Self-trained chef, James Beard Foundation award winner, head judge on Emmy Award winning reality-competition program “Top Chef”, world famous restaurateur, family man, mentor, and even life-saver (of cookbook author Joan Nathan, while choking on a piece of chicken) are just a few of the many hats worn by celebrity chef Tom Colicchio. So what are the secrets behind the success? A three ingredient recipe: “make people happy”, “remain flexible”, and “learn from everyone”.
”Make People Happy”
Eating out is about eating good food, of course, but it is also about convenience. When at a restaurant, whether it is fast casual or fine dining, we don’t want to worry about a tåhing. From the food, to the service, to the atmosphere, we want it wrapped up in a nice bow to be devoured as we please.
Tom Colicchio believes that the fundamental principle that is the foundation of every successful restaurant is that “everything has to work- food, service, and hospitality.” He understands that not only does the food have to be tasty and well-served, but the mood is crucial as well. When “no one is making you feel good”, you leave unsatisfied, with a bad taste in your mouth, if you will. And for Tom, it’s all about “the feeling when you’re walking out the door.”
”Remain Flexible”
What does Tom Colicchio, who has opened several extremely successful restaurants, believe is the most common mistake made when undertaking this notoriously arduous task? “Too much of a game plan.”But don’t misunderstand what he is saying. According to Tom, “always go into a restaurant opening with a great plan, but be prepared to make changes quickly.” On occasion, ideas which sound great in theory don’t always translate into reality as imagined. And this happens to everyone, including the greats. For example, Tom explains that when opening Craft, the menu was confusing customers. So, instead of saying “this is just how we do it,” he and his team realized that it was “causing too much confusion,” and changed the menu as to cater to the diners.In the end, as Tom explains, “you might have a plan… but if it’s not working, you may have to make a change to that plan. You have to remain flexible.”
”Learn From Everyone”
As a chef, restaurateur, and television personality, Tom Colicchio receives his fare share of criticism. What does he do with it? He listens, and then he learns. When considering reviews and the like, Tom doesn’t take it personally, and doesn’t necessarily equate a negative comment to a mistake made by him or his team. Instead, he takes his own advice to “learn from everyone,” and says “you have to start looking for patterns. And once you establish a pattern, then you can identify where there’s a problem that needs fixing.”As a judge on “Top Chef” and an expert on all things culinary, Tom also knows how to dish out the criticism. His advice: “don’t make it personal.” Most of us know that when feeling attacked on a personal level, what is actually being said, the critique itself, goes in one ear and out the other. There is no chance of learning, and improving. So, Tom suggests that we instead “focus on what people are doing as opposed to who they are.”
Sage Advice
Not one person can argue the success of Tom Colicchio, and as such, his advice is in all likelihood good advice. In essence, he’s telling us to stay true to ourselves and our intentions, and that we must be open to change, and adapt. Now those are two tactics we can all use!
Want more tips on how to hack the service industry? Find them @gosirvo.
The interview is arguably the most important part of applying for a job. And the most difficult. Here are the do’s and don’ts for some of the tricky interview questions you may have to answer.
“Can you tell me a little about yourself?”
DON’T give your entire life story.
DON’T regurgitate what is on your resume.
DO give a brief history about prior training or experience.
DO share 2-3 specific accomplishments that relate to your professional career, and be concise.
“What was your experience like at your previous position?”
DON’T speak negatively about your previous employer/company.
DON’T just use a vague phrase as your answer, like ‘great learning experience’.
DO give specific examples of your experience that lead to successful outcomes or that relate to the position for which you are interviewing.
DO include how your previous position or company differ from that for which you are interviewing.
“What are your greatest professional strengths and weaknesses?”
DON’T answer based on what you think the interviewer wants to hear; for both strengths and weaknesses, be honest.
DON’T give generic answers like ‘I work too hard’ or ‘I’m a team player”.
DO provide a specific example of a situation in which your strength served you well.
DO explain what you are doing to overcome your weaknesses after you share what they are.
“Why are you interested in this position?”
DON’T only talk about what is in it for you, such as great perks, more money, etc.
DON’T solely focus on the past, and why you are leaving your current position.
DO discuss the company, and how you and your [insert trait here] will be a perfect fit.
DO talk about the company’s bottom line, the future, and how you can make it a bright one for yourself AND the company.
“What is your super power, spirit animal, etc.?”
DON’T just give your go-to answer. Employers will appreciate an answer tailored to the job, company, or industry as it shows a certain level of dedication.
DON’T hold back, as this question is supposed to break the ice and meant to showcase a bit of your personality.
DO think outside of the box, but still make sure it relates to the company’s ethos.
DO take pause, or use a filler such as ‘that is a great question…’, if you do not have an answer right away.
“Do you have any questions for us?”
DON’T SAY NO!
DON’T let yourself get caught without a question because it has already been discussed. Think of a few less-common questions just in case.
DO ask questions that show you have researched the position and company. Questions about ongoing projects are always a good go-to.
DO ask about relevant subjects. Asking if you can wear jeans to work is not relevant.
DOs for Any and All Questions
Be honest. Do your homework. PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE.
Do you have more do’s and don’ts for these questions? Or need do’s and don’ts for other tough interview questions? Let us know @gosirvo
Have you ever opened too many programs on your computer, causing it to first slow down, then eventually freeze and crash? Well that is essentially what is happening to our brains when we ‘multitask’, according to Daniel Levitin, cognitive psychologist, neuroscientist, and best-selling author. However, there are easy tricks to use in order to maintain productive in what Levitin refers to as the ‘age of information overload’.
The Multitasking Myth
According to cognitive psychologist and bestselling author Daniel Levitin, “multitasking is a myth”. What is actually occurring is “sequential tasking”, during which the brain rapidly shifts from one thing to the next every 3-5 seconds, only the transitions are so seamless that we are duped into believing we are truly thinking of multiple things at once. Levitin explains that engaging in sequential tasking, or attention-demanding tasks, depletes the brain of its fuel. In fact, every decision we make, big or small, requires the same amount of energy, meaning the fairly simple decision to have cereal for breakfast burns as much brain fuel as your carefully thought out investment choices.With the forever increasing amount of information available, and the fast paced lifestyle of this day and age, it’s no wonder so many of us struggle to remember where we put the car keys, or if we locked the front door. There is just too much to do, and constantly attempting to do everything at once drains our brains of the resources required to function at its optimal level.
All About Organization
In his newest book, “The Organized Mind: Thinking Straight in an Age of Information Overload”, Daniel Levitin provides strategies to implement in everyday life that can help us use our brains more efficiently. Here are a few, as described by Levitin himself.
Write stuff down. “The number of things that you can keep track of at once is limited to about four. So, what experts recommend and what the neuroscience says, very strongly, is that if you can get stuff out of your brain and out there into the world — something called externalizing your memory — it frees up your brain to be uncluttered and to think about the things your really want to think about. You get all that stuff out of your brain and then you can concentrate on work and leisure activities more fully.”
Try to be more conscientious. “This comes from personality and individual differences psychology. Of the thousands of ways that humans differ from one another, turns out there’s this one cluster of traits called conscientiousness that predict a whole host of positive life outcomes, such as longevity over our health, life satisfaction…it predicts that you won’t end up in prison. And conscientiousness includes things like doing what you say you’ll do, being dependable, being organized.”
Dedicate certain spots to certain objects. “What a lot of people say is that they lose their car keys, house keys, they lose their reading glasses or their passport…We have exquisite place memory in a beautiful structure in the brain called the hippocampus. We share this with all mammals. It’s the part of the brain that tells a squirrel where it buried its nuts. So, we can exploit this. The problem is, if you put your keys down just anywhere in your apartment or your home, they can be just anywhere and your brain can’t keep track of it…So the trick is, you put a little hook by the front door, you have a decorative ball on a console table. That becomes the designated spot for your keys or your reading glasses and because you always put them there they’re always where you expect to find them.”
Don’t spend more time on a decision than it’s worth. “You’ve got something in your hand and there’s probably a perfect place for it in your home and you could spend a long time thinking about the perfect cubby hole or closet or drawer, but what you’re saying is, ‘I’m going to put it here in the family bookshelf because it’s not worth investing anymore time in and all these things that are linked together by some common thread all go there and everybody knows that they’re there.’”
Take breaks at work. “Many of us feel as though we are overloaded and overwhelmed by all the things that are happening and we can’t stop work for even five minutes or we’ll fall behind. There’s a mode of our brain that is responsible for most of our creativity. It’s called the default mode network, or the daydreaming mode. And it’s the part of your brain that effectively hits the reset button in your brain when you’ve gotten overstressed or you’ve run into a brick wall in your work. So, one of the biggest things we can do in the workplace is to give ourselves an opportunity to enter that daydreaming mode every couple of hours or so. You do that by reading literature, by listening to music, looking out the window. According to many studies, people who take regular breaks and even naps — 10 or 15 minute naps — have been more productive at the end of the day and more creative in their work, more than making up for the amount of time they take off.”
For more from Daniel Levitin, check out his google talk on youtube. And remember, Sirvo is here to help you manage your service industry-related needs.
In fact, the service industry recorded the strongest sales volume on record in December 2014, as well as the eighth consecutive monthly increase, totalling $49.6 billion on a seasonally-adjusted basis.
An astonishing 1.3 billion tons of food, totaling nearly $1 trillion at retail prices, is wasted annually worldwide, either because it is spoiled in transit or thrown out by consumers. This global issue is not only hurting our bank accounts, but also costing us precious natural resources. So, what can be done?
Non-Trivial Trivia
How much of the U.S. energy budget is used to get food from farms to tables nationwide?
10 percent, equaling almost $3 billion in 2014, was spent on producing, harvesting, transporting, and packaging our food.
How much U.S. land and fresh water is used for providing food to consumers?
More than a third of all food produced goes uneaten, as approximately 20 percent is spoiled or ruined and 10 percent is thrown away, costing an estimated $165 billion per year.
The numbers are pretty staggering, aren’t they? And that’s just a few facts regarding short term effects, but what about long-term consequences?
Back to the Future
Much of our wasted food ends up rotting in landfills where it accounts for a considerable portion of methane emissions that contribute to global warming. Worldwide, the energy that goes into the production, harvesting, transporting, and packaging of wasted food generates more than 3.3 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide, another greenhouse gas responsible for raising Earth’s temperature. In fact, if food waste was a country, it would be the world’s third largest emitter of greenhouse gasses, according to the United Nation’s Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) report ‘Food Wastage Footprint: Impacts on Natural Resources’.
As a call to action, FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva stated, “We simply cannot allow one-third of all the food we produce to go to waste or be lost because of inappropriate practices, when 870 million people go hungry every day.” So, what can be done to curb the amount of food wasted?
Take ‘Initiative’
Reduction of food waste as a movement has gained speed, and as such there is now demand for food waste solutions, from consumers and corporations alike. Initiatives aimed at making it easier to avoid waste are growing in number, and in application.
Take for example CrobMobster, which enables communities in-need and local farmers, producers, and food purveyors with surpluss to connect within a food gleaning and supply-sharing platform. To date, CropMobster has helped save over 1 million pounds, more than 2 million servings, of local food from going to waste in Sonoma and Marin Counties, California.
In order to reduce waste in the home, use Fresh Paper, which is simply a piece of paper infused with organic spices that keep fruits and vegetables fresh for 2-4 times longer. Fresh paper is available at grocery store chains such as Whole Foods and Wegmans. Another handy tool for using leftover food items is Food Rescue, an app launched by Google and Sainsbury’s, a British supermarket chain, which generates recipes based on up to nine ingredients dictated by the user.
Even rotten food is now a commodity. Harvest Power takes food waste, along with leaves and yard trimmings, and through anaerobic digestion and composting, transform them into renewable energy to power homes.
Healthy Habits
It is great that there are now products available to help us waste less food, but there are also ways to do so by incorporating a few simple habits into your daily lifestyle.
Plan ahead. Before going to the grocery store, take inventory of what you already have available. If you know what you’ll be cooking, and for whom, buy only enough necessary to feed the crew. Also, take note of expiration dates when shopping so you have an idea of how long items will last.
Remember to rotate. When loading groceries into your refrigerator and pantry, use the ‘first in first out’ method. Place new items in the back, and move older or already opened foods to the front. This way, food is less likely to go unused.
Save leftovers. If you’re in the habit of tossing leftover food at the end of the meal, consider packing it up and taking it to work or school for lunch the next day, or even save it for a second dinner. This can not only reduce wasted food, but also save you a few extra dollars.
Go trayless. Many of us frequent cafeterias where trays are available for carrying food, but next time, consider going trayless. By being unable to purchase as much food at once, you can reduce the amount of food that ends up in the trash. At the end of the meal, if you’re still hungry, you can always get back in line!
Donate. If you find yourself with a surplus of food, why not donate it. Millions of people go hungry everyday, and if you can even help feed one more person, you’re making a big difference. Find out how to donate here.
With the fast paced world of today, it can be easy to forget that wasting food is easy to avoid, and that it has dire consequences as well. However, if we all make a bit of effort, we can pave the way for responsible eating, for our health, wallets, and planet.
