Category: Hospitality
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The (He)art Of Active Listening
It’s a bit ironic that I’m writing about this in the parking lot before my twice monthly Toastmasters meeting (shout out Wausau chapter 782), but it makes sense to me. I had the pleasure of touring around San Francisco recently with my then 3-year-old son. What a magical and memorable time. I snapped this photo while we…
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Coaching and Radical Accountability: A Starbucks Story
I recently heard a young Starbucks manager coaching one of her employees who recently had a difficult interaction with a customer. They were both quite young, probably mid twenties and late teens, respectively. The manager said, “I take accountability for things I didn’t do all the time.” That’s leadership. It’s also radical ownership and accountability.…
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People Remember How You Make Them Feel
The key to hospitality is knowing that people remember how you make them feel. My late brother, Jim Lewellis, was in the midst of writing a memoir when he tragically passed in June 2022. I recall sharing with him a glowing recommendation of David Chang’s 2020 memoir, Eat A Peach, because it reminded me so much…
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“I Get To Make Someone’s Day Every Night”
I had the privilege of spending the weekend in beautiful Door County, the thumb of Wisconsin, with my family. Some call it the Cape Cod of the Midwest. I can’t argue with that. It was my first time, so of course I took in the goats eating grass on the roof at Al Johnson’s. But…
