What I learned from being a Baker.

In the early hours of dawn there’ll be bakers clocking in for work at a Tim Hortons. They’ll arrive focused and with a sense of determination for their morning bake. They know on average they serve about 300 guests per hour in the morning rush.

I’ve done this multiple times at the Head office of Tim Hortons in Oakville and my own family store in Toronto. It’s an experience that pleasures my soul for being able to prepare and subsequently serve people their morning croissant or breakfast sandwich.

As I’ve not only baked but managed bakers I’ve known one constant characteristic in them. Their ability to consistently thrive and deal with pressure in an environment of donut frenzy breakfast hungry chaos. They are usually a one man team and if they slip the business sales for the day slip with them.

Consequently predicting the volume of guests that arrive in the store comes through intuitive experience. You understand that Mondays are less busier than Thursdays or Fridays. Simply using your intuition like this is what makes the difference between a great baker and an average one. It’s this ability to know what’s going to happen before it happens. That way you are prepared for the best and worst case scenarios.

Now, people in life generally hate having old things. That’s why freshness and quality are important. We don’t want something sitting around for a long time, it loses value. Baking in small batches instills freshness in products for guests. The truth is we want people to have a donut as soon as it gets out of the oven, that’s when a donut tastes the best. That’s when it melts in your mouth. That’s when you keep repeating in your head. “Damn, that’s a good donut.” Ask a baker at a Tim Hortons to bake you six fresh chocolate glazed donuts. I promise it’ll be worth the wait.

Things are fresh due to the principle of FIFO. First in and first out which pertains to using former products in the fridge before using newer ones. Organizing your fridge will always be a consistent theme in life. Priorities will follow suit. First things first.

After merchandising a hundred or so products, cleaning the kitchen and regularly checking in with their supervisor the day is done. During the last hours of the bakers shift a sense of accomplishment will overcome them. They will go home to their wife or family. Relax while playing with their kids or hit the gym to get a work out in. Then come back in the morning to do it all over again.