I have never heard of Anise Seeds.
Let’s not immediately assume I don’t know my way around a kitchen because I can say with certainty that although I’m not a Michelin-level chef, I get by with some scrambled eggs and other things. Ham and cheese sandwiches.
My aunt's visit to our home the past two weeks has been full of amazing Dominican food from my childhood that I don’t eat regularly, laughs, naps, tons of stories from the island, and more naps.
To make her “arepitas de yuca” (yuca fritters) recipe, which is incredibly hard to explain but here’s a picture…
she needed anise seed.
I did a quick Google search and found that anise has a substitute called fennel and although these two seeds are very similar, fennel is not anise.
I don’t care much, especially if it’s a substitute. Some substitutes are ok and don’t make much of a difference. And to be honest, I’m not the king of the kitchen, so I find substitutes to be the most adequate way to get us, peons, into the kitchen to make our own stuff.
After suggesting this swap, my aunt not only looked at me like I was crazy but proceeded to tell me.
You see it’s not about the swap for her, it’s about the principal. The true flavor, the true ingredients. You can’t use fennel seed, or star anise to make them.
Then I got to thinking…what a dedicated and fervent grasp on principle!
How many of us substitute one ingredient in our lives for another when we know the original one is the right one? When the original is the one that makes the recipe what it needs to be?
Yet we let people on our teams get away with stuff they shouldn’t be doing. This is not good. It makes for a bad recipe. It makes for a bad workplace. It’s not good.
One day we let one thing “slide” and then another and another and another and then it starts looking like Cirque De Soleil with international recognition and revenue. Let’s be real here. Leaders need to look at the environment we create with the same protective nature as my aunt does her recipes. If not, we’re eating crap.
Im not advocating for the complete dismissal all of new things, or changes, or meeting halfway, im talking about knowing exactly what items are accepted and what items are not. Every substitute we use changes our recipe and people are quitting jobs easier than throwing away food they don’t like.
I encourage you to ask yourself, this week, am I substituting this current behavior for a behavior I know should be a part of our culture here, and if the answer is yes then get to work and start figuring out how to stop it from happening.
Plus, if my aunt ever gets wind of it, we’re all screwed. lol.
1 - What 570 Experts Predict the Future of Work Will Look Like
2 - Went to a car show by the beach
A funny, for you.
Upcoming:
1 - Discover Your Leadership Voice Free Workshop on 13 November 2024 in Calvert County Maryland. More to come!
2 - Take your free 5 Voice assessment here.
Thank you for reading this week’s edition! See you on the next one.