I got let go today.

[u/Beeaybri]

First time in my 15 year career of being a chef.

I was working at a college running their dining hall, with a ton of creative freedom. In nearly 3 years I trained the entire staff from bare basics knowledge, to being able to execute things like pork roulades and etoufee's for 1500 kids, 3 times a day. I revamped the menu for each shift from the bottom up, and created an entire vegan focused menu for one station in the dining hall (im non vegan so it was a challenge). I did so many things, and with one decision the rug was pulled from my feet.

It was due ti budget cuts within the school for low enrollment trends. They had to make up for over 300k of the budget somewhere and I got axed. They made it very clear several times that this decision had nothing to do with performance or a lack of want for me to be there, but it was what was being asked of them financially. I was the chef manager, directly under my chef director. And I ran the floor. 20 employees. Those guys became my family. My dining general manager that let me go was crying while even trying to give me my papers.

I'm distraught. I worked so damn hard. Im sad for myself, but I'm so sad for my team. Its hard being let go, but its even harder having to watch my staff cry after they got the news and I was cleaning out my office.

Its a really hard day. Im trying not to take it personally, or feel less than, or that I didn't do enough. Its just hard.

This is just really really hard. :(

anyone been in this boat?

[u/ChefCharmaine]

My position has been cut a few times for budgetary reasons, so I've learned not to take it personally, not to leave too many personal belongings at work, and to always network, build a portfolio of transferable skills, and document my accomplishments from the day that I walk in the door.

Coping with the loss of colleagues and the loss of direction is another story, but this is how I manage. I usually leave my tools in the trunk of my car, file for unemployment the following day, and then take the next week to not even think about looking for a job. I treat myself to all the things I rarely enjoy when I am working--staying up late to watch movies, sleeping in, grabbing breakfast at the diner and watching all the schmucks dashing off to work, day-drinking, reading, hiking, day-drinking, catching up with friends and family, stopping by the farmers' market and cooking up some comfort food, maybe a little more day-drinking...the point is to treat yourself well and put yourself into a positive mindset of feeling blessed and ready to move forward with your next adventure in the journey of life.

Hope this helps.

Hope tgid

[u/Beeaybri → u/ChefCharmaine]

These are all great ideas. And i did leave my tools in my trunk 😂

I really wanna take some time to process and just find some pieces of myself that I lost along the way.

Would you maybe be able to help me come up woth some transferable skills? Im really not so good at that.

[u/TheZad → u/Beeaybri]

Think about what makes you great and indispensable, and try to boil it down to the core characteristic or trait within you that makes it all possible.

For instance, you said that you trained your staff up from only basic knowledge to advanced dishes, executed three times a day, serving 1500 people. From that anecdote alone, I can deduce that you have the following transferable skills:

• Time management - 4500 meals a day, and the associated prep times, cook times, etc.
• Project management - planning out what gets cooked with what equipment in whatever order you have to in order to hit your 3 daily deadlines
• Critical thinking and advanced problem solving - anything ever gone sideways during service? Did you think on your feet and pivot to a different strategy to adapt? Did something turn sooner than you hoped, and did you have to think of a different recipe to use the remaining ingredients? Did it taste good, to boot?
• Communication - you trained your staff effectively to develop their skills, and they loved you for it. This is something that is more unique about you than you might realize. A lot of people can do the other things on this list exceptionally well and have accomplished great things, but they lack the patience, empathy, and understanding to teach others. So many people invest all their development points in agility (working quickly and effectively) or strength (able to work long hours and get things DONE), and completely or effectively neglect their intelligence (the ability to talk to someone on a different level as them, meet them there, and work with them to build a skilled and supportive team). It seems that not only can you walk the walk and talk the talk, but you also have enough emotional intelligence to be a leader in the best sense of the word.

You're that secret character that has all of their stats maxed out that you only unlock after beating the game on hard, OP.

You got this ✊️