I learned about Massimo Bottura on Netflix’s Chef’s Table Vol. 1, Episode 1. That was many years ago. This post, like many in my Blogtober series, are scraped from my thoughts on Notes app over the years.

As I was reading through some of the notes from Chef’s Table, I remembered what I loved about Chefs. All chefs cook.Chefs, like most artists, no matter how big they become, no matter how many reality shows they go to, they continue cooking; they keep experimenting.

Bottura takes traditional Italian food — the kind everyone expects to taste one way — and then throws in something wild, like miso in risotto.

The result? It brings out richer flavour, a depth that makes his dish better. It’s innovative, but it doesn’t feel like he’s trying too hard or trying to look good on Instagram. He does it because it makes the risotto richer.

Bottura’s dishes are designed not just to feed but to engage & also surprise his diners. His dishes are rooted in tradition, they maintain the core essence of Italian cuisine but, are creative. Watch the episode here.

Apply the same in your field of work

Start each day by exploring just one new idea inspired by classic principles, incorporating it into current designs. Think, “How could this be more engaging or personalised?”

Add a small tweak to an already familiar pattern, remove a small thing that doesn’t make the feature easier or more enjoyable to use. Something that makes you go, “Yeah.. this would feel awesome!” A single micro-interaction, refining one colour gradient, fixing the layout of one card component, removing an extra step in the journey, or removing an unquestioned feature built years ago!

However, you can’t just throw in something flashy for the sake of being different. In the same way, that new design suggestion should enhance your feature and product, not just make it look cool.

Ask yourself, “Will this actually make my product better, or I am just trying to look cool?” If it’s the latter, scrap it.

As you keep doing the above, you’ll continue to be the chef who’s still cooks.