Chef Life Radio

Why Survival Mode Kills Leadership Before It Kills You The holiday season doesn't create problems in your kitchen, it reveals them. When the heat is highest and the pressure builds, what surfaces isn't just about staffing shortages or vendor issues. It's about the stories we tell ourselves about what leadership actually means. ------------------- Register for the free monthly Culinary Leadership Lab: a live working space for chefs ready to lead without losing themselves @https://thecheflifebrigade.com/LeadershipLab -------------------- "Your team doesn't need your sacrifice. They need your steadiness."In this raw and necessary episode of Chef Life Radio, we confront the uncomfortable truth about survival mode in culinary leadership. While you're grinding through another holiday hell week, pushing through exhaustion, and wearing depletion like a badge of honor, something deeper is happening that demands your attention. -------------------- Stop chasing stars and start building a career that actually works. Join the National Champions at A-B Tech in Asheville for hands-on training that respects the hustle without losing the soul. Real tools for real chefs at https://link.chefliferadio.com/abtech ----------------------- The Shark Mentality That's Killing Us We've normalized the belief that if we stop moving, we die. But what if constant motion isn't strength—it's avoidance? What if the very thing we think keeps us alive is actually preventing us from truly living? Through the story of a chef who landed his dream role at double his salary, we explore the profound impact of one simple question: How are you really? Not how's the prep list, not how's service—how are you? When Pressure Exposes the Cracks Discover why survival mode might get you through a shift, but it will destroy your culture: How exhaustion gets rewarded while sustainability gets ignoredWhy depleted leaders become unpredictable, eroding trust faster than angerThe difference between leadership and simply outrunning the truth The Leadership Loop That Changes Everything Learn a practical four-step approach to leading when everything feels like it's falling apart: Naming the cracks where they actually areContextualizing why change matters nowModeling the behavior you're asking forHolding the line when people-pleasing feels easier Beyond the Kitchen Walls This conversation extends beyond the pass to examine how we show up at home. Have you told your family what this season actually requires? Or do you just disappear and hope they understand? Work-life harmony isn't about equal time—it's about named expectations and conscious consent. The Maintenance Your Leadership Needs Explore why steady-state self-care isn't indulgent—it's operational. When your nervous system is fried, everything downstream distorts. The chefs who last aren't the ones who move fastest; they're the ones who know when to stop...