I’m a big believer of the adage, “numbers don’t lie.” But studies aren’t always clear cut and that’s because there are legitimate pros and cons. Still, after 20 years of hiring, it’s easy to draw some basic conclusions.

1. If you want to increase your odds, go with the internal candidate. You should already know the individual’s strengths and weaknesses, cultural fit and moral compass. What you won’t know immediately is whether they can reach the next level. We have all seen exceptional “hourlies” that just can’t make the jump to a “leadership” role.

2. An external candidate may be the perfect solution if your team and culture has become stale and rigid and needs an outsider’s view. In fact, a new perspective is one of the main reasons I like to bring in outside candidates.

3. Be prepared to be wrong, no matter who you hire. Even after hiring “leaders” for two decades, I still sometimes feel it’s a toss up. Anyone who tells you differently is just not that honest.

Personally, I will always tip the scale for the internal candidate. If you can’t hire or promote from within, essentially you’re admitting that your culture/bench is simply not that strong.

On an ordinarily quiet, post lunch afternoon at Tucci Benucch when the restaurant was located at the 900 N. Michigan Avenue mall, I noticed a man maneuvering a baby stroller on the escalator – not always an easy feat.

The man is long-haired, scarves around his neck, wearing skin tight jeans and jazz-like shoes. As man and baby approach, there’s the frequent start and stop that all parents tend to do with the stroller to entertain the kid.

As the duo get closer, I notice that it’s Steven Tyler. The baby is his youngest daughter, Chelsea Anna Tallarico. Just like her two half sisters, Liv and Mia, there’s no mistaking who’s the dad.

Steven Tyler with his now grown children.

I assume they want some privacy and seat them in a semi private dining area near the kitchen. When dad and daughter are settled, I admit that I’m a big fan. Tyler agrees to my request for an autograph and does one better, inviting me to sit down and chat. We talk about the Aerosmith tour and how he and his band prefer set up in a central location, in this case Chicago, and then drive to nearby venues (such as Wisconsin and Indiana), rather than dealing with airports and different hotels.

He couldn’t have been nicer and more down to earth. It struck me afterwards that no matter how famous, wealthy, busy, important someone may be, giving some time and conversation to others is an invaluable commodity. They just may still be talking about it 20 years later.

Go online, print and complete five forms before arriving to to speed up the process.

Great, I’m thinking – 11 a.m. appointment, wait a few minutes, and get back to work. I actually arrive early, deliver my “homework” and quickly complete another set of forms. It’s now 11:05.

At 11:40, I approach the receptionist, reiterate that my appointment was at 11 and say that I needed to go back to work.

Nicely, the receptionist responds with, “Oh, what time is it?” She looks at the clock and says nothing.

Can you imagine if a restaurant responded this way after you waited 40 minutes for your table? At Big Bowl, L. Woods, Tucci Benucch or any Lettuce Entertain You restaurant, we are the ones who need to reach out to the guest when we’re behind. We acknowledge it and own it. We will apologize, and if we are really behind, we send over drinks, appetizers or even buy an entire meal.

Is the doctor’s time more important than mine? Because they’re doctors and we’re restaurant operators, does it mean we’re held to a different standard? I, for one, am happy to go the extra mile to make a guest feel welcomed and valued but apparently the Bone & Joint folks do not.

A sharp outfit would call back to apologize and try to reschedule, but that did not happen.

So, here is my recommendation. If you don’t want to be treated like cattle even though you are the customer and paying the bill, just get up and leave when someone is more than 15 minutes late and won’t acknowledge or apologize for the delay. That business or person is showing you –  the customer – no respect. Your business is being taken for granted.

We don’t assume the guest has no other options.  We respect that they choose our business. You can yell or argue when businesses don’t respect you, your time or your money – or you can avoid all that negative energy and simply take your business elsewhere. I choose to spend my time and money at businesses that respect me.

In the early 1990s, the Rolling Stones were on tour and staying at the Four Seasons Hotel. I was working as a manager at Tucci Benucch, the restaurant that’s a part of the same building as the hotel on Michigan Ave.

It was a weeknight and fairly quiet when Byron, a veteran waiter, approached me.

“You won’t believe who just sat at Table 22,” he says, motioning to the worst table in the restaurant. It’s set for four but really we only sat two to three there because the table basically was positioned in the aisle.

I look over and he’s an older gentleman, in a suit jacket, no tie, gray short but full hair, and a pale thin face. His dining companion was a woman, and they looked unassuming, like any two people interested in enjoying a good meal.

“Charlie Watts,” Byron and I say at the same time.

I couldn’t believe it, but it was even harder for me to comprehend that only me and Byron were the only two people who realized that rock and roll royalty – basically the world’s greatest drummer – was in our presence. What kid has NOT wanted to be a drummer, or at the very least made those motions of drumming while blasting a great rock song?

I was 12 and the youngest of six kids when Some Girls debuted in 1978. It was among the first albums I purchased. I knew all the songs by heart, listened to it repeatedly.  Over the years, I have seen the Stones in concert several times, and today the band remains my all-time favorite.

Because Tucci’s location didn’t require guests at the Four Seasons to leave the building, we were a hotspot for celebrities. With Tucci gone today and Frankie’s 5th Floor Pizzeria in its place, it’s no different.

I’m certain that the concierges were aware that we were always respectful to those who did not want to be seen or bothered. Weekday evenings were often quiet and there were several mini rooms for stars who didn’t want to be noticed. Watts, though, couldn’t have been more visible.

Once I get over the awe that Watts was a few feet away, I work up the courage to introduce myself and welcome him to Tucci.

He was soft spoken and polite, but to be honest, he had such a heavy accent, I just nodded to most of his words, smiling when he smiled. I had no idea what he was saying, but this made no difference to me.

He happily signed a menu, which I treasured for 20 years until my office flooded not long ago when water came pouring through the ceiling. Ruined.

You know that question people always ask, “If your house caught fire, and your life was at risk, what would you take with you?”

For me, it would have been that autographed menu from Charlie Watts.