Start with Yes

Like millions of people worldwide, I will be a tourist for the next two weeks. I’m going to focus on exploration and curiosity while I am traveling, and I will share experiences along the way.??

When you’re a hospitality professional, it can be difficult to be a guest. We can walk into a restaurant or bar and quickly assess how the place is performing. Unconsciously, we start to problem-solve for business. This thought reminded me of the 2002 launch of Blue Smoke, exactly six months after the attacks of 9/11. People had just started to return to travel, and expectations were sky-high for an All-American restaurant and jazz club.?

We had received tons of attention as Union Square Hospitality Group 's first casual restaurant and jazz club, and demand far outweighed the supply. We found ourselves turning away a lot of potential guests. Add to that, our performance did not live up to anyone’s expectations -- especially our own -- and the team was feeling overwhelmed. As demand increased, our initial reviews became more critical and less forgiving.??

Even though our team was exhausted, I was also proud and excited that so many people wanted to check us out. Understandably, the team wanted to protect what we had created, but I was afraid first-time guests would feel we were no different from the snobby restaurants we were determined not to become. ?

As an antidote to the defensive tone that began to seep into the way the team spoke to one another and our eager guests, I introduced the mantra “Start with Yes” at pre-shift meetings. My hope was that “Start with Yes” would send a signal to our guests that we wanted them to be an integral part of our success. I also wanted to show the team that we should all be open to ideas and suggestions. For both, it was a sign of care.?

As anyone who has launched a business knows, it’s hard work just to get to the starting line. By the time the doors are thrown open, the team’s gas tanks are empty. ?For our guest-facing team, I encouraged them to “Start with Yes” when receiving a request that they knew they could not accommodate. I was convinced it would make the team feel better while easing the criticism we were receiving.?

“Start with Yes” is a way to say, “I see you” and “You matter to me.” When people feel you are working hard to make them happy, then they will show empathy and give you the benefit of the doubt, even if they are disappointed that they cannot get what they want. You get what you give.?

Here’s a quick example that can be applied to many customer service arenas:?

Setting: A restaurant’s front door. ?The bar is three deep, and reservations are overbooked.?

Host: Welcome!?

Guest: Hi, do you have a table for eight people right now? We just walked for a half-hour from our hotel, and we’ve heard so much about your place. ?

Host: Thank you for being here! I really want to help, and I wish we had a table available. I’m afraid to say that we won’t have a large table for a couple of hours, but I could help you make a reservation for another day. Or, if you have some flexibility, we will have two four-tops available in an hour. I know that’s not what you were looking for, but I would love to see if there’s a way you can join us.?

At this stage, it is likely that the guest will remain disappointed, but that’s beside the point. The goal is to build loyalty and a great reputation. There’s a high probability that the guest will leave, but the likelihood that they will return increases if they feel that you are on their side. Like my earlier post about Telling the Story, it is not our customers’ job to know how we do ours. Starting with Yes helps lower the heat and gives everyone the opportunity to connect as human beings.?

Over time, we were able to change our tone to one of optimism and hope, and the team became more cohesive. Our guests noticed, too, and people’s disappointment became less stinging and more understanding. While I know we lost guests from our early stumbles, I also know we engendered loyalty to far more people. We could feel the world rooting for us, and Blue Smoke became a beloved part of the community as a result.?

#operations #hospitality #peopleandculture #restaurants #jazz?