A ‘Novak’ moment
Summer 2014. Roland Garros. French Open witness what is now famously called a ‘Novak’ moment!
The tennis match was held up because of rain.
As Novak Djokovic parked himself on the bench to take a breather, the ever alert ball boy stepped forward and, in attention, held the large green umbrella above the tennis star’s head.
Djokovic turned around and called him forward and what ensued endeared him to millions of hearts that day!
SEE THE CLIP BELOW
(If you can’t see the clip now, here, in a nutshell is what happened)
First much to the utter surprise of the unsuspecting ball boy Djokovic beckoned to him to come and sit next to him. Next he took the umbrella the boy was holding, held it for him and handed him his racket instead. But Novak wasn’t done. He next pulled out a drink – one for his ‘benchmate’ and one for him. They both opened it, cheered and drank. He got the crowd to applause for the boy and the crowd complied.
The look of sheer incredulity on the boy’s face, the devotion in his eyes as he looked at the racket, the I-am-in-a-dream-don’t-wake-me-up expression as he smiled were unbelievably precious.
It was a non-tennis moment in tennis history.
A moment that millions around the world would remember. A moment that made Novak deliver a straight ace into the hearts of the people watching and people talking about it for days and months to come.
But what about the boy? What was it to him?
Just imagine you were the boy. You’d have walked 6 inches off the ground the rest of the day. You’d never tire of talking about it to everyone you met. You probably still have that bottle Novak gave you with the drink. And you have a story to tell your grandchildren (and they theirs) time and again. And why?
Because it was personal.
Because you had been singled out. You were special. Because this was not about you and the world, this was about you and Novak. That moment stood still for you, got etched in your memory and remains there forever.
That’s the value of a personal experience. That’s what makes an experience memorable.
When was the last time you gave your customer the ‘Novak’ experience?
Want to know what this series is about? Here
