Beyond The Lobby – Edition 15

^{BIG IDEA FOR THE WEEK}
Understand First, React Later

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I’ve only recently learnt that there’s a superpower in not needing to agree.

Not everything needs your endorsement.
Not every interaction demands an emotional response.

A guest might leave a baffling review, a team member might lash out on a stressful day, and a supplier might make a decision that sets you back.

It’s tempting to react. To judge. To take it personally.

But that’s not your job. Your job is to understand.

Understanding doesn’t mean approval. It means observation without assumption. It means curiosity over conclusion.

Why did they say that? What pressures are they under? What blind spots might I have missed?

It’s mastering the art of “not making things worse.”

When you understand without needing to react, you become calm when others aren’t. You make decisions when others are emotional. You play long-term when others get caught up in the moment.

Hospitality is full of difficult moments.

There will always be that guest who complains at 11:59pm, the last-minute change that derails a wedding booking and that staff member who suddenly quits on a fully booked weekend.

You don’t have to like it. But you do have to lead through it.

Understanding buys you the space between stimulus and response. And in that space, you have a shot at winning.

The next time something unexpected or unreasonable shows up – pause.

Choose understanding before reaction. It’s one of the most underrated habits of exceptional operators.

^{OPERATIONAL INSIGHT}
Culture Of Second Looks

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A GM once told me about his housekeeping supervisor who always stayed back after her shift.

Without overtime. Without being asked to.

Every evening, she’d walk back into a few random rooms that were cleaned and just… look.

He finally asked her: "Why do you do this?"

She said, “To find that one thing my team might have missed, but the guests will easily notice. Sometimes, it's a faint stain on the curtain, other times it’s a dusty light switch – you know, small things that are easy to overlook when you are going through the checklist. But they break the illusion for fresh eyes and guests spot them."

That stuck with the GM. Because she wasn’t inspecting to catch people. She was protecting the guests's sentiment around their brand.

With that, he turned it into a habit for the whole team.

Every department got a version of it.

A final sweep – not for the obvious, but for the invisible stuff. The things that slip through process.

No new SOPs. No extra cost.

Just a culture of second looks.

^{NOTEWORTHY NUMBER}
5 Minutes

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According to a study by Cornell’s Centre for Hospitality Research, guest satisfaction drops by nearly half if check-in takes more than five minutes.

Source: Stayntouch / Cornell Hospitality Report

You might think guests are impatient, but it’s more about psychology.

After a long journey, guests aren’t just tired, they’re in a vulnerable state. And the first thing you show them isn’t their room. It’s your process.

A long line at check-in tells them they’re not being prioritised. That your system matters more than their experience.

A fast, frictionless check-in? That says, "We were expecting you."

The first five minutes are more about trust, less about efficiency.

And trust, once broken, doesn’t bounce back with a room upgrade.

^{WHAT I FOUND INTERESTING}
Why Fancy Doesn’t Always Mean Famous

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Despite charging thousands per night, most luxury hotels don’t show up on the “best brand” lists.

The reason? They’re too exclusive to be memorable at scale.

Skift put it perfectly: “Luxury hotel brands are built for the few, not the many.”

Most people haven’t stayed at an Aman or a Six Senses. Many haven’t even walked into one. These brands are invisible by design. You know, discreet, private, and rare. That exclusivity may be good for revenue, but it’s terrible for brand familiarity.

Meanwhile, brands like Hilton and Marriott? They’re everywhere. You don’t need to have stayed at one to know what it’s like. Their consistency is their calling card.

There’s a lesson here: You don’t have to be ultra-luxury to be unforgettable.

Sometimes, it’s the brand that shows up more often. Not the one that shows up flashiest that wins the long game.

^{SHOWER THOUGHT}
💡 A different version of you exists in the minds of everyone who knows you.

^{SPONSORED BY HAVEN}
How I Contribute To The Hospitality Industry.

↓↓↓

If you don’t know about me –

I come from a strong tech background – built resilient software for banking, automotive and QSR sectors.

But I finally found true love in hospitality. It’s so full of life and it’s where caring for others is the breadwinner.

However, as a traveller I have gone through a fair share of displeasures and what’s unfortunate is that even the worst experiences had sincere people putting in their best.

But with a lack of data and systems, the staff is usually just overwhelmed.

That’s why my team and I are building Haven. To help hoteliers and hospitality professionals get ahead of guest frustrations and avoid the most basic pitfalls that destroy guest experience.

Hotels that use Haven –

1. Catch service delays before guests complain.
2. Upsell without being pushy.
3. Fix guest issues before they check out.

If you are curious to learn how Haven can help – simply respond to this email and I’d be happy to tell you more over a call.