Food Just Tastes Better with Chopsticks
Yeah, I know… a silly title for a not-so-silly post.
I’m a huge fan of Asian cuisine. Anywhere from Mongolian Beef all the way to Tako (Octopus Sushi). The flavors are exquisite, the textures are second to none and for me, it never gets old.
Something I noticed though…is that I don’t enjoy it as much when I have to eat it with a fork. Has anyone else experienced this? Why is it that Asian food tends to just taste better with chopsticks?
In fact… My youngest son has taken a likeness towards chopsticks more as a novelty so I sometimes let him eat other foods that weren’t necessarily made with chopsticks in mind. (AKA – Kraft Mac N’ Cheese, Waffles, Bacon) To further entertain myself and my son, I also sat down with him and attempted to eat these foods with chopsticks as well. Now even though we probably looked silly doing this…something happened.
I was enjoying eating those foods more! Just like the Asian cuisine I eat…I was getting a little more enjoyment out of eating every day foods that were meant for your fingers or a fork and spoon.
I asked myself why this was. I asked myself why a different type of utensil could have such a different impact on the pleasure I got from eating it. During these seemingly unimportant moments of thought. I came up with a few conclusions:
1.) I was forced to take smaller bites.
2.) I had to work a little harder to take those smaller bites.
3.) I had more time to savor each bite.
4.) I took a little more time to finish my meal.
5.) No matter how hungry I am, I was forced to pace myself.
There were a few more ideas I came up with on the why…but after coming up with these. I started thinking about it from a different angle – Success!
In my opinion, success can be so much sweeter if you approach it like using chopsticks. Think about it! Let’s go back to the food analogy. When you’re really hungry…we tend to scarf food down our gullets. Stuffing our face until our plate is empty only to find out we are still hungry…OR…we’re miserably full. When the latter happens, we have to lay down, or sit in misery until our stomach digests everything. Until then though, we’re lethargic, slow, grumpy, tired…in other words, for the most part we are completely useless until we feel better.
Now let’s go back to the success angle I brought up.
When we’re hungry for success. Some of us make the mistake of piling up our plate with “food” and with that hunger we have… we just stuff our faces. This “food” I’m talking about could represent knowledge, products, books, motivational CDs or anything else that may come to mind.
When we make this mistake, we get information overload. We can end up “miserably full” so to speak. This causes us to be lethargic and unproductive. In other words; we have no idea where to start now because we “ate too much”!
So let’s take a step back and approach success with the analogy of chopsticks.
What if we filled our plate with a reasonable portion of the information and/or skills we’re looking to learn. Now, instead of shoveling it down our throats. What if we grab some metaphorical chopsticks and take a little extra time taking a piece at a time.
If we use this approach…Not only will we avoid getting too full, but we would enjoy the process SO much better wouldn’t we? Think about it! Let’s take a look at the reasons I posted above.
1.) I was forced to take smaller bites.
You no longer give yourself the ability to bite off more than you can reasonably chew. Now each bite you take won’t be such a chore. (AKA – Each step you take towards success won’t seem so daunting.)
2.) I had to work a little harder to take those smaller bites.
You now can’t just scoop the “food” up and eat it. You have to plan out how you’re going to grab each piece before you even think about putting it in your mouth. (AKA – Each “bite” you take now, you have to plan out how you’re going to approach that bite before ever picking it up. You’re planning ahead.)
3.) I had more time to savor each bite.
Now after each step you take, you know you did the work to accomplish it. (AKA – You can relish in your success no matter how small it may seem. Each step you take, now has a reward.)
4.) I took a little more time to finish my meal.
You now prevent yourself from getting ahead of yourself and finishing a meal before your brain tells you you’re “full”. (AKA – Success doesn’t happen overnight. It takes time. For some people, it can take longer than others. But the point is that you’re enjoying it every step of the way.)
5.) No matter how hungry I am, I was forced to pace myself.
You can now approach your meal without worrying about being miserable after finishing it. You can go at a pace that allows you have better judgement on when you should stop or if you should keep eating. (AKA – No matter how hungry for success you are… you still need to go at a pace you can reasonably handle. Forcing yourself to go at a certain pace ensures consistency.)
Kind of a cool analogy if you ask me. You as a reader may not think so, but I made it up so I can say I think my idea is a good one. (ha-ha)
With that said, I ask that you evaluate where you are right now. What level of success are you hoping to achieve? Are you piling your plate too high? Are you eating too fast? Are you not savoring every bite you take and most important of all…are you getting so full that you find yourself miserable after the meal?
If you’re finding yourself nodding in agreement to this article. Just remember to look at success as your meal and your brain as the chopsticks. Take smaller bites, take smaller portions, savor every moment. After all, food just tastes better with chopsticks.
