10 Things I Learned From Watching "The Great British Bake Off"

The Great British Bake Off is a British television baking competition in which a group of amateur bakers competes against each other in a series of rounds.

In each round, bakers or contestants are asked to do 3 challenges:
Signature Challenge: contestants are given instructions beforehand.
Technical Challenge contestants are all given the same recipe, with minimal instructions, and are not told beforehand of the challenge.
Showstopper Challenge: this is where contestants display their creative muscles and create a masterpiece.

1. Anyone can be anything

The contestants come from diverse backgrounds; lawyers, satellite engineers, and prison psychiatrists, to name a few. They all share the same passion, baking.

Some of the best developers I have met majored in philosophy or literature and learned to code at a later stage. They had a strong passion for coding.

2. Anything is possible

Contestants baked things they never thought they could do before, with ingredients they had never heard of before or rarely used.

Passion and love for any cause or endeavor can push you to achieve things you never thought you’d ever be able to do.

3. First principle thinking - the basics

In the technical challenge, contestants are given a recipe with minimum details. It is up to the contestant to imagine and fill the gaps.
One observation is that the difference between people who know how to follow a recipe and those who know how to bake is how well they master the basics.

If you can master the first principles within any domain, you can see much further than those just following recipes.

4. Praise, and you will be surprised

I was surprised to see great comebacks from some contestants who started a bit off and made amazing comebacks. They initially lacked confidence and could burst under pressure. But with gentle nudges and praises, they surprised everyone.

Don’t underestimate praise, a pat on the back, and encouraging words. Sometimes all we need to do is give a nudge and get out of the way.

5. Time constraints can be a curse or a friend

Contestants have time constraints. It is essential to know how to manage time well. Not only that, it is important to strike a balance between being creative and delivering on time. I have seen some great cakes half delivered. The contestants were over-optimistic.

It is important to be realistic about what can be delivered and wisely use the time. Knowing what takes the most time and optimizing the actions is critical.

6. Learn to improvise - the unexpected happens all the time

You may think you are in control. You put the right amount of ingredients. You mixed it just like Chef Ramzi does. The oven is at the right temperature. Then, bam! The dough becomes an extension of your hand, sticky. Humidity happened.

Thinking about different ways a plan or a recipe could go wrong is an excellent skill, but an even more critical skill is what to do when things go south.

7. Baking is emotional

In one setting, you can witness the joy from a cake coming up nicely and the tears because something went wrong, and the contestant has no idea why.
Contestants seem attached to whatever they are baking. Maybe we can’t help it; the mixing, the anticipation in front of the oven, and the surprise at the end.

I guess when we are attached too much to an outcome, we get emotional.

8. Hidden creativity we all have

We all have an infinite well of creativity. We just need to tap into it. We all have stories to tell, characters we like, and people we admire. We just need to dare to turn those into cakes :)
you should see the Roman Colosseum Gingerbread Cake or check out
https://www.cakeflix.com/great-british-bake-off-best-cakes/

9. Healthy competition/pressure is healthy

“Pressure can bust pipes, but it also can make diamonds.” — Robert Horry

Healthy competition can bring the best out of you. It is focused on growth, not rank.

10. We all want to bake after seeing someone maneuvering ingredients to bake a great cake

A significant rise in baking ingredients and accessories sales were attributed to the show.

Younes