“By love serve one another.” — Galatians 5:13
Lesson
What You Will Learn
- Apply the basics of excellent customer service
- Handle an upset customer using a simple method
- Build respectful relationships with coworkers and supervisors
Lesson Notes
Service Basics
Greet promptly, smile with your voice, use the customer's name when you can, listen to the need, and follow through. Customers remember how you made them feel.
The HEARD Method for Upset Customers
- Hear: let them explain without interrupting.
- Empathize: “I understand why that's frustrating.”
- Apologize: “I'm sorry this happened.” (You are apologizing for the experience, not admitting fault.)
- Resolve: fix it or find someone who can.
- Diagnose: later, think about how to prevent it.
Coworkers and Teams
Be dependable, share credit, offer help, and avoid gossip. When you don't know something, ask. When you make a mistake, own it early.
Working With Supervisors
Supervisors are responsible for results. Take direction respectfully, ask questions privately, and bring solutions along with problems. If you disagree, request a private conversation and use assertive language.
Key Terms
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| HEARD | Hear, Empathize, Apologize, Resolve, Diagnose |
| Follow-through | Doing what you said you would do |
| Gossip | Talking about someone who isn't present in a way that harms them |
In-Class Activities
HEARD Role-Play
In groups of three (customer, employee, observer), act out: a customer's order was wrong and she's already late. The observer checks off each HEARD step.
Team Scenarios
Discuss how you would handle each: a coworker takes credit for your idea; a coworker keeps arriving late and you cover for her; your supervisor corrects you in front of others.
Assignment: Service Scenario Responses
Write out what you would say using HEARD for two situations:
- A patient's family member at a clinic front desk is angry about a two-hour wait.
- A customer at a store says she was overcharged.
Then write three habits you will practice to be a good coworker.
Graded with the Module Assignment Rubric.
Reflection Journal
Galatians 5:13 says to serve one another in love. Is it hard for you to serve people who are rude or who have more power than you? Where does your worth come from when someone treats you poorly?
Prayer focus: Ask God for a servant's heart and for a sense of worth that doesn't depend on how others treat you.
Weekly Reading & Devotions
Service Is Strength
Some people see service jobs as "less than." Scripture sees it the other way: Jesus said the greatest among us will be the servant. Serving customers and supporting coworkers well is honorable work, and it builds skills that lead to leadership.
Upset customers are part of almost every job. The HEARD method helps: Hear them out, Empathize (I understand why that's frustrating), Apologize for their experience, Resolve the problem or find someone who can, and Diagnose later how to prevent it. Apologizing for someone's experience is not admitting you did something wrong. It is showing you care.
It can be very hard not to take rudeness personally, especially if you have been disrespected for years. It helps to remember that an angry customer is usually upset with a situation, not with you. Your worth does not rise or fall with how others treat you. It is rooted in God.
With coworkers, the basics matter most: be dependable, share credit, offer help, avoid gossip, and own your mistakes early. With supervisors, take direction respectfully, ask questions privately, and bring solutions along with problems.
A workplace reputation is built one interaction at a time. Many women who start in entry-level service roles become shift leads and managers because they served people well.
Think About It
- What is the best customer service you have ever received? ______________________
- What makes rude treatment hard for you to handle? ______________________
- What kind of coworker do you want to be known as? ______________________
Daily Devotions for Week 5
Serve One Another
By love serve one another.— Galatians 5:13 (KJV)
Service is love in action. Every coffee poured, every question answered, every shelf stocked can be done in love.
Reflect: Who can you serve with love today?
Pray: Lord, give me a servant's heart.
Do: Do one unexpected act of service at work or on your unit.
Not to Be Served
For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister.— Mark 10:45 (KJV)
Jesus, the King of kings, came to serve. When we serve, we are most like Him.
Reflect: What makes serving others hard for you?
Pray: Lord, help me serve as You served.
Do: Help someone without being asked.
A Soft Answer
A soft answer turneth away wrath.— Proverbs 15:1 (KJV)
When a customer or coworker is angry, a calm and gentle reply can turn the situation around. Softness is not weakness; it is strength under control.
Reflect: When has a soft answer helped a tense moment?
Pray: Lord, give me a soft answer in hard moments.
Do: Lower your voice the next time someone raises theirs.
Your Worth
I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.— Psalm 139:14 (KJV)
No rude customer or harsh supervisor can take away your worth. You are fearfully and wonderfully made by God. Stand on that when others treat you poorly.
Reflect: Where do you look for your worth?
Pray: Lord, root my worth in You.
Do: Read Psalm 139 slowly and underline one verse.
No Gossip
A whisperer separateth chief friends.— Proverbs 16:28 (KJV)
Gossip destroys trust in workplaces and friendships. Choosing not to repeat stories about others protects relationships and your reputation.
Reflect: Where is gossip tempting for you?
Pray: Lord, guard me from gossip.
Do: Change the subject once when a conversation turns to gossip.
Module Quiz
- 1.
In HEARD, what does the E stand for?
- 2.
Apologizing to an upset customer means:
- 3.
A coworker takes credit for your idea. The best first step is:
- 4.
Bringing a possible solution along with a problem shows initiative.
- 5.
Name two habits of a good coworker.