Donald Burns, a restaurant coach, argues that leadership matters more than costs or decor. His seven tips: take care of yourself, focus on strengths, create a clear vision, write a mission statement, adopt a daily mantra, establish core values, and be a leader instead of a boss.
Seven
Donald Burns
March 4, 2024
So let me ask you a question. Is leadership dead, or is it just on vacation working with thousands of restaurants? I know there are restaurants out there that want to be leaders in their market. So take note, because if your leadership game needs a makeover, I'm going to drop seven tips to help you become a better leader and still have a life. Hi. Donald Burns, a restaurant coach. If you're watching this, you're either someone who has read my books and wants to know more about how to make more profit while not having your restaurant run or possibly ruin your life, or maybe you're brand new to the restaurant coach podcast. Either way, I'm happy you're here. It's time to talk about the most important thing in your restaurant. It's not food cost. It's not labor cost, not even your menus or decor. I'm talking about. You see, successful restaurants don't just have a great team and great food. They have a great leader. Now, I know you might be thinking, but I'm not a leader. The good news is, is that you are a leader, but you can always be a better leader. And you could actually become a leader that everyone respects, trust, and follows. If you really want to unleash your inner leader, then this video is for you. As a day, I'm going to share seven tips that I have seen that led restaurants to having better leaders, which leads to better results every single day. So let's get started. Tip number one is to take care of yourself. Now, you're probably working 50 hours or more a week in your restaurant, and you're probably working more than 50 hours a week, a year. You need to take care of yourself. Get enough sleep, eat well, exercise, meditate. Seriously, this is a big one. You cannot be a leader if you don't take care of yourself first. Tip number two is you got to focus on your strengths. We all have certain skills that come easy to us. Now, you might be a master at food costing. You might be a marketing genius. You might be an amazing chef. You need to really identify your strengths and maximize them to their potential. Remember, you are your greatest asset, and you're also your most valuable person on your team. You are the leader. Now, you might be thinking again, oh, you keep saying I'm a leader, but I don't want to be a leader. You stop saying that. Here's the thing. If you're in charge of a restaurant, you are the leader. Now, you might not think you're a good leader, but again, the thing about becoming a leader is that you can always become better. You can become outstanding. You can become the leader that your restaurant really, truly needs. Tip number three is you gotta have a vision for your restaurant. You have to have a crystal clear vision for your restaurant. You need to know exactly what you want your restaurant to be, what you want it to do, and then also, how am I going to get there? I mean, your restaurant is your baby and it's your creation. You need to love it and nurture it just like a parent would. And you need to be honest and figure out what exactly does your restaurant need? What is holding it back? What is it missing? What can you do to make it better? Tip number four is you must develop a mission statement. Your restaurant needs to have a mission. You need to know exactly what your mission is, and you also need to share it with your team and your guests. Your mission needs to be something that you can be proud of. It needs to be something that inspires you, something that pulls you, Something that wakes you up in the morning and just fires you up. And it needs to be something that your guests and team can be excited about as well. Tip number five is that you got to develop a mantra. So what's your daily mantra? You need something to help you remember your mission and your vision. This could be a very simple phrase or saying that you can use throughout the day to remind you of what you're really working towards. And for tip number six is you must develop a core value system. You need to have a set of core values that you and your team live by every single day. And these are the things that you're not going to compromise on. These are the things that make you and your restaurant special. These are the things that your guests will come to know and also expect when they come visit your restaurant, Also known as your brand promise. And tip number seven, going back to being a leader. You want to be a leader? Don't be a boss. Bosses tell the team what to do. They tell them how to do it, when to do it. You know, the thing is, bosses don't like to take input or ideas from their team. They're not open to change. Leaders, they'll take input from their team. They listen to their team. They value their team's ideas. They're open to change. Remember, you need to be a leader. You need to be the leader that your restaurant needs, that your team wants. You need to be the leader that your guests need. If you truly want to unleash your inner leader, then you need to become the leader that you know you can be. I'll see you in the next video in the Restaurant Coach podcast, where I'm going to show you why micromanaging is the downfall for restaurants. And also make sure to hit that like and subscribe button before you go.
If your restaurant only works because you work 80 hours a week, it doesn't work.
