DO AS I SAY, NOT AS...

if you ever worked for a dealer-principle/small business owner/family operation, you are very familiar with these words.
in my ever varying career(read everchanging), i would have to say, these at times, are the most difficult words to have to eat crow to. maybe why i never stayed in the military. having to accept what at the moment, maybe indifferent or conflicting terms or reasons, or what ever, has always stuck in my craw. for those who work for corporations, it may seem different, but what store managers or area managers interpet as grey areas of rules and regulations can bear witness to the same principle; "do as i say, not as i do".
as an example; if your current small business owner boss, in a business meeting states to you, "such and such customer" has issues and problems with him; it is a given, that there maybe bad blood between them, and he, the owner, feels you maybe the ticket or answer to resolving any of those percieved "issues" and the said customer may start buying from your company again; "but" if the above said "customer" doesn't open up and or continues his dislike of your business, and maybe even, because of what ever reason, doesn't like you either; "bam", now you are the bad guy. no win situtation for sure. hence the catch 22 of this blog; who really is to blame here?
first off, is this customer really worth the time? does the percieved value of the customer out-weigh the reasons of trying to keep his or hers business? what really is the reasons for the bad blood of the two companies that can't be resolved? why does the owner, feel another person, who may not be able to change the reasons of the bad blood, is really gonna make a difference or leave a bad reflection of that persons ablilty to manage, due to a unwavering conflict with no chance of resolution?
at 48 years old and 27 years of this business culture, i can see why many of my seniors and other co-workers have stressed out and in many cases, burned out of this industry. stress is a killer; but to keep stress down and to retain business and employees and customers, all parties, from the customers, the owners and the employees, locked in this dance of customer service, must seek a common ground, level playing fields and sanity, to stay afloat as well as to make money in these tough economic times.