Page 110 - The Apple Experience

“What does that have to do with Zappos?” I asked.
“It has everything to do with Zappos,” she said.

Tony Hsieh will tell you that Zappos is not in the business of selling

shoes. It’s in the business of delivering happiness—to customers and to

employees. Happy employees equal happy customers, and happy customers

equal big profits. It’s a simple equation that works for Zappos. It works for

Apple. It will work for you, too.

In Apple Store heaven this morning. For unfortunate circumstances, but it’s still

heaven! —Marie D.

When Doubts Diminish and Spirits Soar

When people receive genuine praise, their doubts diminish and their spirits

soar. Apple employees who make a mistake are not reprimanded harshly in

front of their peers. They are simply pulled aside, asked to try harder the next

time, given a high five, and put back on the floor. When they do well, they

are often praised in front of their peers.

Sometimes praise comes in the form of encouragement when a person

messes up. Years before former GE CEO Jack Welch earned the nickname

“Neutron Jack,” he almost blew up a factory for real. In 1963, early in his

career, Welch was sitting in his Pittsburgh office when he heard a
tremendous explosion outside. The blast blew the roof off the factory across

the road. Nobody was seriously injured, but Welch admitted it was entirely

his fault and drove a hundred miles to explain the incident to a corporate

group executive. Welch figured he would be fired. Instead his boss was more

concerned that Welch had learned something from the accident to prevent

something like it from happening at his factory or any other factory, for that