White Towel Test

D.O. David Ottman. He was one of my first bosses. I can still picture him standing in the
doorway to the front counter, leaning against the doorframe with a clipboard in hand. He was
meticulous. At least by 17 year old standards.

His expectations were very clear. From the time you arrived till the time you clocked out. The
image of a white towel is what always comes to mind when I think of D.O.

At closing time, we each had our areas just like today. At the end of the night, we had to have
D.O. inspect our area before clocking out.

I had dining room one particular night, which included bathrooms. David’s rule was that if he
could wipe a white towel over an area and see anything, you had to do the entire area all over
again. You probably can guess where this is going. I had to do both bathrooms over again that
evening. Thankfully, he didn’t make me redo the dining room as well. I have no memory of
what wasn’t right BUT I can tell you I never had to redo my area again. I learned my lesson.
One that Truett used for the title of his first book. It’s Easier to Succeed Than to Fail.
It’s easier to do it right the first time.

For leaders, this is also a good lesson on setting expectations. Do you think he wanted to stay
later that night while I cleaned the bathrooms again? I doubt it. But, he was wise. He knew
that was time well spent and an investment in future nights.

Do you have a “white towel test?” Are you investing in future excellence?