I received a degree from UC Berkeley in Social Science and I believe I benefited greatly from a well-rounded, liberal arts course of study. I learned a lot of theories about people and how we behave. I’m sure that I internalized many of those lessons and have applied them in my personal and professional life. However, I believe that the most useful early education I received was while working in the restaurant business as a host, waiter and especially as a bartender.

As a student, I learned a lot about myself, and about people, while working in a busy basement bar on Telegraph Avenue in Berkeley. With live music blaring, cocktail waitresses lined up with armloads of drink orders, friendly and aggressive customers leaning over the bar demanding a drink or conversation, and a hovering manager in the wings, there were lots of lessons learned. In time I found that this practical education outweighed my formal education up the street. I could see ways in which people were similar and different. I learned how important it was to stay organized and focused on what I was doing and what needed to be done next. I learned that it was always important to treat customers like individuals whenever you are dealing with them, however brief. I also learned from observing my co-workers that if you don’t really like people at a core level, working with them is not going to really change things.

It is easy to see that the hospitality business is openly about creating a positive experience for the customer and a positive association for the establishment. Isn’t that what we should be trying to do in most every business, including government service?

As the economy continues to improve there will be increased competition for smart, talented workers who are enthusiastic and positive, can handle stress, can organize their time and workload, can remember details, can work well with co-workers, can communicate clearly and are able to consistently treat customers so that they feel valued. Aren’t these the skills and qualities of a really good food server or bartender? Aren’t these also the skills and qualities you would like many of your employees to have?

Sometimes when we hire we get too conservative in our thinking and approach. We can get caught up in the “similar-to-me” effect and favor candidates that remind us of ourselves. Or we place a rigid emphasis on the completion of a specific degree, and make it a requirement to have actually performed the exact work, etc. Next time you review a resume or actively recruit new talent, particularly at the entry levels, be open and creative in how you consider and evaluate the relevancy of previous experience and transferable skills. Some innate skills and qualities are actually more critical to an employee’s success than the technical skills you can provide them through training. Pay attention and you may discover that you have an excellent candidate serving you lunch today.