as a local government we needed to transform the way in which we provided our services, highlighted the importance of building long-lasting relationships for greater long-term impact.
The book reminded me that to create a new habit takes time, that you had to repeat the behaviour many times for it to become automatic. But first, before improvement, a prompt about some of those bad habits we need to break or let go of.
Whether you need improvement in service habits as categorised in the book: ‘Service fundamentals’; ‘Know how you serve best’; ‘Learn how others want to be served’; ‘Balance your actions when serving’; and finishing with ‘Service practice’, there is definitely take-aways for anyone in this book.
Each chapter concluded with an opportunity to reflect on your own personal experiences followed by ways in which you could embed the habit in your daily lives. Plenty of practical ways offered to embed a new habit or two.
Maryanne is an Executive and Project Support Officer at Mooney Valley City Council
