I’ve been swamped with design work this year. That has required me to utilize many of the skills I acquired being a waitress for six months after graduating early from high school. For the first three months, I sucked at my waitressing job. The night supervisor Wanda used to get really annoyed with me. I couldn’t seem to wait on more than one table without falling apart, without feeling tremendous pressure. Then she gave me some advice that catapulted me to “best waitress” category: be friendly, listen, constantly circulate through my station of tables, update them on their orders, and never go into the kitchen empty-handed.

When I gave Wanda my notice a month before I left for college she said, “I had decided to fire you! But then you found your waitressing groove.” And groove it was. I sometimes had four gigantic parties of ten sit down within ten minutes of each other, all wanting coffee refill after refill. But I kept them all happy!

I’ve adapted Wanda’s advice to keep myself moving forward with all my design projects. I organize my clients like they’re all seated at imaginary tables. Instead of only focusing on one client and ignoring the others until the first one is done “eating,” I keep moving through the tables making sure everyone has what they ordered, starting with drinks, appetizers, main course, desserts, check. (And I’ve added follow up.) (more…)

I’ve had more than a few folks tell me that they can’t possibly show their “real” personalities to their business clients. They would not be taken seriously unless they presented a watered-down version of themselves.

Do you think that, too?

I wonder where these notions originated. Back at the beginning of work time thousands of years ago? It means you have to juggle several masks – work, play, in-between, and remember which one to put in the morning, which one to put on at night, which one to wear networking.

It’s interesting that we feel that our dull, sterile personalities would come across as a condition to be taken seriously — whatever that means. I wonder if some people believe that because then they don’t have to take the risk to reveal themselves. (more…)