Bake Till You Drop

On Sunday I nearly lost it. I mean sitting in a chair, face flat on hands: I can't bake anymore. I made 20 Biscaitie each for 15 different people, that's 300 Biscaitie all made out of my dinky home oven. On top of that was packaging: wrap them, bag them, tie a bow, label and cushion them, tape them up in boxes and trudge them down to the post office. I'm not ungrateful for the task, because running a baking company I realize is mostly figuring out the logistics. Plus the sense of accomplishment at the end was immense! But the whole "bake till you drop" got me thinking: what is it about starting a new process that can be so frustrating? 

It's the learning curve. I started a new job recently too. I'm a barista at The Queens Kickshaw in Astoria. As with starting my last job, there's a lot of details to remember fast when someone orders a drink. Everything has a place that it's kept, every drink has a cup it's prepared in, every second counts. But when you're learning you make mistakes. You do the wrong thing and it's the only way to seal the idea in your mind that no, an americano is does not go in the small latte cup.

The good news? Every time you repeat a process it gets easier. I now know all the things I need for my shipping including tidbits like "to" and "from." So long as you don't drop, you've learned something. With this in mind, I push on to the next order: this time 100 boxes to ship, followed by a holiday bazaar and a catered office Holiday Party!