Scene: Mr. Lee's office. Again, slightly cluttered but familiar.

Characters:

• Mr. Lee (Owner): 60s, pragmatic, deeply invested in his family's restaurant chain, battling rising costs, skeptical of new ideas that might impact the bottom line.

• David (Training Manager): 30s, enthusiastic, sees the potential to improve customer service and employee well-being, but understands he needs to convince Mr. Lee with data and empathy.

(David knocks gently on the door. Mr. Lee, hunched over a spreadsheet, grunts a "Come in.")

David: Thanks for seeing me, Mr. Lee. I know you're busy. I wanted to talk to you about something that I think could really help us improve… not just our customer experience, but also our bottom line in the long run.

Mr. Lee: (Sighs, pushes the spreadsheet aside) "Improve our bottom line"? Always with the long run... David, we need to worry about this quarter's bottom line. Food costs are killing us, energy bills are insane, and minimum wage keeps going up. Every new idea seems to cost more money.

David: I understand those pressures, Mr. Lee, and I wouldn't be coming to you if I didn't genuinely believe this would help. It's about how we're managing our staff during peak hours, especially the dinner rush.

(Layer 1: Unclear on the "Why" - What to change? )

Mr. Lee: What's wrong with our staffing? We run a tight ship. I see those kids working hard every night. They're not standing around gossiping, that's for sure.

David: I agree, they are working hard, Mr. Lee, maybe too hard. That's the problem. I've noticed the stress levels are really high, and I'm starting to see the effects ripple through the whole operation.

Mr. Lee: Stress? They're young. A little hard work never hurt anyone. When I started, I was working 18 hours a day!

David: I know, Mr. Lee, and I respect that work ethic. But it’s showing: increased mistakes in orders, longer wait times, and I've had a few servers tell me they're just too rushed to give customers the personal attention they deserve. This effects tips as well. I saw on yelp some people said the food was bland! But can you blame them? It must be hard when the workload is so extreme!

Mr. Lee: (Frowning) Yikes! That's not good. Our reputation is built on quality and service. Those reviews affect us... I see. So what are you saying? Hire more people? We can't afford it!

(Layer 2: Unclear on the Solution - What to change to? )

David: It's about more people, yes, but not necessarily hiring new staff right away. It's about strategically staffing with 20-25% more capacity than we think we need, especially during those peak dinner rushes. Think of it as "protective capacity."

Mr. Lee: "Protective capacity?" Sounds like a fancy term for being overstaffed and wasteful! I need efficient. Wasteful is the opposite.

David: It might sound that way, but it's based on sound principles and evidence. Have you heard about the formula throughput= inventory flow / cycle time. It helps show throughput with numbers what is happening in the restaurant. By following, we can make the best decision.

Mr. Lee: Okay, what is this magic formula? Numbers don't lie. What number can it show? And what about the cost?

David: I know it sounds too good, but let me explain. There is one scientist names Little that discovered the magic formula, and they also have something called queueing theory.

Mr. Lee: This sounds too theoretical, do you know how much work I did for the restaurant? And you can tell me so that I can change it?

David: Mr. Lee, I have no intention to teach you that stuff. But just keep it in mind. In short, imagine we do not add people to the team. Then everyone will be stressed and we cannot have what we need. We need balance to make the profits balance, so it is fair for everyone.

(Layer 3: Lack of Trust - Will this work? )

Mr. Lee: You know what, I am here now. I am walking. How about that?

David: That is a great point. But if there were more people, there would be more opportunities. With you or me not having to worry about the day to day, more ideas to innovate.

David: Mr. Lee, I know what you mean, It might sound too theoretical so how about we do this: We take your daughter who is now working on the website, and we have her write on one side about how the extra space improved. But you write the other side to share with everyone about how hard it is and why we could not.

Mr. Lee: You would not be mad right?

David: No!

Mr. Lee: Fine, But no complaining!

David: Fine too!

(Layer 4: Fear of the Unknown - What if something goes wrong? )

Mr. Lee: Look, I'm worried. What if we have a slow night? What if the economy tanks again? Then I'm stuck with all these extra people, costing me money.

David: I hear you, Mr. Lee. We wouldn't be adding staff blindly. We'd be closely monitoring sales, customer traffic, and labor costs. And there will also be no waste. I am not suggesting for us to be dumb and add team members.

David: We can:

• Take courses

• Team Building

• Learn to market on Instagram!

• Better Food

Mr. Lee: So the money is spent at the end? That is not right.

(Layer 5: Overcoming Obstacles - How do we make this happen? )

David: Not at all. I will teach those other guys on the clock all that I know. I already teach them everything I know. But I can share it with all of you, so everyone can know. That way, not only are we efficient, but we are strong.

Mr. Lee: With this money... so much trouble...

David: We can take it slow. And we start somewhere else so it has less problems. I know you care a lot, but so do I.

Mr. Lee: Well, I guess it depends on you.

(Layer 6: "Egolessness" - Even if successful, how will I personally benefit? )

David: What about you? With more flexibility on the table, what are your thoughts?

Mr. Lee: Well with you guys, I would get to have more rest. I get to relax and not worry about my team. I can leave everything to you guys and relax.

David: Yes!

Mr. Lee: If that happens, that happens.

David: And with your guidance and direction, it is important.

Mr. Lee: Are you trying to butter me up?

David: (Smiles)

Mr. Lee: You, get this done. I'm tired of being a workaholic, but if everything falls down, you are working for free!

David: (Extends hand for handshake) Deal. I'm confident we can make this work, Mr. Lee. And even if we fail the first time, this lesson will help us.

瑞典逝世清掃之雅藝

 

Margareta Magnusson's "The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning"

瑪格麗塔·馬格努森之《瑞典逝世清掃之雅藝》引讀者入「döstädning」之境，乃瑞典之習，化常人所懼之清整，為悅生之程也。

始於早計：

勿待年邁體衰方始清整。宜於精力充沛、思慮明晰之時行之。

• 毋待大病之後，可逐月清整櫥櫃抽屜。
• 若欲遷居小屋，宜提前數載整理舊物，勿至倉促之時。

擇其要者：

著重於具真摯情誼或實用之物。棄其蕪雜。

• 留存祖母手書食譜，捐贈罕用食譜集。
• 保存珍貴家遊照片，捨棄舊時旅遊手冊。

念及親眷：

思慮未清整之遺累。便於其處置遺物。

• 勿令子女翻檢舊時財物，可碎毀或數位化之。
• 明晰標記或整理收藏，如郵票，以便親眷理解賞玩。

設「棄物匣」：

此為存放私物之所，不欲他人見之。以保隱私。

• 置舊日記、私信、或隱秘之物於此匣。
• 此匣之物，意在毀棄，非傳承。

記錄回憶：

若有情誼而無實用之物，可拍照或記其事，而後捨棄。

• 攝舊玩偶之照，記其童年慰藉之事，而後捐之。
• 錄影或錄音，述說飾物之意義，而後贈之。

誠實自省：

知曉某些物品，雖有回憶，已無用處。

• 知曉多年不合之衣，難復合身，可捐之。
• 知曉舊雜誌佔據空間，其資訊多已在網上。

勿懼捨棄：

捨棄舊物，可得解脫。

• 感受清整閣樓地下室之輕鬆。
• 體驗少物之自在。

贈予有緣：

勿盡棄之，可將有意義之物贈予親友。

• 將舊唱片集贈予喜愛黑膠之友。
• 將家傳之物傳予珍視之親眷。

反思人生：

清整遺物，可為反思之時。回顧一生，感念珍貴。

• 整理舊照，回憶往昔。
• 以清整之機，審視價值觀。

樂在其中：

雖似繁瑣，清整遺物，亦可為樂事。

• 整理之時，可播放喜愛之樂。
• 適時休息，以獎勵進度。