“There’s one vital ingredient no business can do without and that’s confidence.” – Dame Karen Jones
Dame Karen Jones, who co-founded Café Rouge, is the ex-chief executive of the Spirit pub group, current non-executive director at Mowgli and chair of Hawksmoor, shared in The Times that there’s one vital ingredient no business can do without and that’s confidence – she said it is; “the intangible quality that allows you to contemplate success in the first place – and then do something about it”.
Dame Karen Jones went on to explain that she is talking about “the quiet, comfortable-in-your-own skin knowledge that you can achieve things alongside the determination to have a go.”
She ponders; “Where does it come from? Where did I get the confidence to make the winning, multibillion-pound bid for a large pub group from a car phone (remember those?) sitting in a pub car park in Birmingham? Or the belief to move from a sought-after post-graduation job as an account planner in an advertising agency, to an entirely undefined role running restaurants? One answer lies in cheerleaders – those people who stand on the sidelines of your life and tell you that you can do it, who cheer on your endeavours and whose belief never wavers.”
She goes on to say that hers was her mother; “She never questioned my choices and she was steadfast in her belief that every problem has a solution.”
I have to agree with what Dame Karen Jones is saying, I truly believe that a lot of our confidence stems from our cheerleader’s support.
We all need a little help along the journey. So, having others in our corner, or on the sidelines, helps us to achieve that quiet and comfortable-in-your-own skin confidence, and in turn this helps us to progress and achieve in business (and also in life).
I am a huge family man and my family have helped and encouraged me so much on this rollercoaster journey. I met my wife through working in the hospitality profession and we’ve been married 21 years. She is one of my biggest cheerleaders, encouraging me to keep going during the tough times and aim higher during the good times – Nic’s belief in me has never wavered – and, for that I am eternally grateful.
When I was starting out in my hospitality career path, I was never afraid to ask questions, or to be bold… and this is what stood out to my first UK GM, Mark Fuller, he was a great cheerleader, he believed in me and wasn’t put off by my questioning, he saw potential and put me on an in-house management program. He genuinely saw I was keen to please the customer and work with my team mates in a positive and fun manner.
I had two other GM’s in my career, Carole Smith and Fiona Lockyer – both individuals pushed me out of my comfort zone and encouraged me. These cheerleaders/mentors, have been priceless in respects to their effect on me.
We all need to find like-minded people who are with us on our mission. Particularly as leaders, as it can sometimes be lonely at the top, and therefore it’s important to know who our tribe is and who our cheerleaders are. Know who you can go to for; advice, help, a shoulder to cry on, a coffee…
To connect with other like-minded hospitality leaders, I encourage you to join our free online community hub on Facebook – you never know, you may find some new cheerleaders in this group you can add to your tribe: https://www.facebook.com/groups/thehospitalityheroeshub
On the flipside, Dame Karen Jones then goes on to explain that her son’s take on what builds confidence was ‘an empathetic boss who both stretches and supports you’. As leaders, it’s important that we think about how can we cheerlead; others, the next generation and also our teams. How do we invest in our teams? How do we spot talent? How do we carefully consider what we ask of our people? And, how we do it?…