Work ethic and having a good attitude go hand in hand. As many of us know, COVID has changed the customer experience in a variety of industries. Two more personal examples that happened to me recently were when I went to a sporting goods store and a restaurant. As I walked up to the counter of the sporting goods store, a mouth breathing employee just stared at me as if waiting for something to interrupt his moment of contemplation. I looked him over and waited, but he just stood there as if I was some sort of foreign entity that did not hit his radar. Finally, I said “Hello, can I help you?” This seemed to jar him out of his slumber, but I still had to guide the entire transactional experience. When I left the store, I just shook my head blaming the experience on poor management, poor training, and even poor parenting. Whatever the case, I left the establishment disillusioned. 
 
The second was more recent, it happened while at a restaurant where we had arrived fifteen minutes prior to them serving food. As the waiter continued to walk by without saying a word, we finally spoke up and asked if we could have some service. He rather abruptly reminded us of how they don’t serve food until the designated time which was in fifteen minutes. So, we asked if we could at least have something to drink. He looked at us rather perturbed and said he had his hands full as he looked down at the items he was carrying. As he walked off, we couldn’t help but think what was that all about? He walked by one more time and we asked him about the drinks, and he said his shift was over. Of course, it just was one excuse after another. Unfortunately, some people spend more time getting out of work than they would if they just did their job. In both incidents, poor work ethic equated to missed opportunities on all fronts, from employee ascension to repeat business. 
 
Renowned chef and TV personality Alton Brown once said that "Good service can save a meal, but there is no level of food that can save bad service.” I couldn’t agree more. Sadly, we are seeing more and more of this type of phenomenon play out post COVID than ever before. So, why is that? Inflation? Cost of goods? Lack of interest? Government handouts? Who knows... but there is so much more to taking pride in your work and working hard than just earning a paycheck. Ex-basketball great of the San Antonio Spurs, David Robinson summed-up the importance of work ethic nicely when he said, “Great work ethic and attitude validate me. It’s important to have good numbers and be well respected as a player, but more important to be respected as a man.” Robinson’s message is one of self-respect and is at the heart of having a strong work ethic.