Posted by Chef Rene on April 26, 1997 at 05:50:30:
In Reply to: Re: career change? posted by Lorri on April 04, 1997 at 14:18:49:
: : Hi everyone,Here's the deal: I'm 31 and thinking of a career change. I'm currently a registered nurse working in an I.C.U., so I know about long hours, heavy lifting, hard work, and most of all STRESS. I will be attending career exploration for a week at C.I.A. later this year. But, I have tons of qustions. 1) Am I too old to start this? ( I hear you have to be in the kitchen twenty years before you can start to THINK about calling yourself a chef.) 2)Am I good enough?(I have NO experience of any kind in a professional kitchen. But I'm not exactly a dabbling hausfrau. Got the KitchenAid Pro mixer, in cobalt blue. Everyone raves about my cooking, but that's a far cry from chef - maybe I should just stay home impressing family, coworkers and the occasional stranger). 3)Are most chefs backbiting prima donnas?(I have an awful lot of those in my current job, so I'm sure I could take it, but it certainly isn't any fun). 4)Are those black and white checked pants for real? (And I thought nurses' uniforms were awful). 5)Cooking schools(What are the primary differences, are there some to avoid at any cost? I've gotten info from C.I.A. and Johnson and Wales. Pros/cons? Where else should I consider?) Etc.,Etc., Etc. This is something I've been thinking about for about five years and am just now starting to seriously look into. I can come up with as many reasons to talk myself out of it as into it. Husband says he'll support whatever choice I make, :) so he's no help in making up my mind. Any help with this mess would be greatly appreciated.
: : Thank you in advance
: : chef wannabe
: : H.A.
: I'm a 36 year old mother of two, 3 & 7. I have only been a culinary arts student for a couple of weeks. I have waited a long time for this moment in my life, and I, too put alot of thought into. Mostly about the timeing. I am also fortunate that the school I have chosen alows me the opportunity to take classes according to my schedule, while the little noe is in preschool I take a couple of classes. It's been a long time since I have been a student, and I was very nervous. My question, is this. Why did you become a nurse? Did you have a passion that drove you to want to study that career field? Do you have that same passion for cooking? If the answer is yes, then I encourage you to not let five years of thinking about it turn into six. I live in the Houston area where Nurses are very scarce. A good nurse like you would receive top dollar. I'm sure they make more than the chef's in this area. But, if your not happy, does the money issue really make a difference. There's a pitcher who was offered 18 million to play with the Blue Jays. He turned it down for 8 million to pitch for the Twins. Why? He wanted to be near his family. Some ballplayers call him crazy, I'll call him a class act. H.A., I wish you all the best of luck with your decisions. Lorri.
Hi:
I have been working in kitchens for 35 years, I have accomplished my goal for becoming an Executive Chef. I wouldn't like my daughters get into this carreer because of the hours, stress and politics. I thing they are other professions that pay better.
But if it is you dream to get into the cooking business, do it.You are never to old to change.
Good luck in the future. Keep me posted .
Chef Rene
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