Tag Archives: pride

I’VE LOOKED AT PRIDE FROM BOTH SIDES NOW

18 Thursday Jul 2019

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Pride is an alluring enigma, an intoxicating challenge to our peace of mind, and a dangerous mistress that can pull us away from good old common sense. At the same time, pride is the fuel of success, the underlying standard of performance that signals the effort required for any task. Is pride a good thing or a bad thing?

Using the generational song: Both Sides Now” written by Joni Mitchell as a springboard, we could paraphrase and build another verse:

“I’ve looked at pride from both sides now

From up and down and still somehow

It’s prides illusions I recall

I really don’t know pride at all”

-Joni Mitchell – paraphrase

I have seen how pride works in kitchens and have, throughout my career, benefitted from and fell victim to the challenges that pride creates. Understanding and working within the parameters of these challenges requires discipline and a true understanding of the term and all that it implies.

Pride can be a manipulated term used by others to point to a person’s attitude of self-importance, ego, and self-esteem. There are certainly ample examples of chef’s and operators who relish pointing to their own importance, accomplishments, and self proclaimed worth. Some may view this as earned accolades when there is substance behind it, while others simply view it as unfounded self-importance. To this end, even well deserved recognition can work against an individual when he or she is the voice behind that proclamation. When the individual is humble about those accomplishments and the accolades come from others – then a less effusive sense of pride can be viewed as admirable. There is a fine line between the relationship of pride and self-worth.

Pride is oftentimes used as a motivational standard that professionals view as their rule of engagement. Pride, in this case, refers to a self-imposed model of behavior and action that should not be ignored. “Where is your sense of pride” can be and is used to refer to a chef’s or cook’s level of commitment to how they look, act, interact, cook, and present the food that they work with. Many in the profession look at their work and silently ask the question: “Am I proud of this?” Pride pushes these individuals to at least meet, but in most cases, exceed their own and other’s expectations. A cook who exhibits pride in work is one whom others expect to always work towards those standards of excellence. This is motivational and at times burdensome.

A quality restaurant is oftentimes driven by pride. In these instances the appearance of the operation, the quality of detailed service, the excitement surrounding the food, and the ability to exceed the expectations of guests is a standard of pride that tends to connect with every person who works there. The self-worth of each individual is closely aligned with the collective pride exhibited throughout the operation and the restaurant experience. When in sync, this can lead to extraordinary levels of performance and a great sense of pride. When any part of the organization fails to live up to the standard, then the opposite is true. In these instances, pride can result in friction, mistrust, and a deflated sense of worth.

Pride can be a wedge used to place employees in separate silos at work. This results in a separation of those who really care and take pride in their work, vs. those who are less engaged and willing to accept mediocrity. In these environments – results are mixed and inconsistent, and finger pointing is the rule of thumb.

Pride can also be an isolating principle of behavior. Far too often pride is used to keep an individual from admitting areas of weakness and resisting the help that he or she may need. “He is too proud to ask for help”, is never beneficial to the individual, the organization, or the task at hand. This is seen far too often in restaurants where a person is ill placed in a position, or nervous about how he or she may be perceived if assistance is sought. In the extreme, it is quite common to find a person promoted to his or her level of incompetence – referred to as the Peter Principle. Sometimes this is the fault of the hiring process, while in other cases it is not a case of inability, but rather the unwillingness to seek assistance and taking advantage of the support mechanism in place. Seeking assistance when needed is never a sign of weakness – it is an indication of intuitive strength.

Pride need not be directed toward oneself. Pride can be, and is often most beneficial, when it is directed towards others. When a chef designs a menu that is well executed by his or her staff, then pride in their collective work is incredibly powerful and well-deserved. When a chef or manager invests the time in training an individual and feels pride in how well that trainee performs, then the impact on the organization is priceless. When a guest states how exceptional his or her restaurant experience was, then the collective pride in teamwork can be felt through the organization. This feeling of pride is intoxicating. Pride in a group effort and the positive outcomes that are a result is the energy that drives that group to exceed everyone’s expectations. We see this not just in the kitchen, but also in organizations where there are common goals including sport teams, not-for-profits, and others that rely on unity of thought and action.

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USING PRIDE TO YOUR ADVANTAGE – 10 THOUGHTS TO CONSIDER:

  1. PRIDE NEED NOT BE EXCLUSIVE TO PRICE. You can be just as proud of a perfectly poached egg, or BLT sandwich as you are of a seven-course wine pairing dinner.
  2. TAKE AND SHOW PRIDE IN HOW YOU AND OTHERS LOOK. Clean and professional in grooming and uniform.
  3. TAKE AND SHOW PRIDE IN HOW YOU TREAT OTHERS. Respect is a baseline ingredient in pride.
  4. TAKE AND SHOW PRIDE IN THE DESIRE TO LISTEN. Listen more – speak less – respect others concerns and opinions.
  5. TAKE AND SHOW PRIDE IN TEAMWORK. United you stand, divided you fall.
  6. TAKE AND SHOW PRIDE IN THE WILLINGNESS TO SEEK HELP. The support mechanism is there and there is no shame in aligning with it.
  7. TAKE AND SHOW PRIDE IN THE WILLINGNESS TO OFFER HELP. A willingness to help is a sign of tremendous character and strength.
  8. TAKE AND SHOW PRIDE IN A COMMITMENT TO EXCELLENCE. Regardless of the task, do it with enthusiasm and a need to make sure that it is right.
  9. TAKE AND SHOW PRIDE IN STAYING TRUE TO BELIEFS. Whatever is core to your and others character is worth recognizing and supporting.
  10. TAKE AND SHOW PRIDE IN THE IMPORTANCE OF A COOK’S WORK. This is a noble, important job – one that can have a very positive impact on those preparing food and those receiving the fruits of that labor. Stand Tall!

PLAN BETTER – TRAIN HARDER

Harvest America Ventures, LLC

Restaurant Consulting

www.harvestamericaventures.com

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A COOK’S PRIDE

04 Sunday Sep 2016

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Pride is defined in both a positive and a negative manner. To some, pride is something to avoid: “An irrationally corrupt sense of ones personal value, status or accomplishments.” – Wikipedia – Or as some would label it: “ego”. On the other hand, pride can be viewed in a positive sense: “A humble and content sense of attachment towards one’s own or another’s choices and actions…a fulfilled feeling of belonging.” – Wikipedia- In this case pride is viewed as a virtue. Two different interpretations of pride – two different outlooks on how a person carries himself or herself. In the kitchen, as in other places where careers are made, both defined individuals exist.

My friend and a chef who, I deeply admire – Jamie Keating, owns and operates a highly successful restaurant in Columbus, Georgia called “Epic”. On the wall above his line rests a simple statement: Culinary Pride. This – to him and his crew represents all that the restaurant is about, all that the chef is about, all that the guests of Epic expect, and all that Chef Keating expects from his staff: a fulfilled feeling of belonging and a humble commitment to making the right choices with the food that they are privileged to work with. To a true professional – this is what it’s all about.

I just began watching season three of “Chef’s Table” – an extraordinary series of documentary films produced by Netflix that depict the life of prominent chefs from around the world. The series is robust and deep in its ability to delve into the person behind the food, not just the result of what takes place in the kitchen. “What makes this chef tick?” I am pacing myself this time rather than binge watching through the entire series in a day or two, because I want to take time to have each chef’s video bio sink in. The first in the series takes a look at Chef Alain Passard who’s restaurant” L’Arpege in Paris is respected world-wide as one of the best. It’s long history of three-star Michelin rating points to the intensity and the quality of the restaurant and it’s food. What the series does best is to examine the mind, body, and soul of Passard. Once you have a sense of the individual then the reputation of the restaurant makes sense – the “why” becomes clear.

Passard made a bold move a few years back and took all of the protein focused items off of his menu, all of the items that had brought him world acclaim and Michelin praise, and made the decision to become a vegetarian restaurant. This, in Paris of all places, was considered not just risky, but even suicidal. His reason – he had lost his passion for what he was doing and needed to find that excitement that brought him acclaim many years ago. He wanted to talk to his guests with a new voice and to energize his staff with a new, adventurous mission, and he wanted to pay respect to ingredients that had, for years, played a supporting role – never the lead.

Passard did not use the term pride, but instead talked about “Grace” as a way to show respect for a new way, a way of excellence, a way to respect the ingredients and the process of cooking.

“What I love is cooking, the act of using my hands, that feeling of belonging in the kitchen. This is why people come (to L’Arpege).”

-Alain Passard

How many of us who have made an active decision to spend our days in the kitchen can reflect on his words? The feeling, as he points to, of “belonging in the kitchen” is something that many cooks have made reference to: “This is a place where, no matter what, I feel like I belong.” We take pride in knowing that this is it – our calling, and in a humble way we feel very good about this discovery.

When Passard and his team at L’Arpege are in the zone, author Christophe Blain who wrote a tongue and cheek book about Passard (In the Kitchen with Alain Passard), refers to the environment as “The Flow”. As he describes it, when the operation, built on Pride is in “The Flow”, nothing else can exist in the mind and hearts of the team. There is no room for anything else but total dedication to the process of cooking.

In Yountville, California – a quaint little village on the edge of Napa Valley sits a restaurant that many consider the finest in America and one of the best in the world. The restaurants chef is noted with acclaim from all corners of the culinary world for his attention to detail, focus on excellence, and daring approach towards cooking. The restaurant is the French Laundry, and the chef – Thomas Keller. On the wall in his immaculate kitchen that some have referred to as a “Culinary temple” rests a single word: “finesse”. Finesse to Keller, his staff, vendors, peers, and guests have the same meaning as Chef Keating’s “Culinary Pride”. It is the humble mantra that says we have a mission, we owe respect to each other, the kitchen where we work, the ingredients we work with, and the history of the profession to do things right and to strive for perfection. This is not ego, it is the over-riding directive that demonstrates to everyone else – we are serious about what we do.

There are many, many others who continue, in their own way to show this pride. The mission can be, applied to any type of restaurant. This cook’s pride is not exclusive to those extraordinary fine-dining restaurants that only a select few can afford to patronize. “The Flow” exists in most successful restaurants especially at the time of service. There is a need for total focus and commitment to cooking well, being consistent, respecting a cook’s role in the process of making great food, and knowing that their reward is a satisfied guest. We may use different terms, but the feeling and the commitment is the same.

[]         POLISH

“To improve something, to make it better than it was before.”

-Webster’s

[]         MASTERY

“Knowledge and skill that allows you to do, use, or understand something very well.”

-Webster’s

[]         CRAFTSMANSHIP

“The skill involved in making something beautiful or practical using your hands.”

-Macmillan Dictionary

[]        PANACHE

“A stylish, original, and very confident way of doing things.”

-Webster’s

[]         POISE

“Behavior or a way of moving that shows calm and confidence.”

-Free Dictionary

[]         EXCELLENCE

“The quality of being outstanding or extremely good.”

-Free Dictionary

The beauty of becoming a cook is that we can most often choose how we approach the position. There are some, like Keller, Passard, or Keating who can’t choose because they are wired to take pride and their body and mind cannot accept the alternative, but most of us can make an active choice to be excellent, take pride, and show grace, or not. When a cook makes the choice to be all that he or she can be, and be the cook that the best would consider “the only way”, then the job changes. We are now part of something important, something pure and fulfilling. To be this type of cook is to be something truly special.

The choice is yours.

NOTE:

Some others whom I have known and in some cases worked with: Anton Flory, Noble Masi, Daniel Boulud, Gavin Kaysen, Dale Miller, Tim Hardiman, Eamon Lee, Tim McQuinn, Curtiss Hemm, Jennifer Bennett, Kevin O’Donnell, Fritz Sonnenschmidt, Anne Rosenzweig, Eric Ripert, Michael Beriau, Walter Zuromski, Dan Hugelier, David Meyers, George Higgins, Charles Carroll, Lars Johanson, Roland Czekelius, Neil Connolly, Heather Miller, Steve Jilleba, Ed Leonard, Phil Learned, Marc Meneau, and countless other committed cooks and chefs.

EPIC Restaurant – Chef Jamie Keating

http://epiccuisine.com/

L’Arpege – Chef Alain Passard

http://www.alain-passard.com/en/

In The Kitchen with Alain Passard

By: Christophe Blain

www.amazon.com/Kitchen-Alain-Passard-Inside-Master/dp/1452113467/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1472987804&sr=8-2&keywords=Alain+Passard

The French Laundry – Chef Thomas Keller

http://www.thomaskeller.com/tfl

PLAN BETTER – TRAIN HARDER

Harvest America Ventures, LLC

Restaurant Consulting and Training

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