In last weekend’s Wall Street Journal there was an article about United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby. In a highly competitive industry where price used to dominate the conversation, Kirby reframed the mission in a simple, powerful way:
“Your job is wow.”
Not efficiency. Not cost-cutting. Not just getting people from point A to point B.
Wow.
And the more I thought about it, the more I realized – this isn’t just an airline strategy.
It’s a leadership philosophy.
For years, businesses believed customers made decisions based solely on cost.
But that’s not what I’ve seen in my career – and it’s not what Kirby is betting on.
People don’t leave because you’re expensive.
They leave because you’re irrelevant.
This week, I had the opportunity to visit the Jonathan Club in downtown LA. CEO Matthew Allnatt makes that lesson crystal clear:
“No one has ever left our club because it’s too expensive… it’s because it’s irrelevant.”
That’s the game.
Not price. Relevance.
“Wow” isn’t fireworks. It’s not over-the-top theatrics.
In fact, the most powerful moments are often simple.
At the Jonathan Club, it comes down to one idea:
People are looking for experiences… and it’s not difficult things. It can be just knowing your name.
Think about that.
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Remembering someone’s name
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Acknowledging something meaningful to them
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Creating a moment they didn’t expect
That’s “wow.”
One of the most powerful examples from the Jonathan Club wasn’t about service – it was about awareness.
A member walks in carrying a distinctive handbag. Instead of ignoring it, the host says:
“Wow, what a beautiful bag.”
That small moment opened the door to a story, an emotion, a memory.
That’s what people want.
Not transactions.
Recognition.
Here’s the real test of “wow”:
When your customer leaves… do they talk about you?
At the Jonathan Club, the goal is simple:
“When they’re sitting in that carpool line… and someone asks what they did this weekend… do they ever talk about your club?”
If the answer is no, you don’t have a pricing problem.
You have a story problem.
Every business is competing for priority in someone’s life.
After COVID, the Jonathan Club realized it had fallen too low:
“We were number eight in their lives… I needed to get it up to four or five.”
That’s a brutal but honest assessment.
Because if you’re not:
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top of mind
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talked about
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emotionally relevant
You’re optional.
And optional is dangerous.
When times get tough, people don’t cut what they love.
They cut what they don’t use.
That’s why engagement – not pricing – is the real metric:
“500 members left because of the 2008/2009 financial crisis because we were irrelevant,” Matthew told me.
United’s Kirby understands this.
That’s why airlines are no longer just transportation companies.
They are:
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experience providers
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time savers
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status creators
They are in the wow business.
The old model of leadership was:
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Be present
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Be visible
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Manage operations
That’s no longer enough.
Matthew told me that “walking around isn’t enough anymore… people want to be engaged.”
Today, leaders must:
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Notice
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Engage
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Personalize
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Create moments
Because your team will only deliver “wow” if you model it.
Whether you run an airline, a private club, or a small team, the mandate is the same:
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Make it memorable
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Make it personal
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Make it worth talking about
Because in the end:
People don’t remember efficiency. They don’t remember pricing.
They remember how you made them feel.
Great job, Tim, as always.
Thank you, Dave! I appreciate your faithful readership!