Is it love or just my imagination?

I’ve got a crush on my pharmacist …
And yeah, I know that sounds wrong, in soooo many ways.

Really, it’s all I can do to keep my goofy grin in check when he explains the potentially deadly side effects of a prescription.

And in my defense, it’s not just me. My good friend has also fallen for the local grocery store, drug peddling lothario, who blushes every time she collects her birth control pills.

I know this sounds bad; you must be thinking, why is this woman having so many conversations with her pharmacist? Really, I’m not sickly. The relationship started with a lingering head cold, allergy medication for my husband, and then several
prescriptions for my mom …

Certainly, I wouldn’t have planned on having a crush on a pharmacist. Think about it.
How many legitimate, non-embarrassing reasons are there to approach the counter?
“This rash is driving me nuts!” or “You’ve got to help me with all this sinus drainage!”
Intimate discussions about bodily functions would not have happened with the butcher or the produce guy.

My husband doesn’t understand the attraction. Lab coat. Slim and studious looking.
To justify my rosy cheeks every time I return from the pharmacy, I counted the ways
in which “Crush” has inspired my loyalty. See, every time I walk up to the counter he
will:

-address me by name
-seem sincerely glad to see me
-make direct eye contact
-wish me “good luck” when I leave
-let me know about other products that I might like
-inquire about previous issues and my family
-come out from behind the counter to show me products that are out on the
floor, instead of just pointing
-make me feel good about my visit, not guilty or embarrassed by it
-establish himself as a trusted expert I can count on

After confessing this list to my husband, he raised his eyebrows and smiled.

Sure enough, my “how I love thee list” began to look exactly like a set of standards that my coworker Steve Browne would have created for a casino guest service program!

For a moment, my heart seized and I wondered if our relationship was just a corporate training formula in disguise. (Perhaps it started off that way, but I do feel confident our rapport is real).

I am a passionate woman and must admit that I have other extracurricular relationships with people who I exchange money with (okay, you can call them crushes). It made me laugh when I realized my favorite instructors at the dojo, the guy that aerates my lawn twice a year, and even my hairstylist follow almost the exact behaviors above!

How about that — those guest service standards posted on the walls of your casino really do work their magic. They are not just “clichés” made up by a committee.

Do your clients have a crush on you?

Do you take the time to look them in the eye and make them feel like they are your only customer?

Do your guests tell their friends and family how special you are?

Do you think the ladies of Bedford Falls lusted after Mister Gower? I’m betting that Violet looked forward to her conversations over the soda fountain, while he filled her prescription for penicillin.

I’m all for more of that type of guest service that feels so good, it feels a bit naughty.

From May 2011 Raving Perspectives Newsletter