I recently saw a late night re-run of a terrific action/crime film starring Michael Douglas and Robert Duvall. This 1993 film, Falling Down, centers on Douglas’s character, William Foster, who is a recently divorced and unemployed former defense engineer.
The film follows him as he goes on a violent rampage across the city of L.A. trying to get home in time for his daughter’s birthday party. Along the way, a series of encounters, both trivial and provocative, cause him to react with violence and make sardonic observations on life, poverty, the economy and commercialism.
One particular scene takes place as the main character finds himself in a fast food restaurant after several extremely stressful events on an unusually hot summer day.
What happens next is classic, and I’m certain viewers will immediately identify with his frustration with the total lack of customer service he receives from the staff and the manager of Whammy Burger. We’ve all been there, we’ve all felt the same, but fortunately we avoided responding the way Foster did.
This short clip will have you sitting on the edge of your seat while realizing this scene could occur most anywhere at any time in today’s chaotic environment. I’ve shared this clip with many seminar audiences while defining the term “Vigilante Consumer.” I can’t think of a better way of explaining this term and demonstrating the possible consequences, although extreme in this case, of poor service.
The title of the film, referring to Foster’s mental collapse, is taken from the title of the nursery rhyme London Bridge is Falling Down, which appears several times during the film.
Watch this clip and see if you don’t relate to his frustration at not being able to order breakfast two minutes after they switched to the lunch menu. You’ll also laughingly identify with his comparison of the skimpy unattractive Whammy burger in his hand to the thick, juicy, scrumptious photo on the menu board.
If customer service is critical to your success, you might consider sharing this clip with your staff followed by a discussion of how Foster might react after a visit to your establishment.
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We knew it was going to happen. Just glance out your car window as you pass your local strip malls. Try to walk 25 yards through your local mall without seeing boarded up stores. The 2009 holiday sales period was one of the worst on record. That, coupled with very little change in the nation’s economic situation and the growth of e-commerce revenues, made it quite obvious that our retail industry would have to adjust to consistently poor performance. The looming question at this point is “who’s next?”
A “perfect storm” is an expression that describes an event where a rare combination of circumstances will aggravate a situation drastically. And that’s what’s happening today across this great nation.
You can bet there are a host of competitors watching what happens as a result of these creative attempts to survive and thrive. If they fail, you will hear a chorus of “I told you so.” If they succeed, you’ll suddenly see a lot of them scrambling to do the same. However, there’s a good chance that it will be too late.
In the spirit of C.A.N.I. (Continuous And Never-ending Improvement), here are this week’s new facts—one for each day of your coming week. Pass them on to others to keep the spirit alive or invite your friends and family to visit our blog where they can also view previous entries.
This morning I saw a short but powerful quote from Tom Peters. It’s certainly relevant in regard to our current chaotic environment world wide. Peters suggested:
How many times have you heard the following statements or something very close to them?
Pause for just a moment and consider those in your life who belong to the younger generation. Consider children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, brothers, sisters, neighbors, those in your church and community. Have you ever taken just a few minutes to sit and chat with them? I’m not talking about asking them how to use your iPod or cell phone. I mean chatting about life in general. You might be pleasantly surprised at what can come out of a short encounter like that.
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