Introduction

This week’s video is more for operators, managers, employees, line level staff, cooks, servers, or bartenders. I want to give you my number one tip for getting the promotion that you want at work. I’ve been getting a lot of questions from people who are either interviewing for jobs, line-level staff that are looking to get into management, or management that’s looking to progress to the next level.

My number one tip

Learn the next position before you apply for it.

I know that sounds simple, but I’m serious. I often get questions from people who say: “I’m interviewing for a GM position and the owner says food costing is really important but I don’t know anything about food costing.” I hate to be blunt, but then don’t interview for the job! When I was a cook I worked in the pantry, which was the lowest level in the kitchen, and I wanted to get moved to saute. So I learned the saute station. I didn’t wait for someone to train me so that way when a saute cook got promoted, moved on, or got fired it was a no-brainer. They just put me right into that position. I learned that position as fast as I could! Then I learned the next position and the next one. Within a year I went from a pantry cook to a sous-chef at a five-star hotel.

I’ve done the same thing throughout my career whether it was in partnerships with other restaurants or now operating my own business. I don’t ask people to buy things for me until I have learned and mastered it. Don’t ask for people to give you a job until you’ve learned and mastered it. If you’re looking for that next job, raise, or promotion and you’re wondering why you haven’t gotten it yet – ask yourself this one question first: “Have you learned and mastered the skills that next job or that next pay is required of you or are you hoping to get the job and then you’ll learn the skill?”

Learn the next position before you even ask for it and then you won’t even need to ask for it, it’ll just be given to you. Does this take work? Absolutely! But if we do the same thing everyone else does, we’re going to get the same results they have gotten. It’s the new year – time to take control of your life! Go out and work for it and get exactly what you want.

Have a wonderful day and I look forward and bringing you another video just like this next week.