I was just thinking this thought that I think a lot and I always mean to blog about it but by the time I sit down to do that, the thought is already gone.

I just checked in a nice young man who stays here about every two weeks or so. He's very friendly, a fantastic guest, (meaning I never see or hear him after I check him in) and he's always very good to us when he sends the guest feedback surveys in.

I always take good care of him when I see a reservation for him. I make sure his AAA rate is in his reservations, I upgrade him to a suite if we have one available, I have his registration form printed and his keys made before he gets here and it's nice to know it's appreciated. He filled out a survey a month or so ago and he said the only reason he continues to stay here is that I was so nice and friendly. That made my day, well, my week actually. And even when I think about it now, it still makes me feel really good about the work I do here.

I remember the first time he came in here, I checked him in. He didn't have a reservation, it was getting a little late, almost time for my shift to be over. He was friendly and we chatted for a few moments. That little bit of niceness from me got this guy to come back here every two or three weeks and stay. Even when our prices went up because of event weekends and he could have gotten a cheaper rate somewhere else, he stayed here. Of course I got him the best deal I possibly could.

And that brings me to my thought. These guests, regulars you can call them, that I have gotten to know, that appreciate my time and the job I do, I'm really going to miss them when I leave to have Muffin. I'm also realizing that even if I come back to work (and I would like to) I wouldn't be able to work the same shifts, and I wouldn't see or check in the same people.

After all the crap I take, all the rude people that come through here, the three or four guests that I know on sight I'm gonna miss.

There's one, for instance, a young business man who never makes a reservation. Everytime he comes in he wants a room on the first floor, a 7am wakeup call, and an ethernet cord because he doesn't like to use our wireless. He also only wants one key because he says he will lose both if he has two. :)

There's another older gentleman who is in the process of buying a house here, everytime he stays we put him in a suite, he only likes one key, and he wants to be on the third floor.

I start to think to myself, who's going to take care of these people when I'm not here. I know it's silly, the staff here is wonderful, but I know for the guests it won't be the same. They will have to start over from scratch with a new person taking care of them and doing things their way, not my way.

Here I am, working an entry level job, with no health insurance, no sick days, no scheduled breaks, making less than 8 dollars an hour and this is how much I worry about the guests here. Sometimes I think I put too much of myself into this job, but I am not capable of giving less than 100%.

I guess it comes down to the fact that, yes, I do work for the money. Working at the front desk of a hotel is not my passion, but I figure it's what I spend most of my time doing, so I might as well do it the best I can.

This job has taught me that we can change the world. Not in a big, earth-shattering, nobel peace prize winning way. But I make a difference in peoples lives. Not all people that come through here, but I don't have to make a difference for all of them. I only have to reach one. That's it, just one person who will pay it forward and I've done something good with my time, my effort.

When this job sucks, and believe me it can suck in a hard way, I try to remember that any one of these people who walk through the door or up to my desk or call on the phone can be my pay it forward. Looking at it that way helps the bad days not be so bad.

And if that doesn't work, I remember the surveys that sing my praises. They always bring a smile to my face. :)