Guest Post: Miss Kathleen

So bloggie land, I'm off to Minnesota for a work trip.
But no worries - I'm here to keep you up to speed on your "Weekly Writing Challenge" by introducing you to one of my best friends, Kathleen, who has a beautiful perspective that goes along well with the challenge.

Take it away Kathleen!

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Hi there!

I'm Kathleen and you can find me over at my little corner of blogland at Places I Will Go.

I am so excited to be guest posting for Whitney today. I'm still fairly new to blogging and am still getting into the swing of things. This will be my very first guest post and I'm glad it is for Whitney.

Whitney and I met as roommates on our second Disney College Program in the summer of 2009.

We both worked at Disney's Hollywood Studios in the Backlands, only she worked at the Honey I Shrunk the Kids Play Ground and I worked at The Voyage of the Little Mermaid/Playhouse Disney Live on Stage shows. Pretty sure we each had the worst job in the world. So we bonded over that pretty quickly.

Along with 4 other girls: Abby, Katie, Kelly, and Suzanne we became the best of friends in a surprisingly short amount of time.

After that summer we each went our separate ways but made sure to stay in touch. We have had reunions at least twice a year ever since.

After my second college program I went back home to Texas to finish up school.

I just graduated in May and have followed my dream back to Disney.

I am currently working as a Guest Relations Hostess at the EPCOT park.

And let me tell you, it was a long and worthwhile road to get here.

That road is what Whitney has asked me to talk about in my guest post today.

I first started working to get my Disney dream job in December of 2010. I took a trip down to Florida and did a few meet and greets with some Disney leaders in the roles I was most interested in pursuing after graduation. Each of the meet and greets I had were very successful.

Then came time to apply in January. I got my resume in tip top condition and sent it off with my application the first week in February. Right after that I set up my phone interview which would be the ONLY interview I would have.

I ultimately ended up applying for 3 positions: Guest Relations, Disney Traditions Intern, and the Education Coordinator position. My top pick was Guest Relations.

I then waited 3 of the most grueling months of my entire life. Seriously, waiting to hear whether or not I had gotten the job was torture. Getting this job would determine whether or not I would be moving out of Texas and to Florida or if I would be moving back in with mom and dad.

I finally got the call toward the end of May and I was beyond ecstatic.

It has been a little under two months since I moved and started my Guest Relations job and I am absolutely adoring every minute of it.

I love meeting people from all over the world, working with people from all over the world and of course making magic for all of our guests. Whitney has also asked me to talk about the importance of communication in my job. Communication is one of the most important aspects of working in Guest Relations. Then again I guess that is true with all jobs, but mine especially. With every 10 guests I get one or two "difficult guests". Most of whom come in upset about a bad experience they've had while visiting our parks. The most important thing for me to remember when I get one of my "difficult guests" is that they really are not yelling at me, they are yelling at my name tag. My friend Suzanne gave me that bit of advice and I can't believe how well that works. That really helps in the communication with the guest. You can never take anything personal because the guest is not upset with you just with whatever situation they are in. So by not taking things personally communicating with the guest becomes 100 times easier. I think the most important thing to physically do when communicating with difficult guests is to look them in the eye while they are explaining why they are so upset. Because this shows them that you are listening to what they have to say and aren't disregarding their feelings.
Not gonna lie though, it is really difficult to do this because sometimes the complaints or the reason the guest is upset can be just a tad ridiculous. And all you really want to do is roll your eyes. But again the thing to remember is not to take anything personal. Let them talk, listen, and then don't worry about it. Because two minutes after you finish communicating with a difficult guest, you'll be communicating with a fabulous guest.

These are some of my Guest Relations family.

I hope you all have enjoyed taking a peak into my world.

Please come check out my little space and follow me as I discover all the

Places I Will Go.

It has been a great journey so far and I can't wait to see what life has in store for me next!

Toodles! : )