I ended yesterday's Cooldown email with some brief thoughts on rigorous thinking, and I want to expand more on that here.

I was ordering eggs at the egg station during our staycation over the weekend:

"Do you have ham?", I'm looking at the spread of ingredients and don't see any.

"Oh ham? Yes yes we do", the young chef across me says somewhat reassuringly.

"Alright can I get a ham omelette, well done please?"

"Which one?", I don't see him pointing since I already know what I want.

"Just a ham omelette, please", I'm confused, but repeat my order.

"Which one?", he insists again, this time pointing to a tiny laminated menu on the desk that's between us.

It shows three pictures:

"Umm, I'll have A please, with ham only, and well done", I say.

"Alright sir", he replies.

This was such a strange interaction - I've never had to order eggs from a multiple-choice menu at an egg station before.

If I had to guess, that chef is fresh out of culinary school in which after spending years learning the craft, he's stuck working under a robotic system where he points guess to an ABC menu of eggs.

I have enormous respect for anyone in the service industry, especially chefs.

They work long hours, and for many, cooking is an art - a skill that takes time and creativity to master. So, to see that young chef reduced to following a rigid system seemed like such a waste of potential talent.

Now, I don't think it's his fault, the hotel probably set up the system that way to 1) reduce order mistakes, and 2) speed up the service.

But as I stood there waiting for my omelette, I see the same thing play out with other guests who came to order:

• A guest orders confidently, usually knowing what they want.
• The chef points to the ABC menu.
• The guest gets confused, and picks one of the limited options.

That whole system didn't sit well with me and I don't think it did for the other guests too.

And do you know how I know I'm right?

Because when I got my omelette, it didn't have ham, and it wasn't well done, and it had everything else on the ingredient spread which I didn't want.

☹️🤦🏻

So this system that the chef was forced to use 1) didn't make things faster because we had a confused interaction, and 2) also got my order wrong.

I could only wonder if all the other guests' orders were wrong too....

It just felt like such a shame to limit this young chef's opportunity to build valuable soft skills like listening well and chatting up with a guest.

This is also how he's being robbed of his ability to build rigorous thinking.

If he had the freedom to take customised orders, he could practice listening carefully, processing information, and delivering exactly what each guest wanted.

Considering that he would be doing this almost daily, I can't image the repercussions it would have on his skills and how he would feel about his job down the line.

This lack of mental engagement in his role might lead to boredom, frustration, and a missed chance to take pride in his work.

Most traditional jobs have forced bureaucracy which make work feel like a chore, and this is why it's important to have your own craft - something you do very often for yourself which you get to call the shots.

Something you consistently strive to get better at, and not just use to pass the time like a hobby.

This is why I send out these daily emails, why I don't skip my daily journalling, and why I try to exercise almost every day.

All of these things are part of my own craft, where no one is boxing me in to their set of rules.

When you own your craft, you build your own kind of rigorous thinking. You learn to listen to yourself, adapt to challenges, and grow on your terms.

I totally understand if your work is consumes you, I've been there myself. But even (and especially) in the busiest seasons, it’s important to carve out a little time for your own craft.

Start small. Make it easy. But most importantly, make it yours. Because in a world that often tells you what to do, this is your chance to decide for yourself.

Nicholas Ng