Never say "Never!"

I read this blog by Seth Godin today...
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Never's not such a long time
By Seth Godin

"I'll never buy from you again."
"I'll never vote for that candidate if my candidate loses."
"I'll never invest in that stock."

Never seems like a really long time, doesn't it? Practically forever.

Here's the thing. People who say 'never' actually mean, "until my situation or the story changes materially." Making bad decisions in the now to honor absolute statements in the past isn't particularly sustainable. Consumers, short-sighted as they are sometimes, are able to realize this pretty quickly.

In fact, the only thing shorter than 'never' is 'always.'
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This reminded me of a store in Hamburg, NY. It was a department store that had habitually bad service. Once Christmas season, I could not find a store staff anywhere...seriously...anywhere. I stood in Aisle 8 and yelled, "CUSTOMER SERVICE TO AISLE 8 PLEASE! CUSTOMER SERVICE TO AISLE 8!" A couple people scurried over but still couldn't answer my question about the sale item in the circular.

I walked out of that store and determined that I would never go back again. I didn't. And less than a year later, it closed it's doors. Either I have super powers to determine the economic future of department store chains...or a bunch of people had a similar experience and the nevers added up.

I think about this in the church where I serve. There are going to be people who just don't like the way we do things: the music, the teaching, the [insert person or ministry here]. But we're not immune to a tidal wave of "I'll never..."

There are some things that are a part of who we are that will turn people off...that's just part of reality. But that means it's even more important to make sure we're not losing people on the unimportant stuff. We can choose to be welcoming, warm, fun, helpful...and in so doing, cut off a lot of the "I'll never..." before they even happen.

I'm not sure it's even all that profound...just a good reminder to me today. I don't want people to have to stand in the aisle and yell for help...

M@