Running a successful restaurant requires a whole host of skills. It’s necessary to get along with your servers, your chefs, your vendors, and your clients. Your first steps onto the scene as a restaurant manager will most likely be the scariest steps that you’ll take. We can assure you that it gets easier if you have passion, organization, and persistence.
Passion
The passion that you have for the business and your line of work will shape the establishment that your restaurant becomes. Passion is often the cornerstone of a restaurant’s personality. The enthusiasm that you put into the effort will be reflected by those around you.
If you are ambivalent about what needs to be done, it will come back to bite you as fast as you can say crème brulee. Passion will help you research, experiment, purchase proper restaurant equipment, and make your restaurant a better place.
Organization
The internal structure of your restaurant means that you’ll be prepared when something goes wrong. Your people won’t be running around like chickens with their heads cut off. And through organization and structure, your restaurant will significantly run better.
What happens when someone is sick? What happens when the press tries to talk with you? What happens if there’s a fire? Take a moment to think about contingency plans and write them down. These types of contingency plans should be written down in the employee handbook. You do have a handbook right?
You, as the head of the ship, must know these procedures, too. Here are some sample handbooks.
Sevens On the Go Employee Manual
Sample Employee Handbook for any industry
Persistence
Persistence is the ability to keep going, try new things, and study your way into being one of the top restaurants in the world. A successful restaurant manager is always learning new techniques, and ideas that they can use to further the goals of the restaurant.
So you have 70% sustainability in your restaurant? Let’s try for 71%. Let’s say that you’ve knocked down your turnover. Can you make it better? Always try to be better. That persistence that you put in will make you better and help you stand out above the rest.
There’s nothing that can truly replace the traits of persistence, organization, and especially passion. With that passion you have for the company and the business, you can truly go further than you ever thought possible.
Thanks go out to Tourism Victoria on Flickr for the Creative Commons use of the picture.
