In every speech that I give, every column I write, every person or group that I mentor, my goal is to leave my audience with plenty of take-home value.

I could teach from a textbook and give lots of facts and case studies, but I don’t. I use stories because people can easily relate to the points I make. Here’s some food for thought.

Know who has your back. We can learn much from observing geese in flight. First, people who share a common direction and a sense of community get where they are going more quickly and easily because they rely on the strength of each other.

Second, stay in formation and accept help when it is needed, and offer help when others need it.

Third, geese instinctively share the task of leadership and do not resent the leader.

Fourth, when a goose is sick, wounded or shot down, two others drop out of formation to follow it down to Earth to protect it. They remain with the wounded bird until it is well or dies.

Teamwork. Many years ago in Austria, they had a custom that helped villagers size up the future happiness of a newly married couple. After the wedding at the local church, the village women would escort the bride and groom to a nearby forest and stand them before a large tree. They would then hand the young couple a two-handled bucksaw and ask that they use it to fell the tree.

The closer the cooperation between the man and wife, the shorter the time it took for the tree to come down. And the older villagers wisely reasoned that, the shorter the time, the happier the young couple would be -- because they had learned that most valuable of marital lessons -- teamwork!

Never assume your boss knows everything. A young executive was leaving the office late one evening when he found the CEO standing in front of a shredder with a piece of paper in his hand.

“Listen,” said the CEO, “this is a very sensitive and important document here, and my assistant has gone for the night. Can you make this thing work?”

“Certainly,” said the young executive. He turned the machine on, inserted the paper, and pressed the start button.

“Excellent, excellent!” said the CEO as his paper disappeared inside the machine. “I just need one copy.”

Know when to keep your mouth shut. A little bird was flying south for the winter. It was so cold the bird froze and fell to the ground, landing in a large field. While it was lying there, a cow came by and dropped some dung on him. As the frozen bird lay there in the pile of cow dung, it began to realize how warm it was.

The bird was actually thawing out and began to sing for joy. A passing cat heard the bird singing and came to investigate. Following the sound, the cat discovered the bird, promptly dug it out and ate it.

Lessons: 1. Not everyone who dumps on you is your enemy. 2. Not everyone who gets you out of a mess is your friend. 3. And when you're in deep doo-doo, it's best to keep your mouth shut!

Be sure there is a problem in the first place before working hard to solve one. One beautiful day, a bus driver started his route. There were no problems for the first few stops -- a few people got on, a few got off.

At the next stop, however, a big hulk of a guy boarded. Extremely tall and built like a linebacker, he said, “Big John doesn't pay!” and sat down at the back.

The driver didn't argue. The next day, the same thing happened -- Big John got on again, refused to pay, and sat down. The same thing happened day after day.

This grated on the bus driver, who became increasingly angry over the way Big John was taking advantage of him. He signed up for bodybuilding and self-defense courses, and became quite strong. So, on the next Monday, when Big John once again got on the bus and said, “Big John doesn't pay!”

The driver stood up, challenging him, “And why not?”

Surprised, Big John replied, “Big John buys a bus pass.”

Mackay’s Moral: You can learn from experience -- yours or someone else’s.

Whatever business you are in -- manufacturing, retail, health care, travel, high tech -- you must realize that first and foremost, you are in the service business.

We all know how we like to be treated when we conduct a transaction. We also know how we do not like to be treated. There is no excuse not to render exceptional customer service.

But it has always amazed me that some organizations expect their customers to put up with disappointing service. It’s so much easier in the long run to expend a little more effort in putting your best foot forward.

So, based on personal experience and extensive research, I offer my ABCs for customer service.

A is for anticipate. Know what your customers need, what problems may arise, and how you can best serve them. Don’t just meet their needs; amaze them with your attention.

B is for business. Customer service is your business, no matter what you make or what service you provide. Keep repeating that mantra.

C is for commitments. You vouch for planned delivery dates, not random drop-off times. Businesses live on commitments, which lead to steady repeat sales.

D is for details. No detail is too small to a customer who has come to expect perfection from you. Little things make a big difference.

E is for empowerment. Every single person on your payroll must be empowered to make decisions on the spot that accommodate the customer first.

F is for fix the problem. When, despite your best efforts, something goes wrong, find out the reason and correct it immediately.

G is for give customers what they want. Many don’t really want their money back. They just want products or services that work the way they’re supposed to.

H is for hiring the right people to create and maintain a service culture. Recognize the skills and attitude you want, and make sure your staff supports that vision.

I is for the internet. Customer service has taken on a whole new meaning with the rise of social media and websites like Angie’s List and Yelp. Google your company and see what you find. Refer to letter F if you don’t like what you see.

J is for journey. Great service is not a onetime event. It’s an ongoing trek over weeks or years that comes with plenty of twists and turns to navigate.

K is for keep your word. Honesty and trust go hand in hand. Your word is your reputation, and your reputation is your future.

L is for long-term customer loyalty. It is not a hit-and-miss thing. You court it. You earn it. You cultivate it. You retain it.

M is for management, which needs to give employees the authority to help people before there is a problem, or be prepared to step in and handle the matter themselves.

N is for no customer service equals no customers.

O is for the other guys. What are they doing that you should be doing better?

P is for performance. If there was an award for best performance in a customer-service setting, you should be a shoo-in. Be aware of every opportunity to outperform your competition.

Q is for quick-witted. Be prepared to make adjustments to satisfy your customers.

R is for rebound, which is what you need to do to regain a customer’s business.

S is for service with a smile.

T is for take care of your customers or someone else will.

U is for under-promise and overdeliver. There has never been a sounder approach to customer service and sales.

V is for value. Customers need to value your product, your service and your relationship. Give them every reason to value you.

W is for wow, as in constantly finding ways to wow your customers. Make every encounter as special as you can because your customers will remember how you made them feel.

X is for express lane. There is no traffic jam in going the extra mile, and great customer service is your path to success.

Y is for years. Your goal is to have a customer for life.

Z is for zealous. If you want to set up and run a business with longevity in the form of long-term and repeating customers, you have to service those clients with zealous enthusiasm.

Mackay’s Moral: Customer service is not just another department; it’s everyone’s job.

I was struck by an article in Bits & Pieces magazine about how the Wright brothers fiercely argued over every decision -- so much so that acquaintances wondered how they could keep working together.

It is common knowledge that Orville and Wilbur Wright battled doubt, lack of money and gravity on their way to aviation history at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. What is not widely known is that they succeeded precisely because they challenged each other.

Mark Eppler, in his book “The Wright Way,” writes that the key to the brothers' intense arguments was that they were not anger-driven.

As Wilbur Wright put it, “Honest argument is merely a process of mutually picking the beams and motes out of each other’s eyes so both can see clearly.”

Irish poet and playwright Oscar Wilde supported the Wright brothers’ logic when he said: “The well-bred contradict other people. The wise contradict themselves.”

In other words, it’s fine to change your mind after listening to all sides of an argument. There may be issues you didn’t consider, or information that you were unaware of. There may be a better way to deal with a problem that you hadn’t considered.

I’ve always felt that debate or argument is healthy. Whenever I’ve had two employees disagreeing over something, I’ve always tried to listen with an open mind and learn different viewpoints. It can be very helpful in decision-making.

One important thing I’ve learned is not to play favorites. You must give both sides a fair hearing. You cannot go into a situation with a predetermined outcome or you will lose your credibility. You must treat everyone and their viewpoint respectfully.

A study at the University of Michigan found that a little arguing now and then is actually good for you, if done for the right reasons. The results showed that when people experience tension with someone else -- whether their boss, spouse or child -- sidestepping confrontation could be bad for their health. Avoiding conflict was associated with more symptoms of physical problems the next day than was actually engaging in an argument.

A manager’s job is to provide the experiences that will develop his or her employees’ leadership skills. Experience is the best teacher for leadership development. Chief among them is learning to handle differing opinions.

One strategy might be to put the employee in charge of a work group whose members have strong, widely ranging opinions about how to handle a workplace issue. Tell your employee not to pick a “correct” course of action when opinions conflict, but to lead the group to a consensus that everyone can support.

Another challenge to prepare for is the difficult employee who produces good work, but doesn’t interact well with others. Discover what motivates that employee and help him or her channel their talents into better relationships. Reinforce the notion that differing opinions are welcome and even necessary, but need to be respectfully presented.

I read an article about how couples should fight for their relationship, not to win the argument. I think it also applies to the workforce. Every relationship, no matter how happy, suffers its share of conflict and argument. If it’s going to endure, both parties need to know how to fight fair. Follow these rules for arguments:

-- Address issues promptly. Don't let resentments simmer. If something bothers you, bring it up within a reasonable amount of time (48 hours or so).

-- Treat each other with respect. Refrain from name-calling, accusations and absolutes like “You always” and “You never.” Keep your voices calm, and make an effort to really listen to the other person’s point of view. Or as South African cleric Desmond Tutu put it, “Don’t raise your voice, improve your argument.”

-- Keep it private. Don't argue in front of others. If necessary, make an appointment to discuss the issue.

-- Don't let it drag on. Try to set a time limit for resolving the issue. Most arguments shouldn’t last more than 15 minutes.

So, the next time you find yourself in an argument or debate, treat your opponents the “Wright” way. Treat them like family.

Mackay’s Moral: Great minds don’t always think alike.