Let’s play a little game really quick. Close your eyes and picture in your mind what a bouncer does on the job, and when you’re done, make sure you remember to open your eyes again so you can keep reading. Ready, go! Okay, got your eyes back open? Good work! I’d be willing to wager you pictured stuff like breaking up brawls and forcefully removing unruly customers. You likely envisioned instances of reactive security. And to be fair, you’ll never completely eliminate the necessity of reactive action. Every person in the bar or club is an additional variable in a complex equation, and you can’t always perfectly predict the behavior of those variables. You can, however, reduce the reactive portion of the job by being proactive. By doing the following, those of us working in club security can not only reduce the likelihood of serious incidents but also mitigate the severity of incidents that do come about. Work smarter, not harder.
Front Door
The front door sets the tone for a customer’s entire visit. A positive front door encounter helps to put or keep your customers in a positive headspace. If you’re at the door being friendly and having fun, you’re nudging the people coming in into a friendly and fun vibe as well. Conversely, if you’re being rude, brusque, maybe a bit dickish? You’re nudging them towards dickishness as well. Then, if you, the person who was mean to them at the door, have to approach that person later in the night, say, for instance, to remind them to tip the dancers or not to take selfies, they’re going to take on a defensive posture before you even speak. However, If they had an enjoyable interaction with you, they’ll be more relaxed and welcoming and more receptive to being corrected.
Being friendly doesn’t eliminate the need to turn people away when necessary. Be selective about who you allow entry. That person who is both walking and speaking in cursive is already too intoxicated to be served, and chances are they’ll cause more problems than it’s worth. It’s easier to turn them away before they ever enter than it is to kick them out. If someone gives you bad vibes, that’s your gut instinct telling you something’s off, so listen to that. Every time I’ve ever second-guessed a bad feeling I had about someone, they have all become a problem later on. Someone who is acting aggressive or disrespectful outside the door isn’t going to magically transform into sunshine and unicorn farts once they’re in the door. Let them cause trouble at someone else’s establishment.
Once you’ve checked their IDs and confirmed that they’re of age and the ID isn’t expired or otherwise invalid (you’re doing that, right? Don’t put yourself at risk of getting your peepee slapped by OLCC!), perform pat downs and bag checks. Check for weapons, obviously, because shit will be way worse if you have to deal with a fight in which one or more people involved are armed. Also, check for outside alcohol getting smuggled in. Outside booze means your bartender sells fewer drinks and makes less money while having less control over customer intoxication levels. Catch it at the door. They can keep the booze, or they can come into your club—but not both.
The door is also where you should set expectations with your customers. That customer coming in might have never been to a strip club before, or maybe they’re from a different state with different rules, or maybe they know the rules and have every intention of disregarding them anyway. Whatever the case, having a quick spiel to recite to everyone walking into your club deprives everyone of the excuse, "Oh, I didn’t know." My current iteration of the spiel I give goes something like this: "Tip the dancers, no touching, no photos or any other use of your phone’s camera, limit cell phone use to flat on the table, and there’s a one-drink minimum."
One last consideration at the door: it’s a good idea to charge a cover. There’s room for exceptions, like good regulars you know will spend money, veterans or military, or birthday boys or girls, but charging an entry fee should be the norm. It gives the customer skin in the game; they may as well get their money’s worth and stay for two or three drinks instead of heading to the next spot after just one and doing something to get kicked out, meaning they just wasted money. Whenever I’m on the fence about charging, either because it’s still really early or we just don’t have very many people inside, I circle back to a favorite quote of mine. In The American Crisis Papers, Thomas Paine wrote, "What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly." When cheapskates get in for free, they’ve obtained their entry too cheaply. Don’t be surprised when they esteem it too lightly and end up watching the stage without tipping, only drinking water from the water station, and generally taking up space without bringing any value. Someone who walks away from a five-dollar cover charge is probably too cheap or too broke to be in your club anyway, and someone dead set on coming in to make it rain won’t mind the cost of entry.
Inside
Now it’s time to get proactive inside the club. It may not seem like much, but keeping the room neat and orderly is in security’s best interest. Pushing in chairs, bussing empty glassware, picking trash up off the floor, wiping down tables, and keeping walkways clear should be continuous throughout the night. Physical disorder contributes chaos to the atmosphere in the club, whereas physical order will nurture a broader sense of order. Removing an empty glass from the floor is especially important because in the event that a fight does break out, broken glass becomes a cut hazard, and either cups or bottles can become improvised weapons (I’ve seen it happen). Eliminate those hazards before they even become hazards. You’ll be glad you did. By keeping on top of these types of minor maintenance tasks, you’re sending a subtle—maybe even subliminal—message to everyone in the room: you’re paying attention to the little things, so there’s a good chance you’re also paying attention to big things. People’s conscious thoughts may not pick up on that message, but it’ll still register subconsciously and give them pause before trying whatever stupid shit their invasive thoughts are telling them to try to get away with.
Another good practice inside the club is to establish and maintain your presence. Conduct regular walkthroughs of the entire club. Let your customers and coworkers see you keeping a watchful eye over your domain. Make spot corrections of behaviors that aren’t allowed so others know you’re on the ball. I try to frame it as a team effort: "Hey, can you do me a huge favor? I know you’re not taking photos because I can see your screen, but it would help me out a lot if you keep your phone flat on the table while you’re using it so my dancers and I don’t mistake you for the kind of asshole who takes photos in a strip club. That way, we can all have a good time tonight." Take notice of small problems and address them before they have a chance to become big problems—de-escalate any issue that can be de-escalated. When a conversation starts getting a little heated, calmly make your way over to the people involved and ask if everything is alright. Involve yourself in the minor disagreements so they don’t have a chance to progress into a violent confrontation. When someone is clearly getting faded, cut them off from alcohol service before they get too sloppy, so you don’t find yourself scrubbing barf out of the carpet—or worse.
As the old saying goes: "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." Being proactive might seem like extra work that isn’t that important, but it’s super easy and low effort compared to the energy you’ll have to expend bringing equilibrium to a situation that’s already gone sideways. Do this stuff to make your life easier on the job. You deserve it!
When not breaking up fights and scrubbing barf out of the carpet, Nate Hazen can be found bussing cups and pushing in chairs at X Exotic Lounge. Stop by and have a friendly interaction with him at the front door.
