Server Not Servant

About

Welcome

Thank you for stopping by. I started this site after networking with several people who recommended that I create a platform to launch my first book. The mission of the blog and book is to engage people in a dialogue that will result in more respect for service industry workers and greater civility among human beings. This blog will be the first of several platforms designed to spread the core messages of my book:

• That the customer has almost as much to do with the success of every service interaction as the worker does.
• That the customer, especially the abusive customer, is often dead wrong.
• That we are all responsible for serving each other with mutual respect and civility.

The idea of writing a book has been stirring in me for more than 25 years. I finally got serious about the idea in 2006. There is a lot of organization and work involved in writing a book, but working on this project has been more of a passionate obsession than work.

This blog will serve as a vehicle for ordinary people to to communicate what it’s like to serve customers and to do the work that servers do. There are  things that servers would like to say to their customers but can’t. Here, their voices will be heard without fear of retribution.

I encourage you to read the Introduction and excerpts from the chapters to give you an in-depth perspective on what the book is all about. I’m Your Server Not Your Servant is not just another book about working in the restaurant industry. This book advocates for customer service industry workers in every industry.

The book is not a rant or a personal memoir. The subtitle, A Voice for Service Industry Workers Everywhere, means exactly that, A voice, not The voice. The book and blog chronicle recurring themes from my conversations with thousands of current and former service industry workers, and their responses to my questionnaire. I hope this blog will stimulate even more conversations about the experiences and insights of service workers everywhere.

Please check out the article by Jean Marie Johnson, a writer and Innkeeper. Jean does a wonderful job of capturing the spirit of my mission. Thank you.

Participation

I welcome your participation in the comments section after each blog post. I encourage spirited, lively, debate and discussion, as long as it is civil. Please focus your comments on the content of the posts and the content of the discussions. I despise blogs with heavy-handed moderators, but I will delete or edit inappropriate posts that attack, or excessively praise individuals.  Grammar police, taunts, religious or political rants, racial slurs, bigotry, off-color remarks, or just plain bad behavior will not be allowed. Please keep the conversation on-topic, respectful, thoughtful and civil.  Humor is welcomed and encouraged!!!

Please join my facebook group and feel free to add your photos and join in the discussions with other readers from around the world.

I am still accepting questionnaires for my on-going research. Please click here (questionnaire) to download a copy. Please e-mail the completed questionnaire to patrick@servernotservant.com.

About the Photos

I grew up in Boston, and currently live in the city. Because my home and blog are Boston-based, I decided to include photos of the city and its neighborhoods. My intention is to have three photos of Boston and three Server Snapshots in every blog post. I will change the photos periodically to keep the blog fresh. I am taking all of the photos myself on a Canon PowerShot Digital ELPH. My goal is to include photos from every neighborhood in the city, and service industry workers from all walks of life from around the world.

Thank You

I am grateful to everyone who has completed a questionnaire, joined the facebook group, emailed their stories, and provided feedback and advice on the website and the book. Please keep the comments coming!

Feedback

I welcome your ideas, comments and suggestions. I am especially interested in pursuing more platforms to promote my blog and book. Please forward a link to this blog to everyone you think might be interested. Also, please add this blog to your favorites, and sign up for email updates alerting you to new posts. I look forward to hearing from you.

Thank you very much for visiting and participating.

Sincerely-Patrick Maguire

Email: Patrick@servernotservant.com