Real-World McAdvice at CIA Commencement Address

Dan Coudreaut, director of culinary innovation for McDonald’s USA, gave the commencement address recently to 63 new graduates of The Culinary Institute of America. Coudreaut, a 1995 graduate of the Hyde Park, N.Y., school, told the students—recipients of associate degrees in culinary arts and baking and pastry arts—to “keep your knife sharp.”

By Staff -- Restaurants & Institutions, 4/1/2008

Dan Coudreaut, director of culinary innovation for McDonald’s USA, gave the commencement address recently to 63 new graduates of The Culinary Institute of America. Coudreaut, a 1995 graduate of the Hyde Park, N.Y., school, told the students—recipients of associate degrees in culinary arts and baking and pastry arts—to “keep your knife sharp.”

"Thank you.

It is an honor and a pleasure to be with you here today and to share in the celebration of your achievements. You have made it through mountains of pots in Skill Class, ungodly hours for breakfast cookery, flights of wines in Wine and Menu and tableside service in the Escoffier Room.

Congratulations!

I am here today to encourage you to savor this moment. For tomorrow your journey begins and the tasks this school has tried to prepare you for will begin. Expectations have just risen, you are alumni of the best culinary school in the world and with that distinct title comes much responsibility, so … keep the Knife Sharp.

I will share with you something I am embarrassed to say. I have a hard time sharpening a knife. I have worked in kitchens and with knives for 25 plus years, I am responsible for the culinary direction of McDonald’s USA - the world largest restaurant chain, I have cooked for ex-presidents, princes and movie stars. And I have yet to master one of the most fundamental tasks of being a cook, sharpening a knife. It is not from a lack of understanding, I was taught to use a 20-degree angle the full length of the stone, nice even strokes. But sometimes I get it and sometimes I don’t.

But isn’t that just like life?

Like Life ... Keeping the knife sharp takes patience. If I rush it and get the angle wrong and I’m back at square one.

Like Life ... Keeping the knife sharp takes persistence and daily attention.

Like Life ... Keeping the knife sharp takes respect. If I’m careless I could cut myself and be scarred for life. Or worse, I could cut someone else and cause a wound that might never heal.

Like Life ... Keeping the knife sharp sometimes takes outside help. If it gets too dull you might have to take to a professional to repair it.

Like Life ... Keeping the knife sharp takes love, finesse and skill.

So why is this guy telling us how to sharpen a knife?

We just graduated.

It’s a metaphor PEOPLE! Stay with me.

Keeping your knife sharp means … Your journey has just begun. There is no destination only the journey and it takes patience. Don’t rush your experiences. Let them sink in and affect you. Learn from your mistakes and don’t let your today be cluttering with what you think your tomorrow should be. You will never arrive and yet everyday you are there.

Keeping your knife sharp means … It will take daily attention to become the best you can be. It takes daily self-evaluation and constructive self-criticism to keep your ego in check. A Chef is just a Great Cook that has been given the responsibility to run the kitchen. Your focus should be on becoming that great cook. You need to focus on being the best you can possibly be today, this minute. Constantly do more than you are expected to do. Each time you succeed your bar gets raised. It really is a “what have you done for me lately?” world and that’s OK. … Embrace it.

The reward for doing a great job is the opportunity to do more. Learn to love the work or stay home.

Maybe then someone will have the confidence in you and give you the reins.

Keeping your knife sharp means … Respecting yourself and more importantly respecting everyone around you. The challenge of a great chef is not the cooking he or she can do at the stove top, it is the cooking he or she can do through the hands of others and with the skills of others. It is realizing we are nothing without the Brigade--the Team. It’s understanding that your words and actions have consequences and lasting effects. It’s understanding the big picture - that every person’s contribution to the overall experience is important. From the hostess to the dishwasher, the landscaper to the general manager, and CEO to the night maintenance person. It is making sure everyone on your team not only feels valued …but in reality is valued and respected.

Keeping your knife sharp means … Knowing when to ask for help. We can’t do it alone and no one ever said we had to. It’s a sign of strength to ask for help. I know I don’t have all of the answers and I will never pretend to. Answers can come from anywhere and that’s the secret. You can learn from anyone if you are willing.

Keeping your knife sharp means … It will take love. I hope you’ve found your passion. If you haven’t yet I hope you never stop looking. Einstein said, “In my experience the best creative work is never done when one is unhappy”. Love is the goal. We human beings are so fragile. We are on this earth for a finite amount of time. It is critical that we love what we do. You have to cook with love; it is what makes skilled cooks Great Cooks.

Lastly keep your knife sharp and have fun doing it! We have picked a great profession in a wonderful Industry. The Hospitality Industry. We are not dentists or accountants. We are culinarians. People come to us because they want to, not because they have to.

So respect your chosen profession.

Realize that many before you have done much to build this profession to what it is today. Today you have a choice to make. Are you going to add to it or are you going to take away from it? Are you going to lift this profession up or are you going to tear it down? Don’t say what your answer is … your actions will tell us. When you put on that white chef’s jacket you are making a statement. You are saying to the world I am a culinarian. You can wear it with your own style … but most of all wear it with pride. The pride of generations of chefs before you and generations of chefs after you.

Thank you.

Keep your knife sharp."