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Monday, February 22, 2010

Versatile Jenny




With the subject of productivity now back in vogue -- and constantly on my mind even when I am abroad -- I was suitably impressed by a service staff whom I met while holidaying with a group of friends on Mactan Island, Cebu, in the Philippines last week.

Her name is Jenny and she works for Plantation Bay, a five-star resort that was recently listed as one of the top 25 resorts in Asia by Conde Nast Traveller Magazine. In fact, she holds down two jobs -- one, as a full-time waitress at its food outlets in the day and, the other, as a lounge singer for three or four nights each week.

The wonderful thing about Jenny was her demeanour. She looked as perky at breakfast time in the morning as she was at the lounge the night before belting away those Broadway hits.

We guessed that she was in her late 20s. After listening to her sing for two nights in a row, one of my friends said she "is 100 times better than our Singapore idols".

There is no doubt that Jenny is a talented singer. But what impressed me most was her work regime. On nights when she had to sing as well, I think she would easily log in at least a 15-hour day.

Apart from her long hours at work, I am sure she must also be investing whatever she has of her own time to practise her singing and widening her repertoire of songs.

In my book, that's productivity. But, more importantly, Jenny is also enjoying her work for which she is being rewarded -- she gets two cheques come payday.

A BOUQUET for Jenny!

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Yes, in this resort there is a strictly NO TIPPING rule and yet every member of their staff is cheerful and extremely helpful. Any attempt by guests to leave tips is politely declined. What a difference from my experiences in the West!
Perhaps, the authorities in Singapore could learn something from this place considering the hot topic of "Tipping or Service Charge" currently being debated upon.