Our Top Takeaways and Quotes From “Unreasonable Hospitality” by Will Guidara

November 18, 2024 | By Amber Van Schooneveld 

In August 2024, we had the great privilege of having Will Guidara, author of “Unreasonable Hospitality” share at the Global Leadership Summit. Will is the former co-owner of the Manhattan restaurant Eleven Madison Park, which under his leadership received four stars from the New York Times, three Michelin stars and in 2017 was named #1 on the list of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants. 

Will is a champion of hospitality, but not just any kind of hospitality: unreasonable hospitality. The best restaurants in the world are unreasonable about the food they serve. Will believes leaders in the restaurant industry — and in all industries — need to become unreasonable about the lengths they’ll go to in order to make people feel seen and valued. Because true human connection between companies and customers (and between companies and employees) is what separates the great from the good.  

Here are some of our top takeaways and favorite quotes from Will’s book, “Unreasonable Hospitality,” on how he led his restaurant to be named number one in the world.   

“No one who ever changed the game did so by being reasonable.”  

When you look across every discipline, those who make a true change are unreasonable because, as Will puts it, “you need to be unreasonable to see a world that doesn’t yet exist.” Will saw the possibility of not just serving the best food but of transforming his staff into “dream weavers,” fulfilling the culinary dreams, large and small, of their guests to make them feel seen and valued.  

In what ways could you be unreasonable about how you make others feel?  

“We have an opportunity—a responsibility—to make magic in a world that desperately needs more of it.”  

No matter what industry you are in, whether you are in the service or finance, you can offer those around you moments of joy, relief and consolation.  

What’s an area where you could bring a little magic — or joy or comfort — to your work, to your teammates or to your customers?  

“Mange 95 percent of your business down to the penny; spend the last 5 percent ‘foolishly.’” 

What Will calls the “Rule of 95/5,” he was relentless in managing his budget down to every penny. That allowed him to invest 5% in lavish surprises, which often had an outsize impact on people’s experience.  

Is there one small area — the 5% — where a small change could have an outsize impact?  

“The way you do one thing is the way you do everything.”  

Intentionality and excellence should permeate even the smallest gestures. If you can’t execute with excellence, you might need to slow down and do less. As Will says later in the book, “Excellence is the culmination of thousands of details executed perfectly.”   

Are there areas where your excellence is drooping? Do you need to “slow down to speed up”?   

“You need to be as unreasonable in how you build your team as you are in how you build your product or experience.”  

Will encourages you to “hire slow.” Although it’s awful to be shorthanded, hiring the wrong person quickly is much more painful in the long run. Take the time to hire enthusiastic people who care.  

In your hiring, are you focused on just getting someone “in the seat,” or are you unreasonable in the culture you are building with each hire?  

“Tap into their passions—then give them the keys.”  

Will’s team at Eleven Madison Park learned each of their employees’ passions and empowered them to make something great through their “ownership programs.” Those passionate about coffee, beer, tea or cocktails were given the freedom and budget to create the finest programs in the country. It gave opportunities to motivated, creative people who hadn’t yet been promoted.  

How can you better tap into your teammates’ passions and empower them?  

“The first time someone comes to you with an idea, listen closely, because how you handle it will dictate how they choose to contribute in the future.”  

Encourage your team to contribute, and if someone approaches you with an idea, even if you’ve heard it or tried it before, listen carefully and engage with them. The person should leave both encouraged and educated.  

Do your teammates know that they can come to you with an idea and will be listened to and respected?    

“Identify moments that recur in your business, and build a tool kit your team can deploy without too much effort.”  

Will made the work of his “dream weavers” scalable by systemizing unreasonable hospitality. As he says, Will “The value of a gift isn’t about what went into giving it, but how the person receiving it feels.” 

Is there an area where you can anticipate and plan for moments of magic and unreasonable hospitality in your work or leadership?  

“Hospitality is a selfish pleasure.”  

Being unreasonably hospitable might sound overwhelming. But Will’s secret is that “it feels great to make other people feel good.”  

When was the last time you felt the infectious joy of making others feel good?