🤩 I don’t know any other way!

Someone told me that my idealized & americanized way of understanding service & hospitality is not gonna “sell" in Romania!

I only worked for 5-Star & Luxury Marriott hotels, so far in my career. 

In 3 different countries (including Romania) & 2 unique brands (JW Marriott & The Ritz-Carlton).

All with the same mentality of taking care of employees as first priority & creating memorable experiences for the guests, as natural consequence.

🤩 I don’t know any other way!

As employee, this mindset worked great for me, under the protection of all the Brand Standard Audits, HR reviews, behavioral training & daily rehearsals of the company mission.

As a consultant, outside the bubble, I sometimes feel like that little brown mouse braving himself up to approach the big lion, hoping not to be dinner…

*****

I spent 20 minutes in the lobby of a 4⭐️ hotel in Bucharest & another half hour with the leader.

That’s all it took to reconfirm the cultural gap.

🇷🇴 I noticed that:

Stability is prioritized over career growth. 

Asking for feedback or mentoring feels like showing weakness.

People play it safe, avoid mistakes, and don’t challenge the boss. 

Service is reactive, smiles look forced, eye contact is rare, and most staff wait for instructions. 

Problems get passed along until they cool down or disappear. 

Accountability exists on paper, not in practice.

🌎 I was shaped to believe that:

Growth is expected!

You ask for feedback, you build your reputation, you learn from mistakes. 

Service is proactive, smile & eye contact aren’t optional, anticipation is a habit, and small touches (remembering a name, noticing heavy bags, offering directions, a genuine compliment) create real connection. 

Accountability is personal: if you see it, you own it.

Two completely different defaults. 

Neither good nor bad, just culture showing its face.

But the reference point is the same: the quality of the experience.

👀 How do customers feel when interacting with your business? 

👀 How do employees feel when working for you!

They might be right, my service mentality (actually international 5-star) won’t ‘sell’ as a package. 

But it doesn’t have to.

It doesn’t have to sell everywhere, but it does fit exactly where it matters:

▪️ with businesses that want growth, not just survival (entrepreneurs, international brands, younger leaders).

▪️ in industries where experience IS the product: wellness, beauty, private healthcare.

▪️ in countries where service is already a differentiator (Middle East, Western Europe).

▪️ in Romania, with the ambitious 10% who want to stand out, not the majority who play it safe.

What would happen if we borrowed the best service habits from each culture, instead of defending our defaults? 

And how much a few small changes could actually pay off?