How 'The Customer is Always Right' Culture Damages Businesses—and Better Ways Forward

 The phrase “The customer is always right” has long been a staple in the world of customer service. It suggests that businesses should prioritize the customer's desires, feedback, and demands over almost anything else. While this mantra may have been effective in creating a customer-centric culture in the past, it is increasingly becoming a damaging mindset. This one-sided focus can lead to a toxic workplace, entitled customers, and unsustainable business practices. It is time to rethink customer service with a more balanced, empathetic approach that benefits both businesses and their clients.

Why "The Customer Is Always Right" is Problematic

1. It Undermines Employee Morale and Well-being

When employees are instructed to meet unreasonable customer demands without recourse, it can lead to burnout and dissatisfaction. Workers who feel unsupported by their employers may become disengaged, which affects the quality of service they provide. In essence, prioritizing customer satisfaction at the cost of employee well-being is a short-term gain that sacrifices long-term success.

When the mantra "The customer is always right" becomes policy, it can reinforce an expectation that employees must tolerate abusive, rude, or inappropriate behavior. This not only impacts their mental health but can create a hostile work environment that discourages employee loyalty and retention.

2. It Empowers Entitled Behavior

The message that customers can do no wrong emboldens those who behave poorly. It fosters a sense of entitlement, where the most demanding or rude individuals expect preferential treatment, regardless of how they treat employees or other customers. Businesses that prioritize these difficult customers over others send a clear message: behaving badly gets results.

Entitled customer behavior disrupts both the workplace and the overall customer experience. When the loudest and most problematic individuals get their way, it often leaves respectful customers feeling overlooked.

3. It Doesn’t Encourage Constructive Dialogue

The mindset suggests that businesses should always yield to customer preferences, even when they are wrong or misinformed. However, customers are not always experts in the products or services they are purchasing. The adage discourages businesses from offering valuable expertise and guidance, leading to unsatisfied customers who are often misled by their own expectations.

4. It Neglects Long-term Business Success

In an effort to satisfy every customer's immediate desires, businesses can lose sight of their long-term goals. Trying to meet unreasonable or impossible requests may compromise product integrity, quality, or even the overall brand image. When companies overly cater to customers at any cost, they risk burning through resources and compromising the standards that actually attract loyal clients.

Alternative Approaches to Customer Service

Recognizing the flaws in the “customer is always right” approach doesn’t mean dismissing customer service altogether. Instead, businesses should adopt a more balanced, people-centered model that fosters respect for both employees and customers. Here are some alternative ways to think about customer service:

1. Prioritize Empathy and Understanding

Instead of putting the customer on a pedestal, focus on understanding their needs and concerns. Empathetic customer service involves listening to customers without judgment and working toward solutions that satisfy both parties. While the customer may not always be “right,” their concerns should always be heard, and their problems taken seriously.

An empathetic approach not only leaves customers feeling valued but also allows employees to establish boundaries and guide customers to more realistic expectations.

2. Support and Empower Employees

Companies should equip their staff with the authority and tools to handle difficult situations. Empowered employees are more likely to resolve conflicts quickly, reduce stress for everyone involved, and create a positive atmosphere. Employees who feel supported by their management are more likely to go the extra mile for customers, leading to better service in the long run.

Creating policies that protect workers from abuse or unreasonable demands not only benefits employees but also leads to more sustainable and fair customer service.

3. Set Clear Boundaries

Not all customer demands are reasonable, and that’s okay. Businesses should set clear policies on what can and cannot be done, both for the protection of the company and its employees. When boundaries are communicated effectively, customers are more likely to respect them. Companies should focus on creating realistic expectations for what services they provide, ensuring that the experience is transparent and fair.

4. Value Constructive Feedback Over Entitlement

Encourage a culture that values thoughtful feedback rather than capitulating to every complaint. Customers who provide constructive criticism help businesses improve, while those who simply complain often lead to rushed or unsustainable fixes. Engage in meaningful dialogue with customers to understand their perspective, but don’t allow negative voices to overpower reason.

5. Foster Long-term Relationships Over Short-term Satisfaction

Instead of focusing on immediate, transactional satisfaction, businesses should aim to build long-term relationships with their customers. This means offering consistent, high-quality service and being willing to say “no” when necessary. Businesses that prioritize integrity and honest communication will foster a loyal customer base that values the company's approach, even when things don’t go perfectly.

Conclusion

The phrase "The customer is always right" is increasingly out of touch with modern realities. A healthier, more sustainable approach to customer service acknowledges the value of employees, sets clear boundaries, and fosters mutual respect between customers and businesses. By shifting away from an outdated, one-sided mindset, businesses can create more meaningful relationships with both their employees and their clients, leading to long-term success and satisfaction for all.

A different approach and application to personal digital data gathered passively (digital footprint)

• Who owns it and controls how it is used for the benefit of the individual and society as a whole?
• Can this data show something about a person subconscious?
• Can this data be applied to help people make better, benevolent choices more than just choices that are consumeristic and political?

I think there are a lot of possible applications but I will focus on career decisions and career development.

The closest thing to this is personality assessments such as the Myers Briggs Type Indicator. The problem with these types of assessments is they gather data based on how a person is thinking or feeling at one instance of time. It also relies solely on how a person thinks about themselves and really has little connection with a person's actions in real life. It also seems to pride itself in being something that doesn't change. It doesn't take into consideration, as an instrument, that people change.

Because so much of a person's life is lived online, the data gathered through digital means could very well be applied to give a clearer picture of who a person is and how they spend their time, the actions they take, the things they are interested in, and generally the choices they make. Google's motto of "Don't be evil" is fine, but I think it really misses an opportunity to do some good for people beyond providing goods and services and even to some extent, the data/information. Because the waters are muddied by the fact that Google profits by using your personal data, it might make it hard to convince users to provide more data willingly even if the promise was more about improving life. 

The general public doesn't understand what is "out there" about them-- what kind of data marketers (data mongers) have and what kind of inferences are made about that data and how that data is used to sell them stuff or even a bigger deal change their way of thinking. I see this as not only a problem but a missed opportunity. If a user allowed data to be taken about them and they were able to see all that data and in most cases control what data becomes their "profile" the conversation can change from that of capitalism to that of "Who am I?" It makes for a more thoughtful and introspective approach. "These are the actions I make on a regular basis. Are they leading me to who I want to be?" And from there, open themselves up to suggestions and information through technological means that can point them in the right direction. The conversation changes from "what do I want to have" to "what do I want to become."

What do you think? Am I making sense? Do you think technology and data can facilitate this kind of change in people? Do you think people would want this?

An original poem, written by me.

Simple Career Centered Design

Writing a General Cover Letter

As a career coach, I will get asked by job seekers about how to create a general cover letter. This is the wrong question to be asking. Cover letters should not be general. They should be specific. If you are applying for a specific job or at a specific company, your cover letter should be tailored according to the job description and/or the company. Tailoring your cover letter should not step on the feet of personal authenticity and integrity. If you don't have a job description or a specific company you are applying to, your cover letter should be specific to the unique value that you can add and the specific interests/goals you have. Your cover letter should represent your personal brand.

Should I Write?

Should I Write?

If the things you want to write always come out sad, do you, should you, continue to write? If the things you write don't seem to have value, is that a reason to stop writing? Is there any way to ensure that what you write will be positive and of value? I think the important thing is to continue writing. I am saying this to myself because I don't have any authority to say it to another person. I am that person who talks himself out of writing because of time or laziness or lack of anything to write. But those things are simply not true.

Write Regardless of Outcome 

Writing and to be more more general creating, needs to be done regardless of the outcome. Once you have something down, you can go from there. With that being said, there is a second part that can take writing to the next level and that is editing and sharing. Those things are what has the potential of adding value to another person.

Write to Add Value

Writing in the first place, and just writing for the sake of writing, can have value for the individual writer, but editing and sharing are what makes it possible to add value to another person. One of the benefits of writing is that it gets things out of my mind. Another benefit is that writing creates an action. Creating action overtime is required if you want to have habits. I need to formalize and stick with the habits I want to have in my life. Writing is one of those habits. I can say that it doesn't matter what I write, and that may be true in the beginning, but beyond that I need to create and write in a value-added way.

It is good to write, it is better to write every day, it is best to write things of value every day.

Write to Become A Better Writer

If I learn to write good sentences. And then learn to write good paragraphs. And then learn to write good papers. That is one way to look at becoming a good writer. Something else that I can add into this is learning to begin with the end in mind in my writing, but also with all other things I do.

So there are a number of reasons I could write:

1. For me, writing can be a form of planning. So that could be the first thing. 
2. For two, writing can be a form of something to add to a blog and 
3. (three) show/demonstrate that I am a good writer. What other reasons are there? 
4. I could write to create a journal of my experiences and thoughts (four). 
5. I can write to think or organize my thoughts (five). Most of my writing, especially in this system has come under that reason. 

Begin Writing with the End in Mind

Determining the reason before I start writing can affect what I write. If I am just writing to organize my thoughts, it might be appropriate for me just to write, much like a brain dump of sorts. If I am writing to share, I might be a little more methodical and focused. It would be good to remind myself before I write, the reason I write as well as remind myself after I write, why I wrote.

Review What You Write 

After writing, it would be beneficial because I can determine what action to take next. Most of the time, especially if I am working on (1) improving my writing or (2) making a record that I or someone else will read again, I will need to re-read what I wrote. I can add paragraphs, fix sentences and generally make what I write more readable. I can also add it to a blog or place to post. That will take a bit more effort because I talk myself out of posting and sharing the things I write. I need to remind myself that it is OK to share what I write even if it isn't perfect.

My Daughters

I have two of the cutest daughters on the entire planet. I am not sure how I am so blessed. They are funny and smart. I am glad they like each other. I really hope they grow up liking each other too. It is a sad thing to see siblings that don’t get along. I would think with as close as they are in age that they would be friends. I really wonder what kind of parenting encourages (or discourages) siblings being friends. I am lucky to have the girls I have, but I also think my girls are lucky to have each other.