Pizza Today - November 2023 - 12

Mike's Monthly Tip
The Ego Dilemma
Mike Bausch
Owner, Andolini's Pizzeria
O
ver the last 20 years
I've been in this game,
I have met and seen
several restaurants close forever
because of an owner who had
to do it all. Th ey wanted to
keep it personal and be a part
of every decision and task.
Th ese owners were incapable
of trusting. Never able to train,
and as a result, could never correctly
delegate any task. Th ey
would assume everyone else
didn't have their best interests
at heart or couldn't be taught,
and they would work themselves
into a tizzy. I'm all for
keeping it blue-collar, knowing
your craft, making food on
the line, and chopping it up
with customers. But because I
can, not because I'm the only
resource.
A restaurant owner I've
known since I started in 2004
owned a rib restaurant, and
he would be the one going to
Sam's Club even into his 70s.
While in the store, he picked
up the trash instead of having a
protocol to clean up each shift.
I saw him push aside a server
off the counter to say, " I'll do
it. You're not doing it right. "
He was a dedicated owner who
just did everything backward.
He's a nice person but not a
great leader. He eventually got
very sick and had to close. He
was the keystone; without him,
nothing could run. Th is is how
he designed it, even if he didn't
knowingly realize that.
Another restaurant had an
insane level of sales, but because
the owner wanted to be the
only one making the tacos, they
decided to close on Sundays so
he could have a day off , then
close forever when he got sick
unexpectedly. Th is decision was
at the peril of the rest of this
family, who were eager and
willing to make the food, but he
wouldn't have it. Th ey eventually
closed for good, to the
stunned surprise of everyone in
town who loved them.
Th e need to be needed is an
emotional weakness. Sure, these
guys can play it off like they're
passionate about their craft, and
there's even a marketing angle
to that, but it's a dead-end path.
12 / PIZZATODAY.COM / NOVEMBER 2023
Doing every single task and
not letting go is an EGO play. I
repeat, It's ego. It's an egotistical
move. It's the belief that no
one on earth could do what you
do. As much as passion plays a
role in this job, it is not sustainable.
And if you don't want
something sustainable, if you
want to make the food yourself
and have that be your thing till
the day you die, that be it, so be
it. But if you have other lives
that depend on this job besides
your own, then you should
spread the wealth and even
focus on the things you dig that
you love. Let's say it is making
the pizza yourself. Great, but
that doesn't mean you have to
be the one who goes to pick up
every single drop and handle
every single nuance.
You'll never grow that way,
and growth is scary. Growth
means doing something not in
your wheelhouse. Most young
people are fi lled with vim and
vigor to take on the world, but
they need to do it themselves
for an extended period to
understand the task. Eventually,
they get it. People who get
set in their ways DO NOT
ALLOW those kids to develop;
they only hurt themself. Th ey
feel so comfortable in that role
that they can't imagine anyone
else doing it, and it's at the peril
of themselves and those around
them. Take this as a warning
to your ego: your employees,
both current and future, won't
be perfect. Still, perfection only
happens through repetition.
Allowing others to win with
you is the only way to win
yourself.
@mikeybausch
http://www.PIZZATODAY.COM
Pizza Today - November 2023

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