Leaders come in many forms and somewhere in the mix is culinary arts student Kayla Lulua, who was recently selected by the culinary program to attend a conference emphasizing female leaders in trades.

The event was fast-paced and presentations built on each other, said Lulua, who just completed her Cook 2 training and has applied for the Professional Cook 3 apprenticeship program to begin in late August.

Still digesting what she heard, at least two things stood out:

“To be a good leader, you need to have confidence, but confidence is a touch-and-go thing. Some people may view confidence as a negative thing, so you have to be careful with it and you should be able to control it.”

Also important was being reminded of where leaders come from—they come from everywhere. For someone from Williams Lake with its population of about 11,000, that was good to hear.

Liked by her classmates, many are comfortable enough to question while others seek her opinion. She enjoys what’s unfolded so far and is excited for what what lies ahead.

So are her instructors.

“What impresses me about Kayla is the personal growth I have seen over the last two years,” said culinary faculty member Kimberly Johnstone. “At this point in Kayla’s career, she has a strong foundation of knowledge to build on and has a confidence in her abilities to lead other people on a successful path. With those two attributes, I think she is well on her way in the food service industry.”

What follows is a brief Question and Answer with Lulua, where she discusses leadership traits, things learned in the culinary program and underrated foods.

What are five aspects of a leader?

Respect—”The biggest thing is respect. You need to have it because if nobody respects you, then no one is really going to take anything you have to say for real.”

Don’t abuse power—”Don’t abuse the respect you get by trying to be everyone’s friend.”

If you’re not prepared to do something yourself, don’t ask someone to do it for you—“That’s a pinnacle of leadership.”

Be firm without getting into debates—Lulua recalled a particular situation where, “I tried to keep a neutral voice and not yell or get agitated. I did talk to the person to the extent where they were starting to get mad, giving me a bunch of answers. But what I should do next time is be firm and not get into a huge debate about it.”

Be approachable—”I’ve worked on this and students come to me me with questions and they respect my answers. Being more approachable definitely helps people feel comfortable and not intimidated about asking simple questions. Before, people never asked me questions that they were concerned about—questions about their dish, asking for my opinion. But now they do because I have their respect and am now more approachable.”

Bonus tip—”Rather than tell someone to do something, it’s easier to show steps, to walk them through it while you’re doing it together. Once they understand how to do something fully, then you can let them go for it.”

What is the coolest pro move you’ve learned so far in the culinary program?

“Brunoise. That’s the tiniest little dice you can get. That’s fun for me to do.”

What is your favourite dish to prepare?

“I always tell people I love potatoes. They’re nothing new, but there are so many ways you can prepare them.”
Four favourite ways for you? “Mashed, scallopini, Jackson twice baked and croquettes.”

Five underrated foods?

Parsnips—”When we serve them to people, people will ask, ‘Can I have more potatoes?’ They’re just white carrots, have the same texture as a carrot and are actually really tasty.”

Squashes—”There are a lot of people who don’t cook them, probably because they take so long. Acorn squash, butternut and things like that are really sweet tasting.”

Turnip and rutabaga—”Turnip and rutabaga are similar. I was eating them raw today and was thinking, ‘These are great and I don’t know why I’ve never tasted them raw before.’”

Cauliflower—”I’ve been finding ways to eat cauliflower because I never bothered to eat much of it before the program. But when you prepare cauliflower a different way, it can have a different taste. It’s sort of bland when it’s raw, but it’s a clean slate with a lot of vitamins and nutritional value.”

Stocks—”A lot of people don’t understand how much work goes into making one. When they’re drinking or eating one, they may think incorrectly that it’s a broth.”