The Kitchen Effect

My mother was a progressive woman. Early on she realised that one day I would leave home, saving her a fortune in grocery bills, but that if, when that day finally rolled around, all I knew was how to boil water I would probably starve to death. In an effort to save me from a decade of meals involving cereal and milk she taught me how to cook. Back then there were no dedicated food channels, Gordon Ramsey was not a household name, and my only sources of culinary guidance were a few cookbooks and my mother's ineffable knack for creating mouthwatering masterpieces out of almost nothing. I learnt fancy terms like 'julienne' and 'rotisserie' although the testosterone in me still prefers to say 'cut' and 'oven'. I learnt to appreciate flavour and texture, that sometimes knowing when a dish felt right was more important than following the exact instructions. Above all though I learnt the first baby steps of managing a business. Anyone who does not see a kitchen as a business model has never truly appreciated the stock control that goes into managing a pantry, the pressure to deliver goods on time to the most difficult of clients (that would most likely be you and your family), the quality control required to hit the mark every time, and the mental process and mapping that goes into managing five different processes on the go at once to get them plated all at the same time. Stick your head into the kitchen next time your spouse is in full culinary flight and be amazed at what goes on.

This last week I though it would be a fitting tribute to share with you some of the basics in business that, without realising, that my mother showed me.

Quality Matters. If you want to appreciate the difference between butter and margarine then eat shortbread (for the non-cooks in the readership the primary ingredient that determines flavour in shortbread is the butter/margarine). The difference in texture and taste will astound you. Where ever possible use the best possible options you can afford; be it the raw materials you use, the people you work with, the equipment you use. The quality of what you put in determines what you get out.

Be content with a bit of mess and foul tasting flavours. The kitchen is a messy place; flour flies everywhere, fluids spill, pots sometimes boil over. The ingredients on their own often taste disgusting; egg white, vinegar, vanilla essence are horrible on the tongue. People are messy. Being creative is messy. In business tempers will get frayed, people will drop the ball, system changes can be chaotic. Persevere through the heat and the result will be spectacular (too much heat and you will get burnt so moderate the intensity and duration).

Know your market. My mother knew the list of foods never to serve me. The big question in a kitchen is not 'Does it work?' or 'Is it cost effective?' it is 'Will they eat it?'. The clients matter. In this case a spouse that could learn a few more compliments and a bunch of screaming ungrateful whelps kicking each other under the table. The focus is on what the client will do with your product, not if it will make you money or not.

Have them coming back for more. Some people will eat almost anything put in front of them, especially if they are hungry. Take the average Zimbabwean who accepts substandard goods at an inflated price because there is nothing else on the proverbial table. The real acid test for the chef is whether or not people will come back for more. It is the 'second-helping effect' that you are looking for here. I browse a lot of websites as I trawl for information and ideas, there are very few that I subscribe to. Subscribers are the people who keep coming back, who make purchases, who tell others about your product. I have lost count of the number of times I have quoted Seth Godin in various media; I have read hundred of books over the years, but I cannot wait till he has a new one. For him I am a subscriber.

Passion produces results. Stop trying to motivate people. If people need some external force to kickstart them into performance then ditch them quick. True motivation has to be internal and it shows in the product. I have met people who loathe cooking, I have been in kitchens where the designated cook sees it as a chore and nothing more. These are people who produce mediocre meals and should hire someone else to do the work. I don't believe that everyone should have a passion for cooking, and probably the best thing such people do is acknowledge that they don't and pass the responsibility onto someone who does. I love watching celebrity chefs. It is not the dishes they produce that keeps people watching their shows (after all you cannot taste the food) but the passion they bring, their personality and love for what they do. Nigella, Gordon Ramsey, Jamie Oliver all passionate people. Passionate cooks explore new meals, fuse flavours creatively into new concoctions, work out how to do it better.

The final lesson my mother taught me from the kitchen was to build people. For us the meal was family time, no distractions from the television, from books, or from phones. It was face time, where over good food we would interact and grow. Were we perfect; by no means, but those moments together moulded our family unlike any other activity. The effort of cooking was not about creating food, it was about the family time at the table. It was about creating a story in our lives that we could not obtain any other way. What story are you creating for your clients?