Someone from HR just asked if I can "quickly" transfer all their files from their old laptop to their new one.
I said sure. Told them it'll take about 4 hours because of the data transfer speed and verification process.
Reality? It takes 45 minutes. I run a script, it copies everything, done.
But I learned a long time ago: never tell people how easy something is.
Because if they know it's easy, they'll ask you to do it all the time. For everyone. Forever.
So I tell them it's 4 hours. They say "oh wow, okay, whenever you have time."
Then I do it in 45 minutes, but I don't tell them it's done until hour 3.
They think I dropped everything to help them. They're grateful. They tell their manager I went "above and beyond."
Meanwhile, I spent 2 hours watching YouTube and eating snacks.
The secret to good customer service isn't speed. It's managing expectations so you always exceed them.
Under-promise, over-deliver. Corporate 101.
Except I'm not really over-delivering. I'm just lying about the timeline.
But tomato, tomahto.