Embracing Fear Fueled This Michelin-rated Chef's Comeback

The darkest infinitesimal successful Josh Kopel's profession was too nan brightest.

"For me, nan lowest constituent successful my occupation was nan highest constituent — erstwhile I took retired that $50,000 complaint beforehand that required nary individual guarantee to move my business around," nan podcast big and Michelin-rated restaurateur shares. "I was each retired of f**** to give. I conscionable didn't attraction anymore."

We often group our lives by our achievements. But sometimes, we personification to net attraction to those moments erstwhile things look really bad successful bid to grow.

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When times are tough, a leader needs to excavation successful and find a solution. This is really to scope nan adjacent level, and it's precisely what drove Kopel to amended his situation. "I was almost exclusively motivated by fearfulness for astir of my career," he admits.

Although Kopel was erstwhile led by fearfulness — fearfulness of failure, fearfulness of letting his family down, fearfulness of losing it each — now there's a different, overmuch enriching emotion that drives him: vulnerability.

Going done difficult times tin thief group understand each different better. "For me, if I spell a amended coach, a amended advisor aliases a amended media personality, it's rooted successful empathy; it's rooted successful vulnerability," he tells Shawn Walchef connected nan Restaurant Influencers podcast series.

These days, arsenic large of nan celebrated Yelp for Restaurants podcast FULL COMP, Kopel has had a chance to beryllium susceptible pinch millions of group acknowledgment to nan world scope of integer media. He has asked difficult questions and shared his conflict scars done overmuch than 400 episodes.

His goal, arsenic always, is to elevate nan edifice industry.

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Restaurants and media

Kopel spent overmuch than 2 decades successful nan business of restaurants, operating venues that ranged from bars to fine-dining establishments.

Some were speedy successes, for illustration his New Orleans-inspired bar, Five0Four. The place, which he called "an anecdote to loneliness," generated $1.4 cardinal successful its first twelvemonth from a 900-square-foot location.

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Not each of his concepts went arsenic smoothly arsenic that one.

Despite outward signs of success, Kopel often felt isolated and overwhelmed by nan pressures of ownership. He realized he wasn't arsenic unsocial arsenic he thought. Other edifice owners struggled conscionable arsenic badly.

When nan pandemic deed successful 2020, he sold his past restaurant. "It's not for illustration I was retired of a job," he says. "It was for illustration it was retired of an industry."

The fork successful nan roadworthy had arrived. And conscionable successful time, an unexpected opportunity arose.

A long-time connection, a Yelp executive, suggested that Kopel spot media production. In conscionable a less weeks, nan FULL COMP podcast was born. The bid became not conscionable a level for sharing stories but a instrumentality for individual maturation and manufacture transformation.

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"The podcast gives context," Kopel says. "It's astir building connections and learning from others."

Kopel's willingness to clasp vulnerability has been a cornerstone of his success. At a keynote for Yelp astatine nan National Restaurant Association show, he shared raw, individual stories astir his struggles. He caveated his occurrence by showing it was, arsenic he says, "born retired of failure."

This onslaught has too shaped his podcast interviews. Like immoderate bully leader, Kopel leads by not hiding his ain scars. His transparency creates a abstraction wherever guests consciousness comfortable sharing deeper insights.

"You build spot done vulnerability," he explains. He uses this strategy successful his coaching work, and honesty and empathy thrust his relationships pinch his clients.

He knows that restaurants of each types suffer nan aforesaid issues, for illustration profitability, labor, and rate flow. He believes restaurateurs tin lick them by simplifying and honing successful connected conscionable nan astir revenue-producing elements connected nan beforehand end.

Revenue, consciousness and activity of customer visits hinge connected nan aforesaid constituent that makes for nan champion coaching interactions and podcast interviews: one-on-one relationships. Then it's conscionable an rumor of scale.

Kopel's emotion for restaurants has only accrued arsenic his powerfulness grows done his podcast and different media. He is accordant and tenacious astir creating meaningful alteration successful this industry. Through his podcast and coaching programs, he's empowering restaurateurs to simplify, prioritize and thrive.

"Being comfortable is boring," he says. "The magic happens erstwhile you get uncomfortable and move forward."

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