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We take apart the holiday myth of “silent night” and show how sold-out rooms, strained kitchens, and flickering lights reveal the real work and real heart of hospitality. Through absurd guest requests and staffing puzzles, we find the meaning that keeps teams going.

• the gap between holiday calm and operational chaos
• department-by-department December pressure points
• handling high and unusual guest expectations with grace
• staffing as a seasonal miracle and culture test
• small acts of care that define true hospitality
• why memories and meaning outlast the decorations

Subscribe, share, and remember, housekeeping may not have come, but Santa always does

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Got podcast love, a plot twist, or a lost-and-found tale? Send fan mail here. Bonus points for wit.

The finish line is a lie, especially when you teach hospitality. Grades are due, coffee runs dry, and the inbox lights up with pleas, confessions, and the occasional miracle. We open the door on what finals week really feels like for a hospitality instructor who refuses to teach only from a podium. From a casino floor to a hotel balcony on Bourbon Street to the back of a festival tent, the work stays alive in the field—and that’s where the lessons stick.

We talk candidly about the sprint of assessment, the emotional weight of student stories, and the standards that keep the craft honest. You’ll hear why late-night grading sometimes blurs into accidental Uber-receipt audits, how we balance compassion with clarity, and where we draw the line so students grow from consequences, not just comfort. Along the way, we name the wins that fuel us: a first-gen student crushing an internship, a shy sophomore leading a tough team, a senior landing a job offer and finally feeling like they belong, and colleagues getting the recognition they deserve.

Break is a myth with a thin edge of truth. While the world imagines ski trips and naps, we’re revising syllabi, updating Blackboard, polishing rubrics, and finding that next bucket of pixie dust to restore purpose. Then the road calls again: filming course content in busy kitchens and hotels, crashing Mardi Gras crew meetings to study logistics in the wild, advising student teams on hotel development, and shaping a book manuscript that captures how operations and guest experience really meet. The throughline is simple: you don’t just talk about hospitality—you live in it, so students can see what success looks like under pressure, in real time.

If you’ve ever juggled deadlines, fieldwork, and the relentless pace of service, this one’s for you. Hit follow, share with a friend who needs a morale boost, and leave a quick review telling us the most unforgettable finals-week moment you’ve had. And if you spot us at a hotel bar, say hi—we’re always up for a good story.

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Got podcast love, a plot twist, or a lost-and-found tale? Send fan mail here. Bonus points for wit.

Lost and Found departments in hotels are memory banks of misadventures where hospitality meets humanity through the forgotten items guests leave behind. The things we abandon and how staff returns them reveal profound truths about exceptional service and human dignity.

• Every forgotten item tells a story - from earrings suggesting first dates to stuffed animals serving as security blankets
• Discretion is a professional skill requiring staff to log, clean, tag, and return items without judgment
• Trust builds when guests call frantically about lost items and staff responds with reassurance
• Lost and Found represents emotional recovery, helping guests regain control and feel whole again
• Great service happens in small moments that require both professionalism and heart

Join the University of Arkansas hospitality management program to learn how to lead with heart, even when returning items that buzz.

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