When I’m at a restaurant with cloth napkins, I do NOT want to see the kitchen.
I want to idealize the chef’s appearance, the kitchen’s cleanliness, and the waitstaff’s calm demeanor. Reality falls short of my idealized expectations.
At McDonald’s, I expect less. I like glancing at the food preparations because it alleviates my fears.
Does this apply in the workplace? Yes.
When providing high-end services/products, clients do not want to see the “grind.”
They don’t want to see the bags under your eyes.
They don’t want to read the emails you sent at 2am or Sunday.
They don’t want to hear about the difficulties encountered.
They want the finished product with an idealized version of how it was created.
For cheaper products/services, the opposite is true.
Application to organizational seniority.
Evidence of the grind is expected from “newbies” – puffy eyes, crinkled suit and disheveled tie.
In positions of leadership, the opposite is true.
Who wants to see their leader struggle, scrape, claw, and swim with one nostril above water?
Spoken words belie the underbelly of emotion. Therefore, I do not expect restaurant patrons, customers, or leaders to substantiate this theory.
That doesn’t make it false.
