Executive Chef, or Something Else?

I've often wondered why I've always been so attracted to the food industry, when my chosen field is Administrative Assistant. What could the two worlds possibly have in common?

Well Nancy Fraze, CEAP and Field Reporter for Joan Burge, Adminology (must set up your free account to access) and Office Dynamics, answered my question just this morning in her Monday Motivators ezine article entitled, "The Administrative Profession: We Can Stand the Heat AND Stay in the Kitchen!" I've copied the article in its entirety below since there isn't a way to link to it, but anyone can sign up here to receive these once-weekly motivators via email; you can also bookmark Joan's blog for timely advice and inspiration ...

_____________

The Administrative Profession: We Can Stand the Heat & Stay in the Kitchen!
January 10, 2011
By Nancy Fraze for Joan Burge

Recently I dined at Pasta Primavera, my neighborhood café. It was busy, so my husband and I opted to wait for a better table. The lone Chef working in the café's open kitchen caught my attention.

The Chef was amazing! He simultaneously prepared 13 meals in large sauté pans on a huge double sided gas stove. Constantly moving, he kept a close eye on his 13 sauté pans, shaking this one, jostling that one, adding olive oil, plating a third one onto a pile of rich pasta with a flourish of spices, before starting another round of proteins cooking in clean sauté pans.

Watching him work was like watching a ballet or a finely tuned orchestra (of one!). The owner saw my interest in Chef's work and came over to chat. The owner told me that Second Chef was out that night, but Chef and the owner had determined Chef's working the grill solo that night would best ensure menu quality control. That really caught my interest, so I began to look for the lesson in this.

I never saw Chef look up or around, even at the diners. Chef focused only on his sauté pans. Having initially prepped his workstation sauces, oils and proteins, he managed his work station with quality and responsibility. I also noticed he didn't offer suggestions or chat with the Sous Chef or garnish station worker. Chef had a single purpose: high-quality entrees.

It interested me that none of his finished products were less than spectacular. Then I saw why: Chef had pre-set the gas burners, in pairs, to different flame heights. He cooked by moving pans from higher heat over to lower heat as things progressed.

He never re-adjusted the stove or the burners, but boy, did he move his pans!

Later, while seated at our table and spinning my fork around piccata seafood linguine, I realized the administrative profession is quite similar to Chef's expertise that night:

* We need to prepare our workstation before we begin work;

* We need to strategize with the owner (our leader or executive) about how to best ensure quality control;

* We need to evaluate our work, set our burners accordingly and then work it without fidgeting or constantly changing what we've already set;

* We need to keep a close watch, letting no details slide;

* We need to keep our pans moving!

* And last, but certainly not least: we need to be responsible for our results and let others be responsible for theirs.

The administrative profession is a career of choice. While it can sometimes get "hot" we have what it takes to stay (and succeed!) in the kitchen.

_______________

So what's my point of this post? Namely this and applicable to Executive and Assistant alike: Which do you choose for yourself? An Executive Chef, or something else? Know that the choice is yours, freely. You only have to be "OK" with your choice, as well as responsible for it.