Today success is all about learning.  Learning is the single most important tool for people, teams and even cooks that want to get ahead and stay ahead in this economy.  Initiating and maintaining learning programs can be very exciting.  The finest institutions of higher learning have realized the success of devoting time to the development of management/leadership training programs.  We in the foodservice business must make the same commitment to our restaurants.

The growth and relative profitability of our industry over the past decade has been so seductive that many of us have become complacent, ignoring the warning signs in the form of large employee turnover rates in the kitchens we manage.  Foodservice has not yet employed learning strategies that are common to high level executive training programs and even academia…….and aren't we as important?  The result has been bland creative staffs that offer little to no differentiation from that of the competition.  This must change or we'll "die!"
To attract and keep the best and brightest to foodservice people, we must develop, in my opinion, learning-knowledge cultures targeted to that group.  The new generations are better educated, computer savvy and, in many ways, "knowledge junkies."  They gobble up whatever can help them succeed.  We need to nourish their appetites for knowledge.
A successful learning culture makes their day-to-day vision real.  In such a culture determining who gets credit for what is important.  It's how excellence is rewarded, and, yes, how failure is dealt with.  In the long run, this culture determines a restaurant's life or death.
Business can only grow as quickly as our thinking does.  I suggest that we commit to practicing the culture of learning for 15 minutes a day.  It will shift our mindset from now thinking to the future.  It is the single best investment we have in building our enterprise.
Great restaurants and great chefs do things that leave a great legacy.  They're always asking themselves 3 important questions: "How do I make my restaurant a vehicle for making a difference in the market?"  How do I make my restaurant a destination?  How do I retain customers?"  The answer always lies in the culture of learning they create among the staff. 
It is a fact that if we focus on problems, we will get more problems.  If we focus on solutions to problems, the door will open to reveal solutions.  Where is the collective attention right now…..stop and think…..in your business - on the problems or on the solutions. What we believe in magnetize, magnify and attract.  Our attitude is always a mirror of how we think.  We must recognize the value of what we can offer and go about the task of raising our mental sights on those values.  We determine the kind of customer we want to attract and set about attracting them.  We magnify our strength and maintain.  The magnetism is us, honest.

Mindset changes require a persistent focus and a disciplined effort to shift deeply-embedded thinking to a new level.  How ever, as I said earlier, just 15 minutes per day will master the principles we've addressed here.  Your thinking can reap great rewards with so little effort.  Without education, the mindsets among staff will never change.  With out attitude adjustments and establishing a culture of learning with in our establishment, we will surely reflect poorly to the public and business plus our reputations will suffer for it.

How does all this link to your membership in the ACF?  Attitude, team work, persistent and ongoing learning, positive rather than negative, us getting along together, helps locate and attract new and quality members.  Thus, together we, no, you will built a strong and fruitful association.  The rewards are so fulfilling.  We all have a mindset that we're the hub of our world……true, I guess, but if we allow the world to benefit from sharing our collective experiences, both "the world," you and me will benefit.  It's easy….believe me.
Certify!  Now, that's an "ego trip" satisfied.  It's a destination we should all pursue.  Once you become certified you will know how to create a "culture of learning" because you've gone through the mechanics of the certification process.  You will, once certified, be better prepared to demonstrate to everyone in your restaurant the road to success.  ACF certification puts the finishing touch on your career.  Do it for yourself.  Pride is earned.