ELECTRONIC HOUSE CALL - June 9, 2006

I am excited. Next week Robert Kausen and I will host two conferences in Nashville -- Leadership From the Inside Out and the Alumni Intensive -- all key parts of our Project to Create the Effortless Organization (The CEO Project).

Not only will we get to help the group come to a fresh understanding of what makes people tick, but I will also get back to the Sunset Grill, long one of my favorite restaurants on the planet. Its owner, Randy Rayburn, is truly one of the best operators I know ... and I am thrilled that he will also be participating in the LIO Program along with one of his managers.

COMPUTER HOAXES - PART 1
A note from a subscriber reminded me about a couple of articles I put in the EHC several years ago. If your e-mail in-box gets as crammed as mine, perhaps you can benefit from re-visiting those thoughts. First, from EHC #77:

If I am off on a rant here, please forgive me but it seems like time for a reminder on this subject.

We Have Met the Enemy and It Is Us
It seems to come in waves, but this week I received several e-mail hoax warnings ranging from "Chicken Little" type notices that the cyber sky was falling to some great deal to be had merely for passing along e- mail messages.

Virtually all of this stuff is just junk that clutters up bandwidth and slows down the entire e-mail network. It is irritating that it is out there in the first place and it is irritating that so many people just blindly pass it along. The only way to stop it is to have it never leave your desk.

How to Identify a Hoax
Here is some advice from CIAC, the Computer Incident Advisory Capability of the US Department of Energy. There are several methods to identify virus hoaxes, but first consider what makes a successful hoax on the Internet.

There are two known factors that make a successful virus hoax, they are(1) technical sounding language, and (2) credibility by association. If the warning uses the proper technical jargon, most individuals, including technologically savvy individuals, tend to believe the warning is real. For example, the Good Times hoax says that "...if the program is not stopped, the computer's processor will be placed in an nth-complexity infinite binary loop which can severely damage the processor...". The first time you read this, it sounds like it might be something real. With a little research, you find that there is no such thing as an nth-complexity infinite binary loop and that processors are designed to run loops for weeks at a time without damage.

When we say credibility by association we are referring to whom sent the warning. If the janitor at a large technological organization sends a warning to someone outside of that organization, people on the outside tend to believe the warning because the company should know about those things. Even though the person sending the warning may not have a clue what he is talking about, the prestige of the company backs the warning, making it appear real. If a manager at the company sends the warning, the message is doubly backed by the company's and the manager's reputations.

Individuals should also be especially alert if the warning urges you to pass it on to your friends. This should raise a red flag that the warning may be a hoax.

Another flag to watch for is when the warning indicates that it is a Federal Communication Commission (FCC) warning. According to the FCC, they have not and never will disseminate warnings on viruses. It is not part of their job.

Know the Danger
Your computer cannot be affected by simply reading an e-mail text message. For any damage to be done, you need to execute an attached program (usually with a ".exe" extension.) This is a common sense issue -- if you receive a file attached to an e-mail, don't open it if you have any doubts about it. For myself, even if I know the sender, I will not open an attachment unless I know there is something there I want.

While I recommend that you invest in a good anti- virus program (and keep it updated), there is no such thing as a foolproof anti-virus program. Viruses and other Trojan horses can be (and have been) designed to bypass them. Anti-virus products also can be tricky to use at times and they occasionally suffer from programming errors. (Of course you need to actually USE anti-virus software for it to protect you in the first place -- many people turn off this protection after awhile because it slows them down.) Likewise, people often fail to make adequate backups of their computer data. Always rely on a good set of backups as your first line of defense and use anti- virus software only as a secondary measure.

Check it Out
It is becoming more of a jungle out there every day ... but don't succumb to the fear factor that causes most people to immediately pass along these hoaxes to everyone they know. Here are several sources that will give you a heads-up on viruses or hoaxes before you innocently pass them along to the world. I suggest you bookmark them in your browser so you won't have to look them up the next time you get a suspicious message.

CIAC
Urban Legends
Snopes
Korova

In addition, most anti-virus companies have a web page containing information about most known viruses and hoaxes. You can also call or check the web site of the company that produces the product that is supposed to contain the virus. In most cases, common sense would eliminate Internet hoaxes.

Be Part of The Solution
If you are at all in doubt about whether a warning is valid or not, don't pass it on until you have personally verified it, either by checking with one of the sources above or by contacting the alleged originator of the initial message. Take responsibility for what you send and it won't come back to embarrass you later.

Thus endeth the sermon for today. Happy surfing! (I will give you the second installment next week.)

100,000 MILE TUNE-UP
How Long Do You Expect Your Car to Last?
Most of today’s cars can run efficiently for 250,000 miles or more. Yet most of them are rusting away in salvage yards long before that.

What does it take to keep a car on the road three times longer?
Experts say that the key is good gas, regular maintenance and the willingness to invest in keeping the car tuned up ... even when it seems to be running OK.

Keeping A Restaurant Performing at Its Peak Is No Different
Just as your car needs a major tune-up from time to time, your restaurant periodically needs some detailed diagnostic attention to continue to perform to its full potential.

When a concept has enjoyed success in the market over time, it is easy to start taking it for granted. The concept gradually – almost invisibly – gets stale ... and staleness is like rust under the paint of your car, weakening the integrity of the vehicle before you ever see it.

Super Summit 2006: Your 100,000-Mile Tune-Up is a tightly focused program that will provide you with specific skills, ideas and plans to make your operation more competitive and let it draws from an ever-expanding market with an appeal that never dies.

The 2006 Super Summit is a hands-on, practical program that will rekindle your passion for your work and reposition your restaurant for success over the long term. If you have 100,000 miles on your present operation and would like it to run smoothly for another 100,000, you definitely want to look into Super Summit 2006. For a sneak preview of what we have in mind for a select group of operators next September in Charleston, South Carolina, click on the link below.

See the preview of Super Summit 2006.

THE JUNE SURVEY
"If we build it, they will come" may work in the movies but it is a lousy way to staff a restaurant. You can't pick the right people unless they apply and the good people are not wandering the streets looking for work.

This month we look at what operators are doing to take charge of their staffing and attract the right sort of applicants. This should be eye-opening information for anyone who sees their staff as a competitive advantage.

As usual, I will provide a compilation of all the responses to everyone who contributes to this project. Just click on the link below to participate in the June survey.

You can download copies of all past EHC surveys at including the massive WOW Ideas collection.

Add your thoughts to the June survey.

THE PERPETUAL QUESTION
What did you learn from your staff today?

After an introductory "What's going on in your life" conversation with a server I curiously asked her why she liked working here. She was very specific with her reply and I was astounded that she was appreciative for what seemed minimal to me.

I would have thought it was the great money, very flexible schedule or fun atmosphere. Her answer was "because you don't yell at me and you help me when I have a problem on the job."

I think if we can lose our ego about how great we are, or how great our operation is, we will begin to realize the power of (and necessity for) treating others with kindness and compassion. -- Dan McCormick, Troy, MI

Dan's note reminds me of the importance seeking out this sort of feedback ... for a couple of reasons. The most obvious benefit is that it may help you identify (and fix) a minor annoyance or irritation before it escalates into a real problem.

A second, more subtle benefit is that knowing what your good workers like about the job will give you the words you will need to put into your recruiting ads to attract more people just like them. In this case, Dan's ads should emphasize the positive nature of the work environment rather than wages and benefits.

... but of course, you will never know any of this unless you make the time ... and TAKE the time ... to really listen you your crew.

Never doubt that the most critical -- and perhaps profitable -- management skill you can develop is your ability to truly listen.

I will continue to collect your answers to this important question ... and you can add comments as often as you want. Just click on the link below and contribute your insights for the common good (and your own as well!)

(NOTE: Enhancing your listening skills is just one of the skills you will develop at the annual Leadership From the Inside Out Program (http://www.effortless.org/LIO-01.html) We will soon be accepting applications for the next program, scheduled for June 2007. Mark your calendar and apply early.)

What did YOU learn from YOUR staff today?

WHERE’S WALDO?
Since people often ask, here are some upcoming public events where you can attend a seminar or an event with the Doc:

* June 12-13, Leadership From the Inside Out, Nashville, TN
* June 14-15, CEO Project Alumni Retreat, Nashville, TN
* June 20-22, Pizza Insight SuperConference, Las Vegas, NV
* Sept 13-14, Northeast Pizza Expo, Atlantic City, NJ
* Sept 20-21, Mid-Atlantic Food, Beverage & Lodging Expo, Baltimore, MD
* Sept 25-26, Super Summit 2006, Charleston, SC
* October 17, New Hampshire Hospitality Expo, Manchester, NH

Contact me for more details.

© 2006 Restaurant Doctor