Cape Town - LIONS offer valuable insight into team work a former game ranger told a group of aspiring young chefs at the launch of an annual cooking competition.
Motivational speaker Lorne Sulcas addressed the chefs at a workshop at the One&Only on Wednesday, as they prepare to compete in the Reaching for Young Stars contest which will award the winning team a three-month internship in France.
“Lions are the only social cats, and it is teamwork that allows them to perform exceptionally while hunting. When you work in a team, every member of the team is exceptionally powerful and important,” said Sulcas.
He added: “You cannot do it alone. In the wild, just as in everyday life, everyone’s contribution is critical to achieving the mission you have set out to achieve.”
The 11th Reaching for Young Stars event, hosted by the One&Only culinary skills training group Showcook.com, aims to inspire the young chefs from the Western Cape’s hospitality academies.
Annette Kesler and Chania Morritt-Smith of Showcook.com believe that South Africa should continue to shine the light on mentorship, learning and skills sharing.
Kesler said: “At this workshop, we aim to broaden minds, give the tools to fuel ambition and the ability to reach out with more confidence.”
“If we are to continue as one of the leading hospitality industries of international tourism, we cannot afford to take the spotlight off these things,” Morritt-Smith added.
Sulcas, who used to track and photograph the big cats of Africa, his personal experience and insight with the culinary students. He believes that some of the secrets to success can easily be learned from these animals.
He said another admirable quality of lions was that they were very strategic in their approach.
“Doing what you do takes strategy but strategy is nothing without execution. Act on what you want to achieve and run with it”.
While there are many lessons to be learned from all of the big five animals, Sulcas saw it most fitting to share specifically about the lion as the hospitality industry is not for the faint-hearted.
“If you don’t hunt, you don’t eat - only the strongest will make it.”