May 24

May 24 The Dream Is Free, But The Hustle Is Sold Separately

The Dream Is Free, But The Hustle Is Sold Separately

By: Devorah Kahan

"Never underestimate the power of coffee and a girl with a dream."

Can I get an amen?!

If you know me, you know that:

a) I always have a drink on hand(preferably Iced Coffee)

b) I am a big believer in doing what you love and loving what you do.

I was always that kid watching Food Network( yess even sometimes over cartoons:) and had my favorite chefs that I wanted to be. The Barefoot Contessa being my personal fave. Her simplicity and elegance inspired me, and even today, I can binge-watch all her cooking shows because "How bad can that be??" (if you got the reference we can be friends:)

Aside from watching people on tv, I loved being in the kitchen watching my mother z" l cook with her golden hands. She would always tell me the secret to making any dish taste good was making it with love. To this day, I carry that line with me everywhere I go.

From a very young age, I discovered my creative side and knew I had to work in a field where I could develop it. Between you and me being a pop star was my first thought:) I love music and thought I could have "the best of both worlds".....but being a frum girl, I knew that idea was out:(

Food always spoke to me, and I knew it was something you can connect to anyone with and hopefully inspire. After seminary, I attended CKCA, a kosher culinary arts program in Brooklyn, and landed my first job ever (eeeek) in a private catering company. From there, I went on to intern for some of the biggest names in the Kosher Food world, with a mix of cooking and social media/marketing. I realized within this field; there were so many paths you can take and expand one's creativity, whether it was whipping up and plating beautiful dishes or designing social media posts for the public to drool over:). With this realization, I kept looking for more significant opportunities while at the same time, finally taking that step to work on building my name. I was and still am terrified at times of putting myself out there. For years a good friend and I worked on releasing a cookbook. A small crazy idea that was born when we were both in seminary but eventually grew and became published this year by Israel Bookshops (#OPOP:)

Thinking of my career journey and the baby steps that brought me to where I am brings me back to one of my favorite quotes.

"The dream is free. But the hustle is sold separately".

I am all about finding who you are and what makes you, you. What makes you smile. What moves you and what you are passionate about. There is purpose to that passion, and whatever it may be for you, pursue it. Go for that dream even though the road to obtaining it will be hard. I always thought one dreams of achieving something, and then that's it. But what I learned is that:

a)There is always something more to achieve. It's not one and done. Your dreams are continually expanding and growing, just like you.

b) Don't be scared to be different than your peers and everyone around you. I, by no means, took the path of my friends and classmates. But I love that. Embrace your uniqueness.

c)Surround yourself with a solid support system. If they are not cheering you on and adding to your growth #Bye,🏻 Not everyone will have your best intentions in mind. Be aware of that, but don't let that ever stop you from going after what you want.

d) And last but not least....make sure whatever you invest yourself in is something you truly love. There will be days where you want to give up and throw it all away. Maybe for a moment, "you will," but when you really love what you do, you will always win over any negative emotions you will experience.

You got this🏻

I know you do.