How waiting tables can help you be a better parent

Working as a waiter in a restaurant is one of those life skills that you don’t realize is a life skill when you’re doing it.  Similar to some people I worked as a waiter when I was between jobs or attending school.  I didn’t realize it at the time, but those skills that I learned during those many restaurants have improved who I’ve become as a parent.

If you scoffed at any possible skills one could learn while working as a waiter then you’ve obviously never been one.  Working as a waiter can be a soul crushing job.  You may have to work with knuckleheads, you customers could be idiots and you have to do your job fast, all the while being personable and accurate.  If tomorrow I was knighted as king of the world by Leonardo DiCaprio then I’d require everyone to work in a restaurant as a waiter for at least one week.

Listen

To listen is easy, but listening while looking around you and concentrating on something else is more difficult.  Taking the order from the customer who just can’t decide what they want is tough.   However, when you have the end table next to the kitchen, bathroom, bar or stage it can complicate things beyond belief.

Paying attention to your young child and trying to figure out what they want, while keeping an eye on a second wandering toddler is similar to this.   Granted you are talking to one child and assisting them, but they don’t have 100% of your attention.

No empty hands

Never leave the kitchen with empty hands.  There is somebody, somewhere in the restaurant that needs something from the kitchen, take it out-even if it’s not your table.

Our house used to be very clean, even with two dogs and two cats, it was clean.  Insert one roaming child and now even the office, which is supposedly off limits, is in dire need of a cleaning.  You can take this restaurant rule and attribute it to whichever room your family frequents the most.    For us it tends to be the living room, if a toy or book ends up in that room, as it usually does, I try to remove it when I leave.

Unfortunately this restaurant rule does not help you with cleaning the rooms.  It just helps with organizing the stuff into their correct room.

Anticipate trouble

Take any couple at a restaurant and one of them will be more of a hassle than the other.  Put a table top of 6 in your area and you need to prioritize which one of them will be the most problematic.

Go anywhere with your toddler and it’s the same thing.  You know that if you’re in a hurry to avoid the area where the balloons and candy are.  What’s the worst thing that they could do if they walked over there?  Are there any traditionally difficult areas to navigate in the house?  In the environment of a house you simply call it ‘safety’ or trouble shooting.  In a restaurant any server worth their salt will profile all the customers to know who they need to cater towards.

Show up a little early

If your shift is at 5:00, you should show up at 4:50. If you show up at 4:58, somebody else will sign up for the better area, easier tables or request to be let go early.

Showing up early as a parent is more difficult to do, but you’ll reap rewards if you do it.  The odds are that you have someplace else to go after your next errand.  Traffic is a tough, if not impossible thing to gauge, so picking up

 

Waiting tables is an education.  The next time you’re out to eat watch how efficiently they run their section.  The good waiters are worth their weight in gold, so tip them appropriately, especially if you have children.