Thoughts about leadership

I was probably a couple of weeks into my job, it was my first "real job" as some say, and like many young guys who are learning the perils of shaving daily, I got my start in restaurant business. More than a a week ago I wrote a bit about those years, but the story I wanted to share today is truly inspiring, and one I hope I never forget.

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Maybe two weeks into my restaurant job, the store manager that had hired me got fired for some shady stuff. I was quite intrigued about the whole thing, but I was not necessarily sad about it. She seemed like a nice enough lady, but she was just a boss, someone who would sit in the office and scream commands, so you could say I had no emotional attachment to the sad event.

I do remember however that when she left, she did so in a very stoic way. No tears, no drama, she walked up to every single one of her employees and thanked us for our efforts. I don't remember her exact words, but she said to me I had potential and to not give up, I do remember that clearly. She must have thought her firing would have made me quit, but the thought was not crossing my head to be honest.

The very next day we all met our brand new store manager, this crazy loving bubbly lady with a smile so wide she could bite her own ears if she really tried. Her name was Michelle. It was kind of difficult not to like her right away, she made it a point to remember your name, asked for clarification, to get the pronunciation just right. She was quick to acknowledge effort and specially quick to get off her chair.

I think that was the first thing that jumped out at me. How even though she was the boss, she had absolutely no issue working the lines if it was required. Seeing the store manager get in the kitchen and work side by side with the cooks was pretty amazing, at least to it was to me. If you've never worked a restaurant you might not be aware of the hard work it can be, and how many who go up the ranks probably do so to stop working so damn hard.

I think it may have taken a week or two and just about everyone in the restaurant was in her pocket, at least partially. If Michelle asked for something to be done, we would just do it. She never showed signs of being lazy and if she asked, it was probably because she was helping someone else do something important.

Then the day when she taught me one of the most important lessons in my life came, and it started with a disaster. Honestly, I'm still inspired by this weird yet powerful moment almost twenty years later.

A small kid had "gone" in the playground and a concerned father came up to the counter to let us workers know the problem needed to be taken care of immediately. You can imagine our faces, you can imagine the mix of teenagers in the front lines staring at each other as the parent voiced his concern and demand:.

"Send someone to go clean that right now!"

One of my co-workers said right away without hesitations - "If I'm forced to clean that up, I'll quit"

Michelle our brand new store manager, looked at everyone with a friendly smile, and just like that got really serious, really serious, try to imagine the stoic moment and said - "I would never ask any of you to do something that I would not do myself... never forget that".

Just like that our Boss, the person that is supposed to be all comfortable sitting on a chair in the office, put on some gloves, grabbed some paper towels, and all the necessary chemicals and cleaned the whole thing. No complains, she never even lost her smile.

When it was all said and done, she came back to the counter and said to us still smiling. "Now you know, if I ask, its because I mean it... It's because I will need some help, after all we are in this together"

Needless to say she changed everything I ever thought I knew about leadership, everything I thought about what it meant to lead by example. After that day we became a team, after that day I understood the difference, the big difference many people still don't get when they sit in their self appointed thrones.

All of the sudden this image was not a cliche thing anymore, I truly saw it, I felt it.

In case you are wondering why I'm sharing this little story today, well... That's because on this platform I tend to see a lot of bosses, and not a whole lot of leaders. Yes of course we have a few, and I'm not trying to point any fingers here, I'm simply saying that if they really want to see change, if they really want to be part of the change, these "leaders" must learn to take a good look at themselves first.

It really starts there...