Embrace The Suck Blog

The Winning Strategy: Attracting and Retaining Top Talent for Your Restaurant – A Four-Step Approach hiring leadership turnover

No more despairing over an understaffed restaurant. It's time to dust off your note-taking skills because we're diving into a four-step game plan to draw the crème de la crème to your restaurant, starting immediately.

If your restaurant mirrors many others in your local scene,...

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The Downfall of a Restaurant: A Leadership Deficiency

Restaurants are more than just places to satisfy our hunger. They are the epicenters of culture, conviviality, and creativity. They are where we gather to celebrate life’s milestones, discover new flavors, and connect with our communities. As such, it's a tragedy when these establishments...

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The One Key to Making More Profits and Working Less culture leadership mindset peak performance

If you’re an owner who wants to make more profits and work less, then you’re in the right place.

I have a big fat warning for you, though: what you’re about to read won’t be easy.

The truth is that you have the ability to make more profits and work less.

It’s...

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Got Team Tension? 5 Ways to Prevent and Fix It!

Every great team experiences tension. The pace of service in a busy restaurant can lead to interactions that are curt — to say the least — but larger issues can arise as well. Are you noticing your restaurant team is arguing? Is your employee turnover rate going up? Are you sensing a...

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WARNING: Restaurant Culture In Crisis brian duncan culture the restaurant coach

Interview Series: Brian Duncan of Down To Earth Wine Concepts

Here is another interview from The CONQUER Online Restaurant Summit with my friend Brian Duncan. Brian always has a unique understanding and view of the world. The topic for this talk was how Restaurant Culture is in Crisis.

Donald...

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The Combination to Real Restaurant Success

All business problems are people problems.

I want to share with you some of the challenges that I faced back in the 90s when I opened my first restaurant….

Up to that point I had been in the industry for 15 years. It’s hard to believe that I’m coming up on 42 years in the...

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The 11 Habits of Outstanding Restaurants branding culture guest journey hospitality operations

The restaurant world will never be the same after what we have been through over the past few years.

Things have changed rapidly for restaurants around the globe and many look to the USA for trends and insight into which direction the industry is headed.

I can tell you from working with over 2200...

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The Pandemic Isn’t Your Fault, But How You Ran Your Restaurant Before Is! coronavirus culture kpi's leadership mindset operations

The Coronavirus Pandemic is unlike anything we have ever experienced. Times like these bring out the best in some people and the worst in others. It has forced some to close for good and for others to rethink their reason for staying in this industry. Some have added take-out and delivery. Others...

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The 19 Deadly Mistakes Restaurants Make

Mistakes. We have all made them.

Most likely you’ll make quite a few more while running a restaurant. The thing you want to avoid is these 19 fatal mistakes that 80% of restaurants make each year which contributes to the low survival rate that restaurants experience.

Of all the restaurants...

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You Should Close Your Restaurant culture mindset your restaurant culture sucks

*The following is an excerpt from my new book: Your Restaurant Culture Sucks coming out in September 2021.

"You should close your restaurant."

I can’t believe the words just came out of my mouth. There was a very long silence on the other end of the Zoom call. Enough silence that you knew...

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How To Rewire Your Restaurant Brain For Total Success leadership mindset operations

Creating new habits and rewiring your brain is not easy. If it was, everyone would be living their life to the potential and not have any backslides. Real, life is not like that!

It takes constant and steady pressure to change yourself. That is why the concept of Kaizen is SO IMPORTANT to our new...

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Where Are Your Stuck? The 4 Stages of Restaurant Growth culture growth leadership mastermind

Knowing where you are is just the start.

I'VE BEEN WHERE YOU ARE...

Running a restaurant can be without a doubt, one of the most rewarding things you’ll ever experience in more ways than one. But it is also one of the hardest things you’ll ever do as well!

With a never-ending...

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