I read this email that arrived in my inbox today and like it very much. Read on and see if you have been quacking or have you been soaring.  

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Ducks Quack, Eagles Soar

No one can make you serve customers well.

That’s because great service is a choice.

Harvey Mackay, tells a wonderful story about a cab driver that proved this point.

He was waiting in line for a ride at the airport. When a cab pulled up, the first thing Harvey noticed was that the taxi was polished to a bright shine. Smartly dressed in a white shirt, black tie, and freshly pressed black slacks, the cab driver jumped out and rounded the car to open the back passenger door for Harvey.

He handed my friend a laminated card and said, “I’m Wally, your driver. While I’m loading your bags in the trunk I’d like you to read my mission statement.”

Taken aback, Harvey read the card. It said, ”Wally’s Mission Statement: To get my customers to their destination in the quickest, safest and cheapest way possible in a friendly environment. This blew Harvey away. Especially when he noticed that the inside of the cab matched the outside. Spotlessly clean!

As he slid behind the wheel, Wally said, “Would you like a cup of coffee? I have a thermos of regular and one of decaf.”

My friend said jokingly, “No, I’d prefer a soft drink.”

Wally smiled and said, “No problem. I have a cooler up front with regular and Diet Coke, water and orange juice.”

Almost stuttering, Harvey said, “I’ll take a Diet Coke.”

Handing him his drink, Wally said, “If you’d like something to read, I have The Wall Street Journal, Time, Sports Illustrated and USA Today.”

As they were pulling away, Wally handed my friend another laminated card. “These are the stations I get and the music they play, if you’d like to listen to the radio.”

And as if that weren’t enough, Wally told Harvey that he had the air conditioning on and asked if the temperature was comfortable for him. Then he advised Harvey of the best route to his destination for that time of day. He also let him know that he’d be happy to chat and tell him about some of the sights or, if Harvey preferred, to leave him with his own thoughts.

“Tell me, Wally,” my amazed friend asked the driver, “have you always served customers like this?”

Wally smiled into the rear view mirror. “No, not always. In fact, it’s only been in the last two years. My first five years driving, I spent most of my time complaining like all the rest of the cabbies do. Then I heard the personal growth guru, Wayne Dyer, on the radio one day.

He had just written a book called You’ll See It When You Believe It. Dyer said that if you get up in the morning expecting to have a bad day, you’ll rarely disappoint yourself. He said, ‘Stop complaining! Differentiate yourself from your competition. Don’t be a duck. Be an eagle. Ducks quack and complain. Eagles soar above the crowd.’”

“That hit me right between the eyes,” said Wally. “Dyer was really talking about me. I was always quacking and complaining, so I decided to change my attitude and become an eagle. I looked around at the other cabs and their drivers. The cabs were dirty, the drivers were unfriendly, and the customers were unhappy. So I decided to make some changes. I put in a few at a time. When my customers responded well, I did more.”

“I take it that has paid off for you,” Harvey said.

“It sure has,” Wally replied. “My first year as an eagle, I doubled my income from the previous year. This year I’ll probably quadruple it. You were lucky to get me today. I don’t sit at cabstands anymore. My customers call me for appointments on my cell phone or leave a message on my answering machine. If I can’t pick them up myself, I get a reliable cabbie friend to do it and I take a piece of the action.”

Wally was phenomenal. He was running a limo service out of a Yellow Cab. I’ve probably told that story to more than fifty cab drivers over the years, and only two took the idea and ran with it. Whenever I go to their cities, I give them a call. The rest of the drivers quacked like ducks and told me all the reasons they couldn’t do any of what I was suggesting.

Wally the Cab Driver made a different choice. He decided to stop quacking like ducks and start soaring like eagles.

How about us?

I have always been telling myself that I have to go exercise one day, be it jogging around my neighbourhood or go swimming. And you know, the usual story comes up with hundreds and thousands of excuses - not enough time, don’t feel like it, not in the mood, too tired, too lazy, too busy.. bla bla.. the list goes on. I guess you would have the same experience too.

Until I discovered this 80 / 20 principle in a book I’ve just read, yesterday. This principle is about a theory that the 20% of the things we do yields 80% of the results, while 80% of the things we do, yields 20% of the results.

So how does this apply in our life?

Everyday, when we plan things to do, we will usually list down a number of things we want to do for the day. And our list could include things like call Mary out for dinner, buy groceries, wash laundry, check out that new store etc etc. Once we have done that, we feel really good and it feels even better ticking away all the things that we have accomplished for the day.

But when we stop and think, hey, how are all these tasks that I’ve done, bring me nearer to my goals? Most of the time, the answer could be no. We prefer doing things that are simple, fun, easy and requires little effort. And most of the time, these are the 80% of the things we do which only result in 20% of the results.

Now, consider meeting up with that prospect who could be your potential client or go register that business. Would these require more courage, determination and effort? These tasks which demand more effort and requires us to overcome certain fears, are usually the 20% of the things we do which will yield 80% of the results.

So with that in mind, here’s a tip:

The next time you draw up a to-do list, make it a power list by categorising the tasks you need to do into the 20% column or the 80% column. When you have a task in hand, ask yourself, which column should it go to? the 20% column which produces 80% of the results? or does it falls under the 80% column which produces only 20% of the results?

After you have done that, head straight to tackle the tasks under the 20% column. Once you have accomplished them, reward yourself. But remember, when u have done those tasks under the 80% column, forget about rewarding yourself. Only reward yourself for something productive which you have accomplished.

And, always do those things udner the 20% column during your more productive time. Some people do things better in the morning while some feels more productive at night. Meanwhile, leave those more trivial items under 80% column to those times when you need a break or during times when you feel lazy.

By applying this principle, I’ve managed to start this blog, yay! And also finally get my butt and legs moving to jog around the neighbourhood, after being sedentary for more than 7 months! I realised how procrastination has cost me my health and how procrastinating on these more challenging items has cost me a learning opportunity.

So, get your pen and paper, make your power list and off you go! Your goals are waiting for you~

Daily Discoveries.. there it goes. The setting up of this blog will be one of the first steps towards discovering more things in the virtual world. Not only that, as you read my posts in days to come, you will realise that it is also a discovery of oneself, discovery of life and the world we are in. Join me in this discovery journey as we embark on the adventure of life and explore the wonderful world around us. And I hope, along the way, you too would discover something about yourself, your life and your world.