life - astridwinkler.com

January 27, 2021 No Comments

Etiquette- an elegant word for simple kindness.

I was working for many years in 5 Star hospitality. In beautiful hotels, in different places in Switzerland where people around the world would stay for their vacations. Hospitality is a fascinating world that is half a secret and half a fairytale. But I have also seen the harsh reality of this industry.

If you think about high-class hospitality, what comes to your mind? Hmm..let me guess, you might be thinking about “11 point Gaul Millau” meals served on a beautiful table with a fresh white tablecloth, expensive dishes, and silver cutlery, a fantastic outside area including a pool filled with blue water and green palm tree lines, luxurious bedrooms with a breathtaking view and wonderfully arranged flower bouquets and amazing chandelier hanging from the ceiling. I am curious to know what comes into your mind, dear reader?

Is it not a lovely place that you have just entered? I want you to ponder upon that very experience. What do you think does it take to bring about such a lavish experience to reality? Well, let me take you deeper into that world. This high rated meals you thought about are prepared by amazing chefs with fresh high great products like vegetables or fruits especially chosen and the fresh-baked bread which gets prepared for these great buffets. The beautifully set table you are going to sit on gets prepared before, every knife, spoon, or even glass is carefully polished beforehand. The pool area needs special treatment because the water needs to be checked 4 times a day so it is always ready for a refreshing swim. Special care is taken of your beautiful bedroom to keep it clean and fresh at all times, so you can feel at home out of your home. They actually can’t take any responsibility for the view or the weather but be assured, if they could, they would do that too.

Memories of my days in hospitality are still fresh in my mind and I remember how passionate I was. As you also might have experienced, neither every job you start with will fit you, nor will you fit in every job. Or you might just grow out of it. I simply grew out of it too but still, I love getting lost in memories from those times. And for me, those jobs were my most important life lessons which I would never want to miss.

Starting a new job in each of these splendor hotels means, you have to learn their own language, etiquette and adapt yourself to the standards and culture they live in. And all these things may vary from hotel to hotel. So basically, as long as you are in hospitality and changing jobs, you are always required to learn.

To fully enjoy this royal hospitality as a guest, it is also important to be aware of the manners and follow certain etiquette. The etiquettes are heritage which we should honor especially in times where the change is faster than ever before.

As an insider, I would love to share some tips for you as a guest.

Maybe it will help you the next time when traveling or staying in a hotel is as easy as it was again. (And to the fellows who can’t wait for it, you are not alone! But we must be patient. The time will come and we will share all these great adventures again. In the meantime, travel within yourself and see what you can create and learn during this time too.)

It may sound like a matter of course, but let me please tell you, it IS not! And most of the time, people working in hospitality make embarrassing experiences with their guests. If you don’t want to be that guest, please read on!

Please be patient if you have to wait. You might be a VIP but for the hotel, every guest is a VIP and gets treated equally.

Mistakes can happen and the hotel staff tries to avoid them as best as possible. Complaints can be delivered courteously and they will do their best to solve your problem. Remember, shouting at the staff says a lot more about you than them.

The staff would appreciate you a lot if you treat them with humanity. Just because you are staying with the hotel doesn’t mean it belongs to you. Also, saying “please” and “thank you” would not hurt. They serve your meal with a genuine smile on their faces but they are not your servant. Please remember the better you treat someone the more you get in return. If you are nice to them, on your pillow you might find a bar of extra chocolate.

Most of the hotels go green and encourage you to reuse towels or will not change bed linens during your stay under one week unless you request. They take this very seriously. In most of the hotels, you will find a “Greencard” which you can place on your bed admitting you agree that the sheets and towels won’t be changed. This card might also get appreciated since the hotel will gift you some sweets or a small surprise for using it. So it is definitely worth the try. Here one pro-tip, most likely if you leave the towels on the ground, the housekeepers will change them anyway for you.

Take only memories – and the complementary travel-size toiletry with you. Please leave the robes, towels, blankets, hairdryers, hangers, ceramic coffee mugs, water cooker, and any other reusable items behind. It’s not worth it, since they already know everything about you, we will probably send you a bill or charge it on your credit card. And please bear in mind, the robe you are stealing is already used and washed over 100 times before you. Invest that precious money in a new one. Also never forget, They do not forget. If you are stealing, they will write it down on your guest card. Whenever you book a room with them again, They know what you did. 😉

I hope you enjoyed reading. Stay tuned for the next part with more exciting insider tips.

On the 32nd Road of Life.

January 13, 2021 No Comments

And I assure you, the roads after 30 don’t end up in the dark tunnel, the way we feared it in our sweet twenties.

Looking back at myself from my twenties, I remember that thinking about becoming thirty felt like the end of the world and the very end of life. I thought nothing more would be coming after that and everything should have been achieved by then.

We are generally influenced by all the mid-twenty year’s old rotten stories, 30-under30 list, all the achievements of others like getting married to the perfect match and starting their own family. The fear of missing out made it hard to breathe, didn’t it? But we need to understand that, their goal does not have to be ours. Their timing does not have to match with ours and that’s totally okay. We need to be kind to ourselves. Moreover, the tenth page of your life could already be the first page of someone else. Some of us are more privileged than others therefore this whole idea of comparing yourself with others does not really help.

And just because you don’t have what everybody has at the same age, it doesn’t make you less accomplished. It only means you are born to do extraordinary things and fulfil some other purpose.

I can happily say that turning 30 has been a true blessing. I am more at ease with myself, I found my purpose, my focus and I learned that “life at 30” has been entirely different than how I imagined it to be when I was 20 years old. To me, this realization has been eye-opening. Never was I able to take myself so seriously before.

And honestly, for me, taking a hot bubble bath instead of wearing uncomfortable high heels on a Saturday night is way more satisfying.

Tell you what? In order to grow steady, you must first kill the pest that shunts your growth. And therefore growing might feel like breaking at first. Don’t give up.

Stop worrying about yesterday. It is already gone, the decisions are made and there is no way you can undo things. What about tomorrow? Well, you don’t know what might come. We can’t know the future. All we have for certain in our hands is present. The time of now. Today is all you have got. Today is where you can change things. Today is where you can choose to make a difference. Today you can smile at someone to make their day better. Today you can be kind and today is all you have in your hands. This is the moment where you are able to have all or nothing. Yes or No. Good or Bad. Happy or sad. It is your choice. What or whom you let win over yourself, now you get to decide.

I am not standing at the farther end of life already and I too am like many of you, still a traveller of life. But based on whatever I learned about life so far, I would say, take that step now that you are always thinking about but never had the courage to do so. Well, honestly! What could happen in the worst case? Your life won’t end there, right? Then go for it, please!

In the worst case, you will fall. But even if you fall and things didn’t work out you will still learn something. Only because you have one way in front of you it does not need to be the right one. Life sometimes takes us to different destinations. Way far away from what we expected. And you know what? That’s beautifully perfect.

Please, stop finding excuses for not wearing that amazing red dress. If you love it, then wear it.

If you fear you are growing old, then let me tell you, growing older is a privilege. And we should treat every wrinkle like a treasure. You are perfect the way you are. Start complimenting yourself and others because what else can make someone happier than receiving a sincere compliment?

Get up and live life! Create an identity for yourself beyond your job role. You are not what you do professionally. It does not have to be that way, always.

We have got one life. Let’s please not spend it only trying to fit in, doing things only for validation and acceptance. We can do better than that by finding and living our own purpose.

And if you are still not convinced, let me stop with a small story. When I travelled through Cuba in 2019, a wise old lady told me; “Darling, always count your age by the numbers of memories, not by the numbers of years.” That has stuck with me and it always brings a smile on my face whenever I ponder upon my journey of life.

So forget about your age, forget about every number you believe defines you and live your life to the fullest.

You can.

You will.

End of story.

Go, make it happen while I make mine happen.

And oh, here is to my 32nd birthday. Cheers!

Lots of Love,

Astrid

An insider’s story.

Etiquette- an elegant word for simple kindness.

On the 32nd Road of Life.