“Word Nerd Wednesday” is a weekly series that uses language to help us think differently and solve old problems in new ways.
The pandemic has brought the word “hygiene” front and center in our vernacular. What exactly is it? Hygiene is the science of preserving health and the set of practices known to preserve health when done consistently. Hand hygiene = prevent illness by keeping your hands clean. Oral hygiene = avoid cavities and gum disease by brushing and flossing regularly.
Experience hygiene = practices that should be part of every human interaction to maintain basic levels of experience quality.
Examples of experience hygiene include using someone’s name, saying please and thank you, providing status updates (even if the only thing you have to share is “I’m still waiting.”) In the office era, one company had a “5 feet rule.” If you passed within 5 feet of a colleague you said hello or otherwise acknowledged their presence (e.g. with a nod) as a gesture of common courtesy.
Hygiene is so basic we can forget about it when life gets crazy. We convince ourselves it’s okay to skip a step “just this once.” That’s a slippery slope. Small slights build up over time, like bacteria, eroding the health of customer relationships. Everything is fine…until it’s not.
