My daughter was in need of a website to support her “Best Neighbor Club”.  My son,  having a knack for technology, offered his services for $3.   She is nearly 10.  He just turned 11.  It may sound like an odd transaction, but he has created many websites, has hacked his iTouch into a Phone, invented a Rocket Pen, and bought his own domains.  He is a builder, an inventor, an engineer, an entrepreneur.  He proceeded to develop what he believed to be a really sick website.  It had a chat function and animation, it was black and very cool.  My daughter, on the other hand, was displeased with services rendered.  He was not listening to what she wanted.  Pink and pretty with no bells and whistles.  An argument ensued and they sought mediation at which time I had to explain the basic concept of Customer Service.  When someone pays you to do a job, they get to make the decisions and you can not argue with them or fight with them about those decisions.  They are the customer.  You are the vendor.  They are right.  You deliver what they ask.  When you pay for something, you get to choose.  If you can’t live with this concept, then you can’t accept the job.  It was a difficult lesson for my son to grasp, and still it doesn’t sit well with him.  He is the wounded artist whose work was criticized and rejected.

The irony is that I had this very same conversation with my husband two days prior, when he was grumbling about  another change that a client had requested.

I know the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree and the customer is always right.  But then again, I’m a Mom.  We all have Masters in the business of Customer Service.

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