WASFAA - Western Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators

August/September 2002

Online Publication

...it is at the beginning of this busy season that students are in need of our full attention. We need to be there, ready to listen and to assist with a smile.

Editorial Reflections ...
by Laura Whitelaw

As I sit at my desk reflecting on the amount of work that has piled up on it as the summer is giving way to the frantic pace of fall, I marvel at the way that students can come back from their summer break all refreshed and ready to jump back into their studies. It is at this crucial time that we have that have been on the front lines all summer can fall prey to the pressure we find ourselves under. It is at this time of year that we can get a little bit uptight as we continue to explain the financial aid process to students and their parents. It seems that the closer we get to the start of the new school year, the more challenging it is to practice good customer service skills.

However, it is at the beginning of this busy season that students are in need of our full attention. We need to be there, ready to listen and to assist with a smile. Often, it falls upon us to explain policies and procedures that, although we know their value and pertinence, our students don't always share our understanding. When a student comes to us with a situation, we explain the policies and procedures that apply, but it can be our positive attitude and genuine concern when we relay the message that can make all the difference to the student.

I know of a colleague, who upon returning from a customer service workshop, (which many of us encouraged her to go), glued a small mirror to her desk near the phone so that she could check to see if she was wearing a smile when she answered the phone. She was determined to relay her positive attitude to the people who telephoned her office. My father always told me "you are only as happy as you want to be". I know that saying has been around for a long time, but it is true. It's all in our attitude! We all know that each situation can be looked at from differing points of view and that an individual's perception is their reality. How we deliver our message is just as important as the message we deliver.

One important fact that we can rely on is that we are in a profession that helps people succeed because financial aid professionals truly love helping folks.

We must not take ourselves too seriously. I recall the advice that Sidney, the visiting psychiatrist on the M.A.S.H. television series, gave to that "front line" group as he got ready to leave them after a particularly hard crisis. He told them, "pull down their pants and slide on the ice." This is good advice. As my buddy Al always says, "Let's have fun with it!"

table of contents