I was helping my wife yesterday at one of her client’s weddings (my wife is a wedding planner, and she was short-staffed, so I lent an extra pair of hands to help out). It reminded me that working as a server or helper in the service industry is a valuable experience everyone should have at some point in their life. My job that day was basically running around and assisting the team with setting up decorations and furniture, ensuring everything went according to plan, stayed on schedule, and kept the bride, groom, and attending guests happy. That sounds easy enough, but to do the job well, you also need to pay attention to the little details, identify and solve problems as they arise, apply yourself in unfamiliar situations (being willing to step in, take action, and help without complaining), and empathize with others when they’re emotional. Some guests may be emotional or even irrational; your role at that moment might be to calm them down, provide an explanation, or do something to make them happy. While doing that, you also need to check in on your team and see how they’re doing—not micromanaging, but a reminder to have lunch or take a sip of water can be encouraging and necessary.

The key, again, is to be human and kind, thoughtful and analytical, responsible and reliable. Working as a helper at the wedding yesterday reminded me to be kinder to servers and others in the service industry I interact with every day. I believe people would be kinder and more empathetic toward each other if everyone tried working as a server or helper in the service industry once in a while and truly applied themselves to the role with a genuine desire to help others.