Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Life as a TightRope


When you own a venue, or a bar, or a restaurant, its pretty easy (actually really easy) to get caught up in the minutia. Our business is a cycle, a repetitive weekly cycle. On Mondays we start, on Sundays we finish, and on Monday we start all over again. We order our food, our liquor, our beer, our artists (booking), schedule our employees, review our performance, make goals for the next period, and then we start all over. Through this process, you can find yourself looking up, and the weeks simply become a number: 1-52. Then after week 52, comes week 1, new year. Besides making a living (which is essential but not primary - big difference), there are certain joys that come with our business. One of my mind is the people that work for Saint Rocke & UCC. 90% of my employees move on, are doing this in the short term, and I'd say 50% dont care at all about the business. But the other 50%, and the minority within that percentage, really do care, and they find themselves growing as people. When I see someone like that in our organization, I do my best to give them tools to grow, learn, and come away in a place they werent before. Ask a few of them - started as busboys, now they are in management. Its amazing (its actually how I started - Louises Trattoria, Riviera Bar & Grill, Molloys). But when the other thing happens, when you put effort and hope into an individual, and seriously take time and your emotion and pour it into someone turning the corner, it can be brutal when they turn their shoulder. Its happened to me, just happened, and will happen again. It brings up a good point in life: Most great occurrences in life, most meaning, is found in a place that can just as easily bring you negativity, as it can positivity. And I guess that's the tightrope of life.

2 comments:

Robert Hui said...

I totally hear you man. The cliche question is to ask whether risking for the positivity is worth it...I think we'd both agreed it is.

Unknown said...

When you get the positivity, yes. but I also know those droughts, which Im sure you've felt, and in those times where negativity reigns, its hard to see the light. But yes, you're right...agreed.