Sam’s Musings

The day of the Cooper River Bridge Run dawned with clear skies, warm, comfortable temperatures, and a crowd of nearly 50,000 people waiting to share in a sense of joy and accomplishment. Or, as HonkyTonk Saloon manager Bob Shipley’s daughter Lauren Shipley (a fellow runner) describes the feeling, as an “indescribable sense of unity”. I think she nailed it. I proudly joined Lauren and the rest and crossed that bridge in an hour and 20 minutes.

Participating in the race reminded me a bit of starting this year with a large and growing team of employees who work with me and their respective teams to do the best they can do every day to keep our clients well fed, happy, and smiling. We’re looking forward to crossing that kind of finish line every single day, even as we look to expand with at least two new Toast locations in 2018.

Running in a competitive race is indeed analogous to running a good life. It reminds me of this quote by Tony Gaskins: “A relationship is a marathon, not a sprint. Many celebrate after the first mile, not realizing that the real trials come later. It’s not about how strong you start. It’s about your mental and emotional conditioning to finish the race.”

Let’s toast to that!

Sam Mustafa, Charleston Hospitality Group CEO