Work Journals - "Who put cheese on the table?"

Preparing for baking fairy cupcakes with my niece and nephew, I gleaned a few life lessons along the way. This was to be their first time of making cupcakes with icing, sprinkles, stars and the whole lot. 

While waiting for them I thought I'd "prepare" all the ingredients - measure out each one and package separately in containers so they would just need to do the mixing, nice and easy. Noticed there was no icing sugar and taking my Mum's suggestion, I improvised by blending granulated sugar until it was just the right texture.

Sure enough we made the cupcakes in the end and had fun while doing it. Whilst we had division of labour in the mixing, cracking, squeezing and icing, I couldn't help but think that these young ones missed out on a valuable lesson - how to be creative in problem-solving when things don't go according to the "recipe".

Rather than try to save them the uncertainty of not knowing what to do when not having icing sugar, it would help them to observe the problem and to be a part of the solution by either thinking of alternatives or at least seeing how a solution was devised.

At the end of the day a recipe is just that - a recipe. It is a set of instructions for making something from various ingredients; a formula or procedure for doing or attaining something (Merriam-Webster dictionary online 2019). 

There are numerous industry methodologies, best practices, professional and personal dos and don'ts however "lack", "scarcity", "limited resources" are some key drivers for creativity. When trying out something new or different, let's be open to failure and "not knowing", both from ourselves and from others. Failing well (in a way that builds resilience, motivation and empathy) and failing fast (learning quickly) is a recipe for success and has been known to extend lives.

So, next time we find ourselves lacking, it's a good time to ditch the recipes, take what we have (granulated sugar) and make the most of it (icing sugar).

Happy baking!!!

Say it with Jachory,

;-) Susie