ELECTRONIC HOUSE CALL - May 18, 2001

ARRIVEDERCI!
I suspect that by the time you read this, I will be back on an airplane. Nothing new about that . . . but this time Margene and I will be spending a week in Italy followed by a week in Burgundy for our annual corporate meeting! As is my custom, I will be posting a daily diary on my website -- sort of a travelogue from a restaurateur's perspective. I find that visiting other cultures is a great source of insight into what is happening here as well, so if you would like to follow along, go to http://www.restaurantdoctor.com/trips.html or just look at the trip reports under the heading of "What's Happening With the Doc?" in the list of links on my home page. I should advise you that it is often difficult to get access to the Internet in rural areas of Europe (and this trip is, after all, also time to relax and recharge) so some daily reports may take a day or two to get posted. Still, I expect to have some interesting ideas to share as the trip progresses. I hope you will drop in and check it out from time to time.

HOLDING IT TOGETHER
In case you feel the urge to schedule a "house call" while we are gone, my marketing partner, Cindy Casady will be monitoring my phone and should be able to respond to most questions. She also has a working stock of my books and can handle most orders, so it should be pretty much business as usual.

FINALLY
I realize that I often take the industry to task regarding lapses and missed opportunities. I will continue to do that . . . but I also want to acknowledge -- and I encourage you to acknowledge -- the incredible spirit that drives our industry and the wonderful people who comprise it. This includes you and your staff! In the midst of gearing up for the summer or wrestling with labor issues or any of the hundreds of other projects that you face, take a second to appreciate how far you have come and the purity of your intent. Acknowledge the heroism that it takes to show up every day and deliver the gift of hospitality to a public who so badly needs it and who too often does not show their appreciation of the difference we can make in their lives. Acknowledge the innocence that led to your mistakes, clean up the mess and move on. Take a second to appreciate your staff. Even at their worst, they are doing the best they can in the moment. There will always be work to do but you don't have to be bad to get better! Start to notice and show your appreciation for the contribution they make.

We are blessed to be in the most wonderful industry in the world. Don't miss the wonder of it! Ciao!

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