Is there anything Gordon Ramsay can’t do? It looks like the man can do it all, and succeeds in everything he does. He can host and produce shows, he can run 24 restaurants on different locations around the world and can even run and finish a marathon and compete in the Kona World Championships. Did we mention he is also a devoted husband and father of four beautiful children?
So how does he do it? According to the man himself it’s because gives all of projects (personal as well as professional) his full attention and effort. “The secret of my success is that I take nothing for granted. I go into every restaurant, every program, as if it’s the first day. And I give 110%. Because it’s not that money that turns me on. I find that side slightly embarrassing. It’s wonderful and it’s nice, but it doesn’t make you a better chef. The fundamental crux of a successful chef is being true to what you do,” Ramsay explained during an interview with Variety.com.
This doesn’t come as a huge surprise, because the people in his life that are close to him describe Ramsay as fearless, brilliant, and an extreme perfectionist, who learns fast from his successes as well as his mistakes.
But those same people also can point out his flaws, ‘constantly swearing’ being one of them.
So how did Ramsay rise to stardom you ask? Well that’s a story on its own. Growing up in Scotland, he and his family didn’t go to fancy restaurants like the ones he owns now. So, the one person who could teach him some cooking skills was his mother, who always put a homemade meal on the table. “We didn’t have a glamorous cuisine. It felt so luxurious because it was homemade. I laugh when I see people playing with food. I mean, God Almighty, you’d get clipped around the ear!” Ramsay reminisced about his childhood.
But even though he had a deep-rooted love and respect for his mother’s cooking, Ramsay dreamed of being a professional soccer player but eventually had to give up that dream due to an injury. That’s when he started cooking himself. He even wanted to go to culinary school but almost didn’t get in because of the fact that his parents just simply couldn’t afford it.
Luckily, he got into culinary school and landed a job in a hotel restaurant where he was shocked by everything that went wrong in his eyes. He later moved to London were he got to work in high-pressure kitchens and eventually opened his first restaurant named ‘Gordon Ramsay’, which eared three Michelin stars.
That accomplishment didn’t come without hard work and putting a little pressure on himself. “I thrive on it. I think pressure’s healthy,” Ramsay said. And he is not just putting pressure on himself but also on his staff. Ramsay has always been working hard for everything he has accomplished and expects the same of the people who work for him.
“The power of the brand I want to equate with quality. I’m always asked, ‘You’re such a hands-on chef. Who does the food when you’re not there? (The answer is) the same people who do it when I am there. You need to equate that level of quality, and then drill a team to make sure that they deliver,” he continued.