Something’s gone wrong.

A service has failed you, an account has been frauded, a pipe has burst, you were overcharged, or your package was sent to the wrong address.

You – “call the company.”

But the twist is, you haven’t called the company. What you’ve done is entered a number into a phone, reach a person tasked to represent the entity, that exists because enough individuals believe the story that it does.

A company is an idea, shared by the 2 persons involved.

Why make that distinction? Because the interaction determines what we believe about the company. And when it’s over, the story gets written down in the form of a review.

Writing a review is not writing about a company. It’s writing about how communication between two people either flourished or broke down.

The good news is that we can increase positive outcomes in these situations, no matter how bad the problem needs to be solved if we start with two mindfulness practices.

First, by beginning every interaction with a business by acknowledging the person who has been tasked to represent it.

Second, by understanding that they are also tasked with representing you, to it.

It’s that simple.