The Difference

I wrote this about a year ago and forgot about it....

After I left the Army and my White House assignment I’ve worked several jobs and always come back to customer service. Now I’m in the most stress free thing ever – I drive limos and buses. I see everything from celebrities and business executives to people out on wine tours. I’m the guy at the airport with a black suit and your name on a card; most of the time I love it. I hear everything and officially remember nothing.

A few weeks ago a large company had their board meeting here in town. I picked up all the senior board members from their individual private jets and brought them downtown one at a time in a new sedan.

First arrival was a very well known CEO of an environmentally connected company – he advises Gore on carbon trading. I’d been warned by his staff that he tended to be forgetful about his personal bag and likely to leave it on the plane or in the car. There was a light drizzle when I arrived at the Gulfstream and the pilot handed out the bag. I greeted client as he deplaned and he said nothing He got under the umbrella and walked to the car. He didn’t say a word until “Driver, I need to go to a restroom.” I pulled around to the front of the terminal and he waited for me to get out (in the rain) and get the door and umbrella. He went inside and I moved the car under an awning and waited. He came back and we took off for downtown. The entire conversation was “Driver, how far to the hotel?” then 15 minutes later, “Driver, how much farther?” We pulled up in front and the bellman got the door; the gentleman went directly inside, saying nothing and leaving me literally holding the bag, which I turned over to the bellman. He didn’t forget it – he knew someone would take care of it.

An hour later the next arrival was an Assistant Secretary of State during the first Bush administration. I pulled up in front of the plane, still in a light drizzle and he came off with his own bag, waved away the umbrella and stuck out his hand for a shake and said “Hi, I’m John”. I responded, “Welcome Mr. Secretary, I’m John, too.” I took his bag and stowed it while he got in the car. He made two phone calls to let his staff know he had arrived, then we started talking – ‘John, how’s the economy here; John, how’s the politics here? What do you think of Hutchison running against Perry? and so on, all the way to the hotel. When we got there, he opened his door and grabbed his bag, waved off the bellman and again stuck his hand out – “John, thanks for the ride, I really enjoyed the conversation – hope to see you again tomorrow when I leave….”then turned to the bellman and spoke with him as I was leaving.

I’ve been doing this job off and on, with different companies, for about 10 years now. That day was so typical as to be commonplace. The self-described liberal “man of the people” very seldom is while the conservative business and political people always at the very least speak to the service providers as people. I saw this during my time at the White House during the Carter and Clinton administrations and I see it even more now that I’m ‘just the driver’.