“What made her mom so special?” I asked. Sharin explained that her mother worked at a small credit union in a small town and, of course, knew everyone. “When my mother saw a member drive up in the parking lot, she would pull up all their information and have it waiting on her computer screen before they even sat down. If you brought in your children or your pet, there was a snack for them as well. She knew the birthdays of every member, their spouses’ names and even the names of their children.” Sharin said her mother felt it was her privilege to serve members and do it well and with a warm heart.

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I think there are other potential lessons to learn from the words above. It might be about offering a higher level of service when your customer is in a line, thinking about what you can do or how you can act while you are in a line, or even what it takes to stand out from the rest of a line of people in the same job or career.

For some, the word “line” conjures up unpleasantness or feelings of irritation. Of course, good things can come from waiting in lines - front row seats at a concert, orchestra seating at the theater, or up closer and personal with a keynote speaker. Today, I am thinking of the line that Dr. Martin Luther King marched in, the line that stood to hear his “I Have a Dream” speech, and the line that followed his funeral procession. Imagine lining up every person who participated in an MLK celebration today with every person whose life was touched by Dr. King, a man who exemplified “living for the line”.

Tim Richardson is an inspirational speaker who speaks about how giving increases employee morale, lowers employee turnover, increases customer loyalty and creates higher profits for Fortune 500 companies. He is founder of the Bill Walter Melanoma Research Fund. For more information on Tim, go towww.TimRichardson.com