Why do we all need a Gordon Ramsay in our lives.

It’s lately been difficult to not escape the excellent chef and brilliant businessman Gorday Ramsay on TV. He is everywhere presenting shows, coming up sharp and intelligent insights on cooking methods and in the bargain providing fueling the audiences with much drama and some colorful expletives and lately has been shredding his twitter followers in pieces as he delivers some hard home truths.

At first most might hate him for being a self-obsessed and prejudice or can come across as a plain bully. But the more I watch the more my admiration for him grows purely for his ability to challenge people to do and be better or see things with a fresh perspective.

While you might not want to be friends with such a character but perhaps true that we all need a doze of Gordon Ramsays in our lives at certain key junctures.

Thinking of which we all have perhaps had a Gordon Ramsay in our lives that we have failed to acknowledge in several forms.

Remember that one School Teacher or College Professor who was invariably unsatisfied and always find the missing colons in your sentences or equations.

That hypercritical boss who would only spot that one failure of the so many good that has happened.  

The disgruntled client with daunting yardsticks who ensured bonuses were hard to come.

The dad who refused to sign up for helicopter parenting.

All the above might have contributed immensely to our growth both personally and professional. We called them many words crazy, psycho, unrealistic, impossible. But all these reactions were needed to stir us up so that we are not just floating the surface level but gradually build up the our skills and knowledge and saved us in succumbing to unhealthy praise for what was ‘just doing your job’.

Treat praise as sugar, it is nice and can go a long way and too much of it could cause unintended consequences.   

In today’s day and age where being poly-skilled is a norm focusing on reality and what is actually within ones control is key in developing the habit and drive towards excellence.

The pressure on young chefs today is far greater than ever before in terms of social skills, marketing skills, cooking skills, personality and, more importantly, delivering on the plate. So you need to be strong. Physically fit. So my chefs get weighed every time they come into the kitchen.

— Gordon Ramsay