Coach Patti's Blog

Discovering the recipe for a delicious, successful life

A lot of things can go wrong in the kitchen. You can put salt in the cake instead of sugar. You can forget to turn on the oven, or turn it to the wrong temperature. The beautiful, golden roasted turkey can slide off the platter and bounce across the kitchen floor. Every cook has stories like this.

What happens next illustrates the difference between a kitchen drudge and a chef. The drudge turns immediately to blame: somebody put the salt where the sugar was supposed to be; the turkey is inedible. But the chef sees opportunity: okay, the cake is salty, but a drizzle of sweet, dark chocolate and a peak of whipped cream will fix that; a quick swipe with a damp cloth and a glaze of gravy and no one will ever know where that turkey's been.

There are other differences between the drudge and the chef. The drudge cooks out of obligation; the chef cooks out of passion. The drudge skimps on ingredients; the chef chooses the best ingredients available. The drudge cooks the same old things; the chef reads, experiments, and invents.

There's a parallel here between the kitchen and the business office. You know who the drudges are—they're the ones who always have an excuse, who don't do what they've agreed to do so you have to step in and do it for them. They're the ones you'd rather not work with on another deal. You also recognize the chefs: they're the superstars, the ones who are writing deals in the down market, trying new ideas for promotions, and always taking time to help someone else. You want to do a transaction with them because you know it will be done right—and it could lead to more business!

In reality, most of us fall somewhere between the drudge and the superstar, but we can learn from both. Here are some ingredients to consider the next time you're cooking up a deal:

Every ingredient matters. If you're going to spend your time and money creating this dish, why not use the finest ingredients and make it as delectable as possible? We are continually confronted with decisions: the inexpensive baking chocolate or the high cocoa mass chocolate? The assistant who will help me look like a pro or keep muddling through, typos and all? In business, as in cooking, every decision we make has an effect on the outcome that may extend beyond our current project. When the really big deal comes along, is that client going to choose someone who skimps on details?

Even 'failure' has a measure of success. Failure provides information, motivation, and it teaches us a valuable lesson that we can apply on our next project. Failure is not only the output of an unsuccessful activity, it is also the input for the next successful one. We need to think like the chef and look for the opportunity in the failure.

Every market is filled with opportunity. It's easy to be successful in a hot market. But when the market changes, look at the superstars. Have they stopped working? Are they in a panic? Probably not. For one thing, they knew this day would come, so they stocked some extra ingredients in the pantry. They're open to new possibilities, new recipes. They exude Success, and whatever the market conditions, nothing is as attractive as success.

We can all do something well. Most chefs are not equally skilled at pastries and entrees. But all chefs are really, really good at some aspect of food preparation and they've built their career using that as a starting point. Each of us is terrific at some aspect of business. Maybe it's people skills, or numbers, or negotiation. Whatever it is, we have to recognize it and use it as the foundation for building additional successes.

Chefs are made, not born. Every cordon bleu chef spends time slicing and dicing, stirring pots and washing dishes, before earning that tall white chef's hat. And even with the toque on their head, they don't stop learning or practicing. The more time we spend on the fundamentals, the more solid our business will eventually be. The more we stretch our skills, the more we'll be ready for any client, any property, and any market condition that comes along.

The chef who can laugh oversees a happy kitchen. Okay, so the roast is as hard as a brick or the birthday cake looks like pudding. You know what? That's actually pretty funny. If we can laugh at the problems, it dispels that first smack of anxiety. It also rallies everyone to our side to help us come up with creative solutions that could be even tastier than the original recipe.

We all have a chance, starting right now, to be five-star chefs. Life is a recipe—flavored with joy and mystery. What are you cooking today?

Coach Patti

Patti Kouri, Accelerated Performance Coaching
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