I have a habit of looking around and noticing things.

As I sat in the restaurant, everything seemed to be where it belonged. Customers dining, getting up and making way for those next in line. The staff did their normal routine shift tasks making sure that tables were wiped and quickly set again.

Then…there it was.

Dust.

Yeah, another habit of mine in establishments like this, I look up.

It was clear that the focus was on the standard stuff; condiments, the nightly vacuuming, and the flatware. It seemed like a lot of time was spent on what people saw at eye level vs. what was clearly above them. The thick layer of what had now become grime, coated the ductwork and ceiling fans and was also clinging to the light bulbs themselves.

I knew the owner. He worked hard day after day focusing on putting out the best menu items for his loyal patrons and the food was pretty good, but not always great. I also knew that money wasn’t an issue, needing to be in control was.

With him being the chef and always being distracted by the service side of things, he missed some key things that people like me noticed in just a few short minutes.

He was always busy being the boss. The trouble was, for as great of a chef as he was, he sucked at making sure that all of the front-of-house duties were taken care of. Not only did that mean that what customers saw when they walked in was subpar, but the added responsibility of doing a half-assed job outside of the kitchen meant that his head wasn’t completely in the game being played where he was needed most.

I understand how hard it can be to take a step back and relinquish the reigns to something that I’ve built, especially if it’s my passion. Sometimes though, what we’re passionate about gets buried in the day-to-day responsibilities of making that thing a reality.

I’m just wagering a guess here, but if you’re a chef, chances are you enjoy cooking. If that’s the case, then fucking cook.

If you’re in charge, locate people who share your vision, and hire them. Put a team together who are as passionate about their role in your business as you are about the reason you started it all in the first place.

Wanna know a secret? There are people out there who absolutely love being front-of-house managers.

Do you have a large staff? Do you cook better than you supervise? Still staying late to wash the last of those dishes once the door sign has been flipped for the night? Hate bookkeeping and accounting?

See where I’m going here?

Presentation is everything. If you drive by a mansion, what’s the first thing you see? I’ll give you a hint- It’s the work of the gardener.

The dedication to the beauty outside lends a fairly good view of what’s inside. Even if we never open the doors, we’re pretty confident that what’s behind them is pretty dope, too. If you’re the chef, the inside of your mansion is the food that you prepare. If you’re always tending to the pretty flowers or trimming the hedges, is that food going to be the best it can be?

With the right people in place, it’s okay to let go of the responsibilities that are robbing you of what you enjoy doing most. Delegate.

Letting go a little isn’t a sign of weakness. Understanding what you do best and bringing in the right people to do the rest, usually much better than you can, is just the opposite. It’s a definition of strength.

If you already have staff but don’t have the confidence that they’re taking care of everything outside of the kitchen, find new staff.

Go on, hire the gardener. Not only will they take care of all of those things that you never went into business to do in the first place, but they’ll make sure that when the doors have opened, the dust has (been) cleared.

The post Your Business is Your Mansion: Hire a Gardener appeared first on Sean McCarthy.