The Cocktail Party Question
Imagine yourself at a cocktail party. Any social gathering, really – a wedding reception, a 4th of July picnic, a family dinner. Picture yourself there with your spouse or some coworkers, mixing and mingling, meeting friends of friends or catching up with a cousin you haven’t seen in a while.
In that setting, there’s an all-too-reliable, practically scripted list of small-talk questions that inevitably appears to test your all-too-reliable, practically scripted list of small-talk answers. How are the kids? How’s the weather out by you? Did you catch the game? What are you doing these days?
It’s this last question and its variants (What kind of work are you in? You still with that company? Etc.) that can really throw us off. The question is rarely meant to harm – usually, it comes from a place of earnest curiosity – we all want to know the people who populate our lives are thriving. But what if you’re not especially proud of your answer?
An Answer to Be Proud Of
At HoneyBaked Ham, our franchisees consistently report that they’re proud of the work they do. The freedom that accompanies business ownership and the knowledge that you’re contributing to family traditions creates a sense of purpose that includes, but also goes beyond wealth.
Build Your Own Business
In our industry, the phrase “freedom to be your own boss” has become almost cliché, but its sentiment holds true. Owning a business with the backing and support of a national brand like HoneyBaked Ham gives you the tools you need to build a viable business while affording you the freedom to maintain an enviable work/life balance. With a large portion of sales occurring during the holiday season, our stores operate on reasonable hours the rest of the year, giving you more time to enjoy with your family, friends and community.
4 Distinct Year-Round Revenue Streams
While we’re known as a holiday favorite, our concept includes four revenue streams for regular year-round business – retail, lunch, catering and gifting. This means that your HoneyBaked Ham store becomes a community staple, providing delicious proteins, salads, sandwiches and sides to your neighborhood all year long. Our premium products and services will drive local businesses and community organizations to depend on you for gifts, event catering or a delicious lunch during break time.
Rooted in History
When you invest in HoneyBaked Ham, you join a long legacy of delivering the centerpiece of family traditions across the country – the high-quality, smoked, seasoned and spiral-sliced ham we’ve built our reputation on. Our brand is an irreplaceable part of a national tradition. When you say you own a HoneyBaked Ham store, folks will recall their own memories of delicious holiday hams, and make the connection between your career and their families’ special moments.
Make a Change
We’re all tough critics of ourselves, and sometimes to be doing the same work for years can be a sign that we’re not changing, and therefore not improving. Or, maybe you enjoy your career, and you’re good at it, but there’s no rewarding sense of purpose that you associate with the work you do. In these cases, it’s not uncommon to feel uncomfortable, embarrassed or even ashamed to answer that simple but ubiquitous question: What do you do?
Our advice? Find a career that has you excited to strike up conversation at the next big event. Find a career that, when you script your list of answers, makes you smile. Find a career you’re proud of.
