PASSION VS EXPERIENCE

 Dare to look beyond experience when interviewing potential employees

A manager is asked to hire only the best which typically revolves around experience, appearance and manners for the given position. I understand how important experience can be especially if there’s little time spent on training.
It’s equally important to hire someone who has compassion and a passion for something, anything.

If a potential employee mentions they have a love for collecting rocks and they own two million of them they may be someone you need on the team. There are specific abilities and traits that are needed for this passion. Paying attention to detail and patience in collecting only the best rocks are abilities that not everyone has or cares to have.
Detail would be essential for doing inventory, charging the proper guest the accurate amount on their check or making sure hot food goes out hot.
Patience is key when working with the public, employees and multiple personalities.

Additional skills that can be beneficial from having a passion is learning, growing and keeping an open mind to thinking outside the box.
It’s healthy (both mentally and physically) to have a project/hobby that can be explored outside of work unlocking unlimited creativity.
The best kind of sideline is one that takes us away from daily routines, keeps us present, costs little to nothing to accomplish and creates a satisfying smile.
And let’s face it we all need a special place to go to release life’s stress.
There’s nothing like breathing in fresh air walking the beach, strolling through the woods listening to all nature’s creatures or the smell of a cool night’s flickering campfire.
All our senses deserve to escape daily repetition and indulge into whatever our hearts desire.
We just need give ourselves permission.

Let’s compare an experienced server with a server who also possesses compassion. The experienced server waits for everyone to sit down before taking a beverage order.
The compassionate server takes a couple of minutes to assist the people getting seated before taking the beverage order. The guests immediately develop an impression that they are in good capable hands with their second server.
I should also mention that if the compassionate server should make any errors
while waiting on those guests, chances are those mistakes will be forgiven and forgotten.
People will always remember how someone makes them feel, not so much how they perform.

I’ll never forget the time I was interviewing a gentleman for a server position who had zero experience and I was supposed to hire experience only.
He had everything else ​in his favor that can’t be taught, sincere smile, animated, energetic, grateful for my time.
I finally had to ask him why he’d interview for a position he had no knowledge of.
He told me that he had a strong desire to try something different in his life.
I hired him on the spot; he had me at strong desire.
He turned out to be an awesome employee and I learned to listen outside my brain when interviewing.