My grandmother was an amazing baker. So much so that she was locally famous for her banana nut bread. It was so good, people actually used it as currency. Fire and policemen knew her by name and kept an eye on her house because she delivered loaves of bread every month to make sure they were taken care of.
Growing up, us kids all knew this and were immensely proud of being her grandchildren. So, like any dutiful granddaughter, I begged her to show me how to make it. Unfortunately, it was soon painfully obvious that the baking gene cruelly skipped me – completely!
I just COULDN’T get it. As hard as she tried, I couldn’t follow along. As I got older, I realized she never referred to anything – it was all in her head. She could eat something, head into the kitchen and figure it out. She would emerge days or weeks later with a better version than the original. I would be covered in flour with nothing to show for it but lots of dirty dishes. It took me decades to figure out why.
Figure out the process and it becomes easier and repeatable
Grandma was a winger – a little bit of this, a dash of that, a pinch of something else and voila! – perfection.
I am a processer – there has to be a formula for this. Life is only right when you follow the tried and true directions. Comfort comes when everything is in its place.
Remarkably, that’s my talent. While grandma’s comfort zone was winging it – making it slightly different each time. Mine is identifying the best way to do something and doing over and over, the same way, in order to master the process.
Now, I realize that my family will never experience the joy of trying the “newest” version of banana nut bread that I concocted today, but they are very aware that when I master a recipe it will be just as good every time I make it.
We’re here to help you turn your passion into a process
I don’t think my revelation about being a really bad baker contributed to my life’s plan. In fact it’s probably the other way around – finally understanding that I think in terms of processes explained why I just couldn’t get what my poor grandmother struggled for so long to teach me. I think she wanted me to get it as badly as I did, but I’m just not wired that way.
What I do know is that all the joy she got from baking is exactly how I feel when I figure out the process. It’s a puzzle that just begs to be solved. Figure out the process and it becomes easier and repeatable.
Luckily, we convinced her to let us write it down before she passed so we have at least one version of her remarkable bread to enjoy in the future.
If your business is in a place where your creativity is getting in the way of easy and repeatable, let the Scape team help. Your originality needs to be sustained and we’re here to help you turn your passion into a process.
Although I will admit – my processes don’t taste near as good as her banana nut bread!
To your vision,
– DeLynne
