Baking requires skills, a good pair of hands, and the knowledge, on top of the ingredients and the tools. Apart from these, however, you need something more if you want to upgrade your technical capability. After all, there is science that’s involved in what people see as just baking. Like cooking, baking requires an accurate measurement of ingredients and time, sprinkled with a bit of patience.
Baking for a living requires more than just knowledge of the process. You will also need to master other qualities, including the following:
Being Organized
When you visit any bakery at Sterling Heights, you’ll find that their main quality is that their merchandise and their tools are neatly organized. This is a quality that is recognized by the most successful bakers as a must-have. In the fast-paced environment in a typical bakery, careful timing is everything. This is why a neat and organized baking station is worth its weight in gold for most bakers.
After every baking cycle, you should have all your supplies arranged and stowed away in labeled containers or drawers. This should include the tools as well as the pre-measured ingredients.
Communication Skills
Whether you’re working in a bakery or you have already established your own, you will end up working with other people. This is when good communication skills will come in handy. Good communication in the workplace enables smooth and fast-paced productivity and workflow. This will also lessen the probability of accidents since the workers will be able to understand what each other is saying.
The ability to communicate what you need is also useful in an environment where there are other people involved in the baking process. For example, if you need extra space for your dough, tell your fellow worker. If you need a hand with the basin of flour, make sure you ask for help to avoid accidents.
Being Attentive to Details
As mentioned, baking requires the person to rely on accurate measurements as well as precise temperature conditions. The ingredients need to be weighed accurately. This is vital if you want to produce the quality of the pastry that you’re looking for. If you use too much or too little of a particular ingredient, a whole batch of pastry may go to waste. The same will happen if you have the wrong temperature conditions for the pastry you’re preparing.
Aside from that, some customers are also keen when it comes to the details of their orders. Some have a discerning taste that can spot if their favorite bread is over-baked or need a bit more dough or even know how to troubleshoot pastry. Whatever the case, being more attentive to your work will lead you to produce more attractive pastries for your customers to love.
If you love sweets but don’t think that baking is for you, that’s fine as well. You can always go to a bakery and get a sweet treat without too much effort! With so many bakeries around, you’re bound to find a perfect bakery—and then learn from them.
