Charitable Assumption as Default Mode

“2. Self-Awareness When I scan their resumés, I often tell management candidates that their career story is like an autobiography they have been writing for many years: “You’ve made a lot of interesting choices. I’m very curious about why a job with us strikes you as the logical next ‘chapter’ in the book of your life.” I also want to know why they feel they have finished the most recent chapter: “Why does this particular twist in the plot make perfect sense to you right now?” Candidates may convey a straightforward desire to move on to a better place. They may express resentment about the managers they have been working for. If a person shares details that are none of my business, that can reveal something about his or her discretion, or lack thereof. Sometimes candidates indicate that they have simply maxed out on their present employer’s career curve, and are determined to make a wise next choice. I am also quite interested in people who have shown enough enterprise and curiosity to have learned something about our restaurants. I’m most impressed when they apply what they know about themselves and about us to what they know they want for their career. 3. Charitable Assumption Enlightened hospitality is a philosophy that works best with optimistic, hopeful, open-minded people at the helm. It tends not to work when the leaders are skeptics who think they already have all the answers. Those people are a finished product in their own minds, and so is everyone else they work with. A charitable mind-set assumes the best in other people. Mind-sets tend to become self-fulfilling prophecies. When you assume that people’s stumbles are honest mistakes that come from a good place, you get farther with them during their victories. When you assume the worst of people, you get the worst from people. It’s important that our managers maintain a charitable assumption about the people with whom they work and about the guests we serve. Doing so even when a mistake has been made gives employees the chance to react with integrity and to be accountable for their actions.”

“A high degree of empathy is crucial in delivering enlightened hospitality. Empathy is not just an awareness of what others are experiencing; it’s being aware of, being sensitive to, and caring about how one’s own behavior affects others. We want waiters, for example, who can approach a new table of guests and intuitively sense their needs and agenda. Have they come, for example, to celebrate or to conduct business? Are they here to experience the cuisine, or simply to connect…”