It’s a cliché that culture can’t be taught; it has to be caught. And what better way to appreciate the exquisite nature of Daniel’s food than to spend six months ferrying plates from the kitchen to the table? More important, while we were teaching people the technical points a little bit at a time, it would give them the opportunity to fully absorb the culture we were building, long before they became point person with a guest. And how we chose which people to invite onto the team became central to our success.

Not every guest wanted a history lesson during their dinner. Many were charmed and wanted to engage with us. But some people were there to talk to their companions or to eat; they wanted us to drop off their food and leave them alone. I had stripped the team of their authority to read the table and deliver an appropriate level of detail—to tailor the service experience to the guest. In my pursuit of a sense of place, I’d actually made the meal less hospitable.

Worse, it was essentially the same mistake I’d made the year before, when I’d hesitated to promote a general manager. Once again, the guy known for talking about how much he trusted his team had acted as if he didn’t trust them at all.

In truth, I’m not surprised I made this mistake—and I’m almost certain I’ll make it again in the future. My compulsive attention to detail is one of my superpowers; it’s how I take aim at perfection. But that tendency also means I’m always walking a tightrope between my desire to guarantee excellence by controlling everything and knowing I want to create an environment of empowerment and collaboration and trust among the people who work for me. Like excellence and hospitality, these two qualities—control and trust—are not friends.

At Sewell Automotive, the hundred-year-old network of Texas car dealerships famous for its outstanding service, orientation doesn't start with a tour of the office. It starts with story time. New recruits gather around, and a member of the senior team conjures up strange, but true tales of service excellence, narratives that bring Sewell’s culture to life in vivid detail.

a. This anecdote was documented in Joseph Carvin, A Piece of the Pie: The Story of Customer Service at Publix (Nashville, TN: Favorite Recipes ~Press, 2005), a fantastic resource used to clarify the culture for new Publix employees and share the company’s values with the larger business community.

At Sewell Automotive, the hundred-year-old network of Texas car dealerships famous for its outstanding service, orientation doesn't start with a tour of the office. It starts with story time. New recruits gather around, and a member of the senior team conjures up strange, but true tales of service excellence, narratives that bring Sewell’s culture to life in vivid detail.