Donald Burns delivers a brief Restaurant Coach Minute advising restaurant-industry workers that busyness should not be equated with success. He argues busyness often masks distraction or mediocrity and emphasizes that measurable results — not visible effort — determine reward. The core takeaway: "Never mistake being busy for being effective."
Hey, Donald Burns with the Restaurant Coach Minute. I'm too busy. See, that really should be the battle cry for people working in the restaurant industry. We're all busy. You know, we're called human beings, but in fact, we should be called humans. Doing life moves pretty quick, and the human race is always pushing to be better, faster, stronger. What drives us is the need for more. It's not a bad thing to want to be more or be better or to want more and more. If you're not moving fast enough in our industry, you're kind of quickly labeled as a slacker. See, the issue that we have is that we've drawn the conclusion that being busy is the end goal. We think someone who's busy is successful. Not so fast. It doesn't matter really how busy you are. Being busy for many people is kind of a form of distraction. They use it like a magician does. Look over here and see how busy I am. So you don't see what I'm really doing. What matters is the results you get. So write this down. Never mistake being busy for being effective. You are rewarded for the results you get, not the effort. Mediocrity loves to be disguised as being busy. Results are the only thing that matters, and that is what you're paid for.
If your restaurant only works because you work 80 hours a week, it doesn't work.
