“A friend got me into this. He kept pushing me to come work with him. When I eventually needed a job he brought me in, telling me the chef was going to teach me everything I needed to know – I had nothing to worry about. He did teach me a lot, I can’t say otherwise. But, my friend was a little lazy and I ended up helping him complete his tasks. I’m still thankful though. At the beginning this was fine for me, I was learning. Eventually it was time to move on to other kitchens. It’s nice that, even though I didn’t go to culinary school to get a degree, the industry values me and my work and want me to come work for them. They value me for my skills – not my diplomas.”