Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Good People, Attractive Companies

Paul Rolly
Paul Rolly's article in the Salt Lake Tribune today reports good news -- five happy stories of positive character displayed by regular people.

One of the stories highlights a check-out clerk at Smith's who knows a long-time customer by name and responded protectively when she saw his stolen wallet being used for a purchase. Another tells of a UPS driver who paused just briefly along his route to help a mom and her kids. A third tells of Jerry Sloan, whose name is still associated with the Jazz, fishing car keys out of a dumpster for a woman who had accidentally tossed them there.

It could be argued that the woman at Smith's was a liability due to the potential danger of taking something from the thief, and that the UPS driver used work time to do something other than his job. In some companies, these employees might be reprimanded for their actions. With that in mind, it is worth noting that Smith's, UPS, and the Jazz all look better because these three people took just a few moments to be kind.

Little kindnesses like these are worthwhile on their own; they can also be good for business.

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