I had just finished an exhausting day of work. Three presentations — in one day — to three different customers — all in one city. Everything had to go perfectly and, thankfully, it had. I was finally on my way home. I dropped off my rental car and, bone-tired, trudged over to catch the bus that would take me to the airport.

As I climbed up the steps of the courtesy shuttle I was met by the most amazing deep, baritone voice, “Welcome aboard your escape from everything. Sit back. Relax. And enjoy the soothing sounds of some of the best jazz you have ever heard. Let these notes carry you away to a peaceful place, a beautiful retreat, an idyllic get away. My name is Marvin but you can call me ‘Velvet’ because my voice and my ride is smooooooth.”

Needless to say, me and all the other bleary-eyed road warriors, looked at each other with an “Is he for real?” expression on our faces. “In case you hadn’t noticed Marvin… er, Velvet, this is a shuttle bus not a stretch limo.”

Oh, but Marvin was just getting started. He introduced each song on his CD. Gave interesting background information about the artists. Asked if we had any requests. Played mini trivia games with us. Got us all interacting with him and with each other.

It was amazing to watch! In less than 10 minutes he had transformed the “same old boring shuttle ride with a bunch of tired strangers” into a positive, upbeat, fun experience.

As we exited, every single passenger thanked Marvin (of course, he was already up on his feet to high-five each one of us). He thanked us all for choosing his company, wished us all well in our endeavors, and asked that, when we returned, would we please, once again, allow him to serve us.

It was the single best rental car company experience of my life!!  And, trust me, I rent a lot of cars.  And the reason for my positive customer experience: not the reservation specialist when I made the reservation, not the counter agent who got me a map of the area, not the security guard as I pulled out of the lot who made sure I had the right vehicle and a full tank of gas…nope. It was the shuttle bus driver.

Will I do business with that car rental agency in the future? You bet I will! I’ll probably even wait an extra few minutes if the delay will allow me to ride on Marvin’s bus.

There is no such thing as an unimportant job. You have the ability, with whatever you do, to make it extraordinary. Choose to be a Marvin.