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CEOs vouch for Waiter Rule: Watch how people treat staff
- rilindo 15y agoThat is why when you are interviewing at a company, you treat everybody you meet politely and cordially - even the cranky secretary. :)
- SoftwareMaven 15y agoI always ask the receptionist about how the candidate acted. You don't have to be all warm and fuzzy (heaven knows I'm not!), but you do have to be courteous.
- Anechoic 15y agoI find it just fascinating that anyone (CEO or whatever) would ever be rude to a person that is handling their food. Oh well.
- corprew 15y agoYeah, every time I see someone being rude to a waiter, my first thought isn't about the waiter rule, it's whether this person didn't watch fight club.
- evangineer 15y agoBill Swanson may not have invented the Waiter Rule: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_H._Swanson#Swanson.27s_Unwritten_Rules_of_Management_and_plagiarism http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_H._Swanson#Swanson.27s_...
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- kingkilr 15y agoInteresting, a friend of mine used to own a chain of restaurants in Chicago, recently he went out to dinner at a nice restaurant with family, he said that his sister-in-law's boyfriend had some habits that indicated a similar to the personality that's described here, but that aren't as obviously obnoxious. For example if a waiter didn't introduce themselves by name he'd ask theirs, apparently waiters hate stuff like this because it's such an unequal relationship.
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- kmfrk 15y agoI think this is even more interesting than the ol' waiter treatment tip. Some waiters have experience with different customers that is valuable knowledge you can use, if you get on their good side. This way, you could have the waiter ask as a covert interviewer. :)
- hugh3 15y agoThe purple sorbet in cut glass he was serving tumbled onto the expensive white gown of an obviously rich and important woman... Thirty years have passed, but Odland can’t get the stain out of his mind, nor the woman’s kind reaction. She was startled, regained composure and, in a reassuring voice, told the teenage Odland, “It’s OK. It wasn’t your fault.” That woman had admirable self-control. It's difficult to retain your composure when you're inconvenienced by the incompetence of your social inferiors, but it's usually worthwhile. The trick, I find as I get older, is to make the move from asserting status to assuming it. Instead of the mindset "I'm so fucking awesome, why won't these goddamn idiots stop inconveniencing me", you move to the mindset "I'm so fucking awesome, which means I have a responsibility to set a good example for these people". As soon as you start seeing your role at the top of the pyramid as being all about setting a good example for those below you, rather than being served by those below you, dealing with them gets a whole lot easier. (Then again, maybe that's just me, and I've just over-shared enough to mark myself out as a supremely arrogant prat.) Another story I like of noblesse oblige is about casino magnate Steve Wynn, who shortly after purchasing a $139 million Picasso accidentally ripped a hole in it at a cocktail party. "Oh shit", he said, "Thank goodness it was me". If anyone else had ripped Steve Wynn's $139 million Picasso it would have ruined their life, but if Steve Wynn accidentally rips Steve Wynn's Picasso then the painting is just as ripped but nobody's life is ruined.
- greendestiny 15y agoWhat would make you think the people who are waiting on you have any less an idea of social graces? They probably participate in many more social interactions per day than you do. Having said that I do think this is business advice is a bit of a meme, it fits nicely with our value systems and has such a fairytale type character to it. I wouldn't doubt that there are many people out there who are polite to all and sundry who would screw you the second they get a chance.
- hugh3 15y agoWhat would make you think the people who are waiting on you have any less an idea of social graces? They probably participate in many more social interactions per day than you do. Oh, I'm not trying to teach them social graces. I'm trying to teach them to be rich, brilliant and awesome like me. (Again, I must make an obligatory apology for the fact that this thread is making me sound like a dick, by pulling out stuff that I usually only think subconsciously and putting it into words.)
- vaksel 15y agoIt's kinda sad that we need the waiter rule...is it too much to ask for people to treat others nicely?
- rendezvouscp 15y agoUnfortunately, yes. Some people don’t see the point of treating others nicely, especially when there are no consequences to mistreating others.
- spitfire 15y agoGiven that people don't treat others nicely I'm glad that we do have the rule. Easy way to identify the assholes.
- danielharan 15y agoRather ironic that it's the CEO of a weapon manufacturing company that's moralizing about how to treat others.
- j_baker 15y agoI'm always amazed at how nice people are when they want something from you. If you want to see their true colors, you have to watch how they treat people they don't want something from.
- Nycto 15y agoI was a bit surprised to see an entire article devoted to this, as it's a very common in the theatrical world. Because of the short turn around time, directors are constantly having to work with new people. As well as calling people they know on the resumes, they will often ask the people collecting headshots and herding cattle outside the audition room if anything notable occurred. It can make or break an actors chances. This is easy to apply to business. If you have a secretary greeting interview candidates, just get a quick opinion. Nobody wants to work with an asshole, and everyone remembers them.
- danssig 15y agoIf this is the case how come so many assholes got through the screening process? The arrogance of very successful actors is legendary (though very successful singers may surpass it).
- qq66 15y agoThey pretended to be nicer people before they were very successful. That's why the waiter rule is so weak -- it has a lot of false negatives.
- mgkimsal 15y agoAnd yet, somehow, we continue to see psychopaths promoted up the corporate ladder while decent folks - who pass the 'waiter test' with flying colors and are otherwise qualified for the positions - are passed over.
- justin_vanw 15y agoAnd they keep promoting them! I can't stand them or anything they stand for. We should do something about this, like we would have in the good old days!
- tzs 15y agoI'd worry about someone who mistreats waiters for the simple reason that it is a sign that person is a complete idiot. Unless all that's left is for the waiter to bring the check, you are pissing off someone who is going to be handling your food. Mistreating the waiter is just asking for the next dish to be seasoned with spit or worse.
- danssig 15y agoDepends on the country. There are still places where being a waiter can be a career but if you get caught doing something insane like that (I personally think spitting in someone's food should be a crime on the level of assault at least) your career is over.
- apenwarr 15y agoThe waiter rule works - if someone is rude to a waiter, it's an incredibly bad sign, because at the very least, it means they've never heard of the waiter rule. However, just because someone is nice to a waiter doesn't mean they have good social skills or don't treat inferiors badly. It turns out there's an even better variant of the waiter rule: listen to all a person's interactions with other people. Listen, for example, to how that person talks about other people behind their back. As the aphorism says, what people will say to you about other people, they would say to other people about you. In my real-life example of this lesson, there was a person who always gloated about how they had screwed or were about to screw other competitors, negotiators, etc, but of course always made sure to point out how much he was helping me. I foolishly believed it, when of course all the evidence was that I shouldn't. Eventually, the situation changed, he didn't need me anymore, and sure enough, he took advantage of me too. Knowing how people treat others is supremely important as a defense mechanism.
- j_baker 15y agoAs a general rule of thumb, you should always take a person's actions as a whole when you can. Unfortunately, you don't always have the luxury of getting to know someone well before making a major decision of some kind (for example, hiring someone). Sometimes you have to rely on these kinds of techniques. Not because they're foolproof (lord knows they aren't), but because they're all you've got.
- jorangreef 15y agoA corollary to this, always speak in private as you would in public. Never say anything about someone else you would not say to them directly (even if you're talking to your spouse about work issues whatever). Sometimes you think you need to, but looking back it's always better to keep your own voice strong and true. It's like playing a violin. The more wrong notes you hit when you practice in private, the more wrong notes you hit when you perform in public. Eventually the bad notes resonate so much they start affecting the voice of the instrument and it starts to develop poor tone in and of itself. The wood particles start to re-align themselves. That's what separates the great instruments from the cheap instruments. Sure the great instruments were made well to start, but they were also played well throughout their lives. Always speak in private as you would in public.
- snowglobecard 15y agoWhy one should not be nice with waiters? Or nurses? Or any other people? oh I know: that is because people in power are mainly jerks so they need to be taught to be nice.
- tuhin 15y agoHere is a simpler version: "Would you be OK with someone talking like that to you?" If the answer is no, then you know what to do. If the answer is Yes, then the other person probably did cross the line or whatever. If the answer is Yes, but ________"Insert any statement of the contrary nature or how infallible you are here"____________, then you are a jerk. It is not just about waiters, but any human being be it higher in whatever illusionary status system you believe in or lower than you. Treat others how you would want to be treated.
- sayemm 15y agoI could see this. During my senior year in high school I worked as a waiter at a four-star restaurant on Park Ave in Manhattan. The clientele included a lot of business execs working nearby and they often met for meetings. Some of the regulars were casual, friendly, and very cool, but then there were always a few who had a snobby and obnoxious air about them. I like this as a psychological indicator, not just because of the employer-employee dynamic, but because I think it shows how one perceives their own self-worth, as well as that of others. If you're elitist and too self-absorbed in your own status, you're probably not well-suited for a lean merit-based culture and you're probably also going to be blind to spotting hidden talent in others as well.
- smiler 15y agoFour star restaurant? The only internationally recognized star system for restaurants is the Michelin guide, which has a maximum of 3 stars. It really grates me that Americans go on about 4 star and 5 star restaurants
- corprew 15y agoThere's also an difference between the michelin system, where most restaurants get 0 stars and getting even one star is a biggish deal, and rating all restaurants from one to five, which is what the system used in the us seems to do. Like the rating system on the web, it's useful for rating all things, not just the highest ranks. The Michelin guide is also not particularly useful as a global system because it's heavily weighted towards french cuisine -- http://www.urbanspoon.com/blog/14/Fixing-Michelins-French-bias.html http://www.urbanspoon.com/blog/14/Fixing-Michelins-French-bi... -- and only serves major tourist destinations outside of europe -- six cities in the US for example. The Michelin green guide, which is more the equivalent of other rating systems, does use a 1-5 scale.
- puredemo 15y agoSpeaking of snobby and obnoxious airs..
- sp332 15y agoAAA (American Automobile Association) is a Big Deal (TM) in the USA, and they have a 5-star rating system. https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Restaurant_rating#Restaurant_guides https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Restaurant_ra...
- loy22 15y agoDown here. Cached: http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:l0Yrdc_X8lMJ:www.protocoladvisors.com/wp/news/articles/ceos-vouch-for-waiter-rule-watch-how-people-treat-staff+&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:l0Yrdc_...
- crb 15y agoThe article is actually from USA Today in 2006, and you can access it by it's original link: http://www.usatoday.com/money/companies/management/2006-04-14-ceos-waiter-rule_x.htm http://www.usatoday.com/money/companies/management/2006-04-1...
- nraynaud 15y agoI like the idea of the Waiter Rule ; but here in France it would be quite difficult for a client to be more rude than the waiter. :) 2 anecdotes: An American friend of mine wants to become a waitress when she's back to US, just to give people the experience she didn't have here in France. Last time I was shocked to find such a soft-speaking waiter, and I though for a few seconds he was just joking.
- blumentopf 15y agoWorking link: http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:l0Yrdc_X8lMJ:www.protocoladvisors.com/wp/news/articles/ceos-vouch-for-waiter-rule-watch-how-people-treat-staff+site:+www.protocoladvisors.com/wp/news/articles/ceos-vouch-for-waiter-rule-watch-how-people-treat-staff&hl=en&lr=lang_de%7Clang_en&client=safari&tbs=lr:lang_1de%7Clang_1en&strip=1 http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:l0Yrdc_...
- Mz 15y agoI've skimmed the comments and haven't noticed these two thoughts, so will add them: 1) Opening line of the article: Office Depot CEO Steve Odland remembers like it was yesterday working in an upscale French restaurant in Denver. Waiters won't necessarily remain waiters. We are all human beings, regardless of our current role at the moment. There are also cases where someone may be more important than they appear to be -- for example, managers run cash registers during busy times at my local grocery store. I have long liked collecting true life anecdotes about such things: Charlie Chaplin entered a Charlie Chaplin look alike contest and came in third; a bank turned down some long-haired, jeans-wearing young person for an account and then they were given the account when one of the younger employees recognized them as a wealthy rock star; someone in a bank was an utter ass to a guy in overalls covered in paint who threatened to move his accounts. She said something like "feel free". He was the owner of a construction company worth millions and did, in fact, move his accounts. Treating people badly who appear to be your "social inferiors" at the moment is simply stupid. That person may not really be the "social inferior" they appear to be. And even if they are at this moment, they may not remain so. If you are an ass to them, they will remember it when the table has turned. It is shocking how often you run into people later, sometimes many years later. 2) Even if they truly are your social inferiors and will always remain so, it is still stupid to mistreat them. That waiter carries your food from the kitchen to your table. Do you really want to give him reason to do something to your food? If you think he won't, then you think he's a nicer guy than you are. Don't be so sure. People with power may be assholes to your face. People without power are very likely to reciprocate but in a way that covers their ass, so it is more likely to be done behind your back. So aside from my hippie-tree-hugger, give-the-world-a-hug, we-are-all-first-and-foremost-souls-on-a-spiritual-journey idealism for trying to be decent to people I meet, I think folks who mistreat others in this manner are simply stupid. Last, I will note that my observation has been that folks who try to lord it over others in this manner are also usually insecure and hiding behind their degrees, titles, big paycheck etc. I'm not impressed by such behavior, at least not favorably so.
- vnkatesh 15y agoI didn't know that this was a management rule! I loved this article.