When you are good at customer service, as an employee, employer or small-business owner, doors will open.

It is not an industry for the weak. Customer service can be mentally, and physically, exhausting. It can also be rewarding, profitable and fun.

I want to share lost practices that make a huge difference in any service-based industry.

1Keep your personal problems out of work. It can be difficult; it can also be an escape. Life is hard. Think of your time at work as an escape from personal challenges. Goal setting can help with this.

For example, if you are a business owner, set a sales challenge for your employees, and incorporate a thoughtful prize for the winner.

Your employee will have something to think about during work, besides the issues they might be dealing with in their personal life.

This can be particularly applied to the restaurant industry. This work is hard but a gesture like this can make for a fun Saturday night shift.

2Small details matter. I know I love to shop at department stores that wrap garments or jewelry neatly in tissue paper and place them carefully in a beautiful bag. It makes me feel like I treated myself. Small boutique retailers can do the same and work the price of your packaging into your product pricing.

If this is not cost effective for you, consider using custom tags on your inventory. For the customer it makes the purchase special and commemorative.

3Never engage in negativity. I am not perfect, and customers can be difficult. When I owned my retail boutique it became fun to kill them with kindness. No matter what outlandish conversation was tossed at me, I could reflect with a smile. It became fun and really developed my ability to navigate difficult situations. It also made for some hilarious stories after work!

4Know your customers. Nothing is a better endorsement for you, your job or business.

Learn their name, learn what they like, remember your conversations. This can build your business.

Word of mouth happens quickly. When you get familiar with your customers, they will spend, spend, spend. They know you know them, and what they like. You know their taste, and they know their business matters because you took the time to build the relationship.

The same logic can be applied in the restaurant industry. I served tables for over 25 years. My regular customers never had to order their drink. I had it waiting for them the second they walked through the door.

Personal touches like that prove to be very lucrative.

5Practice self-care (insert eyeroll). I know this can be almost impossible.

As I stated earlier, customer service is not for the weak.

Give yourself an extra 30 minutes in the morning to do anything! It could be standing in the shower longer, stretching, sitting alone to gather your thoughts. You can also give yourself private time after work before you dive into your personal responsibilities. Before going straight home, take a walk, visit a friend, keep a pillow in your car to scream in, or take a drive and blast the radio.

These are just five tips on navigating the industry of customer service. This article is dedicated to the amazing people I worked with along my journey in life. If you have a specific subject, you would like me to write about feel free to email me at marianner@carboncountychamber.org.

Marianne Garritano Rustad is Membership, Events, and Logistics Manager for the Carbon County Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development.