Working in the hospitality industry is not easy. Work is physically exhausting, and employees focus solely on putting guest’s needs first, helping them get what they need while providing an exceptional experience. That constant focus on a patrons’ needs can be mentally challenging and fatiguing, which may put hospitality employees at risk of burnout.
Beginning each day confidently and correctly is a vital key to being a successful worker in the hospitality industry. The first hour after you wake up will set the tone for the hours that follow. A good day at work doesn’t happen through luck — it happens through focus, hard work, routine, and dedication.
As a hospitality professional, you can elevate your daily life and optimize yourself by incorporating the habits of successful people into your daily life. Instilling these habits will also help you transform your weaknesses into strengths, become a better leader and expand your hospitality skill set.
1. Get Enough Sleep Before Waking Up
It has been shown time and again that successful people always make sure they get enough sleep — however, studies have found that the average person isn’t getting enough sleep to recharge themselves for a new day.
The National Sleep Foundation recommends the average adult get 7-9 hours of sleep. Ensuring that you’re going to bed early enough to achieve that number will set you up for success the following day.
For workers in the hospitality industry, regular sleep patterns provide physical relief and allow individuals to better handle the stress of the workday– from long lines in the lobby to unprecedented guest situations and requests. Making sure you are equipped with a well-rested mind to handle these situations will not only help you perform better at work, but also help you to provide the best possible experience for your guests.
2. Wake Up Naturally, Without An Alarm Clock
If possible, begin your day by waking up naturally without an alarm clock. Doing so allows your body to reach optimal charging, and you’re able to enter consciousness in a fluid, natural manner — without running the risk of interrupting sleep patterns.
Moreover, by allowing your body to naturally go through its sleep patterns until completion, you avoid the possibility of something known as “social jet lag,” which happens when our circadian rhythms — the natural human sleep patterns determined primarily by the body’s reaction to natural light — get knocked out of sync. This happens with inconsistent sleep patterns, such as staying up significantly later on the weekends versus the weekdays.
It is similar to any other routine such as diet and exercise. Without consistency, your body gets confused and doesn’t operate as nearly as effectively as it could. This affects physical and mental behavior, slowing down the ability to react quickly and intelligently to situations. In the hospitality world, important decisions are made in microseconds. Properly prepare yourself by getting enough rest and allowing your body to work naturally and most efficiently.
3. If You Must Use an Alarm Clock, Ignore the Snooze
Believe it or not, the snooze button is not your friend. Even though getting those extra nine minutes might feel good at the moment, you’re causing more harm to your body than good. By hitting snooze, you’re causing fragmented sleep that’s not only worthless but actively causing harm to your body – making you more tired for the rest of your day.
Even if you haven’t achieved the number of hours your body needs for sleep, the sleep you gain from the snooze button doesn’t actually make you more rested. In doing so, you are interrupting your sleep cycles and ultimately hurting the rest of your bodily functions (such as metabolism) and energy levels. This can hinder your professional performance throughout the work day.
From a psychological perspective, getting up without hitting the snooze is a way to hit an achievable goal. Push yourself to rise when you’ve decided to rise, and let this action act as the catalyst for momentum for the rest of your day.
4. Set Aside Time to Exercise in the Morning
Regular exercise is a simple way to transform the way you think, feel, and process information. Beyond the physical benefits — of which there are countless — setting aside a few minutes for yoga, a jog, a bike ride, weight lifting, or even just a long walk will help your brain work more efficiently and effectively. Exercise feeds the brain by pumping blood to it, improving brain function while helping to reduce stress and anxiety by letting your body release energy.
5. Eat a Balanced Breakfast as Part of a Holistic Diet
There’s a reason people say that you are what you eat. The quality of food that enters your body plays a major role in how your mind and body function. Think of it as similar to the oil you put in a car. High-quality oil helps a vehicle run efficiently and last longer. By using low-quality oil, you may save money now — but at what cost later?
Start your day off by giving the body what it needs. Provide it with whole foods rich in vitamins and nutrients —these types of foods nourish the brain, helping you mentally function at the highest level. Meanwhile, low-quality breakfast foods such as muffins or pastries are high in sugar and low in everything else.
In a high-stress hospitality job, you’re setting yourself up for failure when you do not provide your body with proper fuel. Without proper energy, finding solutions to tough situations gets even tougher. Don’t put yourself in a nutrient hole in the morning by feeding your body with low-quality sustenance.
6. Enjoying and Taking Advantage of the Morning Quiet
Daily habits of highly successful people aren’t just physical decisions like exercise, diet, or sleep routines. How you choose to spend your time can be very rewarding.
An easy way to do this is by setting aside time in the morning for yourself to think, meditate, and look forward. If you wake up at the last second, hop in the shower, fly out the door, and slam yourself into your work day, what time have you given to yourself?
The morning offers an opportunity for rebirth and refreshment. Give yourself the gift of time to engage in the world. Morning quiet can be a time for reflection and planning, ensuring that you are doing everything you can to be the best you can be.
7. Practicing Gratitude for Family and Loved Ones
Successful people understand where they are in the world. They know where they came from — and where they’re trying to go. By taking time in the morning to practice gratitude for the loved ones in your life you’re helping to ground yourself in what is most important to you.
While this concept is seemingly common sense, the benefits of practicing gratitude are supported by science. Researchers at Harvard found that after 10 weeks, subjects that wrote about gratitude were more optimistic and felt better about their lives then subjects who didn’t. A study at Berkeley determined similar results — concluding gratitude unshackles us from toxic emotions and leaves lasting effects on our brain. Ultimately, incorporating this technique into your morning routine can help you mentally prepare for a successful day of work.
Staying Committing to a Routine Is the Foundation to Becoming a Highly Successful Person
There are countless articles and books full of daily habits of successful people (including this one), but the most important thing to finding success in the hospitality industry — or, really, any industry — is committing to routine.
They say that forming a habit can take anywhere from 18 to 254 days. That’s a wide range with a lot of variables that you can’t control. But a variable that you truly can control is your own determination. This doesn’t mean it’s as simple as just pulling up your bootstraps and pushing through any obstacle, but successful people are very good at holding themselves accountable.
How often are you pushing that snooze button? What is your diet truly like? Are you giving yourself time to exercise? Constantly evaluate yourself against your goals, and push yourself to become the most successful person possible.
Want to discover more ways to expand yourself professionally? Explore Blueprint RF’s full blog for additional tips.
