This year, my husband and I traveled to Italy. We wandered through Venice’s canals, explored Florence’s art and architecture, visited Pisa, and spent time in Rome taking in its ancient streets and iconic landmarks. Like many visitors, we were drawn to the Trevi Fountain, the Spanish Steps, the Leaning Tower—the places that have witnessed centuries of history.
But what struck me most wasn’t the architecture or the art. It was the people.
At the Spanish Steps, I watched Romans navigate their daily lives. They weren’t rushing or checking phones while power-walking to their next appointment. They were walking through streets, browsing shops, moving through buildings with intention and presence. It wasn’t that they were doing less—they were clearly busy, purposeful people. They were savoring more.
That observation stayed with me long after we returned home. And so did something I learned about the Leaning Tower of Pisa: it took 200 years to build, but the reason it leans has nothing to do with the construction itself. It’s the foundation—the soft soil beneath it that couldn’t support the weight.
The tower is still standing centuries later, famous precisely because of what lies beneath. And that got me thinking about my own work in customer experience.
Building on the Right Foundation
Some of my favorite CX projects over the years weren’t ultimately about the deliverables or the immediate results. They were about the relationships that resulted—the clients who became long-term partners, the teams who stayed connected, the trust that outlasted any single engagement.
Like the Leaning Tower, what makes those projects memorable isn’t just what we built. It’s the foundation we built it on. And that foundation is always the same: presence, genuine care, and gratitude.
This isn’t just sentiment. It’s strategy. And it starts with slowing down enough to see what actually matters.
The Practice of Presence
I’ve been meditating daily since 2004. I journal. And, I practice Kundalini yoga. I remember where I was when I first heard Yogi Bhajan’s–the founder of Kundalini yoga–words, which have stayed with me ever since: “Gratitude is the open door to abundance.”
My daily meditation and journaling practice isn’t about escaping my work or doing less of it. It’s about being more present with what I do. It helps me stay grounded. I appreciate more deeply. It makes room for the things that truly matter and creates space for spotting opportunities that I’d miss if my mind was too full.
When I’m rushing—when my mind is crowded with competing priorities and noise—I miss things. I miss the subtle signals in a client conversation. I miss the patterns in the data. And, I miss the moment when a team member needs support or when a relationship needs tending.
But when I slow down, when I create space through my practice, I see differently. I listen more carefully. I ask better questions. And, I notice what matters.
Most importantly, it keeps me in the moment—which, as any customer experience professional knows, is where all meaningful connection happens.
Gratitude as a CX Strategy
Here’s what I’ve learned over two decades of CX work: gratitude isn’t just a nice personal practice. It’s a strategic advantage.
When we slow down enough to be truly present—with our customers, our teams, our data, our decisions—we see things differently. We build on firmer ground. We create foundations that last.
Gratitude in customer experience isn’t about generic thank-you emails or seasonal appreciation campaigns. It’s about genuine presence and attention. It’s about:
Truly listening to what customers are telling you, not just waiting for your turn to respond. When you’re grateful for the opportunity to serve someone, you hear them differently. You’re not rushing to the solution—you’re savoring the understanding.
Appreciating the people who make great CX possible—your teams, your partners, your advocates. The best CX doesn’t come from brilliant strategy alone. It comes from people who feel valued and seen.
Noticing the moments that matter most in the customer journey, not just the metrics. Numbers tell you what happened. Presence tells you why it matters.
Creating space for innovation and insight instead of drowning in reactive noise. The best ideas don’t come from grinding harder. They come from the clarity that emerges when you slow down enough to see them.
Valuing relationships over transactions, even when the pressure is to move faster and do more. Like that tower in Pisa, what you build will only stand as long as the foundation beneath it. And in CX, that foundation is always relationships.
The organizations and leaders I most admire in CX share this quality: they’ve figured out how to be both productive and present. They’re not doing less—they’re savoring more. They’re building businesses on the foundation of genuine appreciation for the people they serve and work alongside.
A Thanksgiving Pause
On this Thanksgiving, I’m reminded of those Romans at the Spanish Steps. They’ve built an entire culture around savoring—meals, conversations, architecture, daily life. They understand something that our always-on business culture often forgets: presence is productive. Gratitude is generative.
I’m also reminded of that tower in Pisa, leaning but standing, famous not despite its foundation but because of it. What we build in customer experience—the programs, the strategies, the initiatives—will only matter if we build them on solid ground. And that ground is always made of presence, care, and genuine gratitude.
So here’s my invitation to you this Thanksgiving: pause.
Be grateful for you—for the work you do, the care you bring, the difference you make in your customers’ and colleagues’ lives.
Be grateful for others—the teams who execute, the customers who trust you, the partners who support you, the mentors who guide you.
And maybe, just maybe, slow down enough to savor it. Not to do less, but to be more present with what you’re already doing.
Because gratitude really is the open door to abundance—in life, in leadership, and in customer experience.
Happy Thanksgiving from all of us at M4 Communications.
What are you grateful for this year? What opportunities might you spot if you slowed down enough to see them? I’d love to hear your reflections in the comments below.
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