But You Ate The Whole Thing

Our daughter, Brittany, is a server at a country-style restaurant. She’s been in this world since she was able to work.  She’s great at what she does, patient – at least on the surface – with customers, smiling, happy and quick.

And she comes across some very interesting people…

Recently, she shared a challenging customer experience. It was an “older” couple. Gotta be careful here - my wife and I are 56. Eek.  Well, let’s say older than us.

When Brittany asked them how their meal was, the wife said the food was cold, and she didn’t like it at all. Brittany looked at her plate, which was cleaned off like a dog finished it.  Dogs are particularly thorough. And she thought, and yet, didn’t say, “But you ate the whole thing!”

People are strange. This one was no exception.

Even the difficult ones. They give us stories, don’t they?

I’m sure many of you have been a server at some point in your life. I believe this occupation is one of the best foundations for learning about how to work effectively with others – customers and co-workers alike.  It’s a fabulous training ground for connection, patience, resilience, fortitude, empathy, listening, humor, teamwork, and leadership. 

Maybe we should add serving as a curriculum in High School and College? Seriously, what students would learn!

While we’ve all had poor server experiences, there are some good ones out there, and we can learn some lessons from the good ones.

Resilience – the good ones are running several tables at once, showing up with a smile, dealing with challenges, missed side orders, negative co-workers, and yet they show up, take care of their customers, and leave us with a smile.

Trust – They acknowledge when they’re busy, showing us “I see you.” They take our complicated orders and show up with the plate right where it belongs. They check in, but not too much. They stand just far enough away.

Engagement – They connect, find some common ground, but not too much. Just enough to feel noticed. Isn’t that what most people want – to be noticed and acknowledged?

Decision Making – When the bus shows up, it’s on! With all respect to ER doctors, there may be some people-related decision-making – “triage” – in these situations. And the good ones are!

There’s so much more, but if it’s just this that we learn – resilience, trust, engagement, and decision-making – we’re a long way toward success in most anything.

Hail to all the great servers!