Being a chef is not easy and it requires a lot of time, energy and dedication to get to a good standard. You will need to be passionate about it, because the hours can be long and unsociable and kitchens are a stressful environment.
By far one of the most difficult tasks of a chef, and the most important to the restaurants success is identifying, finding, training, and retaining an exceptional crew. The chef knows that how this team gels will determine how well the food is received.
Dealing with unexpected emergencies is one of the most stressful things about being a chef. If you are fortunate, you'll have the training, experience, and support of a good team that allow you to anticipate and deal with the emergency without missing a beat.
A professional kitchen is an incredibly stressful environment in which to work and it is not surprising that many chefs suffer illnesses as a result of the long hours they spend in their kitchens.
That is why we are growing increasingly concerned about the number of chefs struggling with mental health issues. For example, a 2017 survey found that 51% of chefs struggle with 'debilitating' stress levels. While 51% is already too high, a more recent UK-based survey found that it has increased to a shocking 81%.
But the truth is, the restaurant industry has some of the highest rates of mental illness. In a recent survey conducted by Chefs with Issues and the Heirloom Foundation, 73% of participating chefs reported that they suffer from multiple mental health conditions, including depression, anxiety, and substance abuse.
Additionally, chefs and cooks work long hours and find it challenging to make time for exercise. The emotional and social stresses are significant as well.
Head Chef (Chef de Cuisine)
The head chef remains at the top of the hierarchy in restaurant kitchens without an executive chef. Like an executive chef, this person controls all aspects of the kitchen. They are responsible for creating menus, controlling kitchen costs, and managing the kitchen staff.
Passion: A great chef has to be passionate about food and cooking. They have to genuinely enjoy the whole process of procuring, preparing, cooking and serving food and have to be able to design menus too. Stamina: An essential quality of a true chef is stamina.
For sure, you'll need to accept that long hours and hard work are still the norm when working as a chef Down Under. But as a trained chef there's real opportunity to make a good living at the same time as progressing the career plan. After all, Australia enjoys the highest minimum wage in the world.
Working in a kitchen, you're going to be standing and moving around for at least 8 hours. You'll also need to be lifting heavy pots of food, carrying large bags of food, and stocking walk-ins with food, which can put a strain on your body.
A career in the culinary profession is a stressful endeavor that can lead to chef burnout – a real problem in the culinary workplace today. Psychologists define burnout as a syndrome resulting from unmanageable stress, exhaustion and negativism related to one's job.
A career as a chef allows individuals to remain physically active. They spend most of their workdays standing and walking, making this an ideal job for those who want to be physically active.
Some adults with ADHD flourish in the culinary arts because the work is creative and relatively unaffected by ADHD-related deficits. Cooking requires you to focus on the task at hand and take immediate steps to create a finished product, while not demanding long-range planning or lots of working memory.
Additionally, 74% of chefs and staff feel burned out due to sleep deprivation among other hardships, according to data from FairKitchens.com.
That study, published in the Journal of Positive Psychology, suggests that people who frequently take on small, creative projects like baking or cooking report feeling more relaxed and happier in their everyday lives.
If you find that you are overly irritable or having difficulty controlling your anger, you may be experiencing chef burnout. – Annoyed. If customers and sous chefs are starting to annoy you or you recognize that you are starting to criticize your sous chef, you may be burnt out and need to take a break.
On average, culinary chefs rate the meaningfulness of their work a 2.7/5. While most culinary chefs aren't very fulfilled by their work, some people may still manage to find meaning in it.
Chefs are nearly twice as likely to be addicted to alcohol and drugs as the wider population and 9% more vulnerable to suicide.