“Does it look amazing?”
Knowing it did, Kristen asked our party of six with confidence and delight after she’d set all our lunches before us at Outback Steakhouse in Hermitage, TN.
It was at that moment that I knew wherever she went and whatever she did, Kristen was going to be amazing, too.
Actually, it was before that… when she brought me the ice.
Can you set the table AND deliver?
Did you ever wait tables? I love the meritocracy of it. I did it for years. My wife did it for years. It’s my hope that both our children will do it.
As a server, you learn focus, empathy, active listening, public speaking, manners, improv, and teamwork.
The more special you can make a table feel, the more you’re (generally) going to earn. There’s (generally) a direct correlation between how well you care for your customers and how large your income.
So, I slammed my finger in a car door.
It was a Honda Pilot, actually, and it hurt, actually.
After I walked to the nearby Kroger for a bandage, Kristen saw my troubles and brought me a bag of ice. She was not only my server, she was now my Florence Nightingale.
“So, was everything scrumptious?”
She asked us that after we finished our meals.
“What did you say?” I asked her. “Did you say ‘scrumptious?’”
“Yep,” she said.
“Is that a corporate thing, or a Kristen thing?” I asked.
“Just a Kristen thing,” she answered.
She made us laugh. She made us smile.
She served us.
Whether she consciously knew it or not, Kristen wasn’t working for Outback Steakhouse.
She was working for us. Sure, Outback may handle her payroll and HR stuff, but she knew for whom she was really working.
For whom do you really work?
Before she becomes a corporate service trainer for Outback, Kristen can teach us all a couple things:
1) Know for whom you really work. Work for your customers, and the rest will take care of itself.
2) Be confident in the rest of your team. She set the stakes (and steaks) high by busting out “amazing” to describe our food before we ate it. She knew her kitchen could deliver on her promises. Most people say “under promise.” I like that she promised big. Do you have the confidence to do the same?
3) Have fun. Have you noticed that McDonalds has ripped off Chick-fil-A’s use of “my pleasure” after you say “thank you”? Why not be original? Why not use unusual-but-appropriate words to surprise and delight your customers? Be thoughtful in your work and your words.
4) Serve completely. When you’re with someone, give them the gift of your undivided attention. They’ll reward you in kind.
5) If you see someone who’s shut his finger in a car door, bring him ice.
Thanks, Kristen. Keep us updated on your scrumptious future. From where we sit, it looks amazing.
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