We were lucky to catch up with Monica Ramirez recently and have shared our conversation below.
Monica, thank you so much for making time for us. We’ve always admired your ability to take risks and so maybe we can kick things off with a discussion around how you developed your ability to take and bear risk?
When I think of risk, I think of the fear & uncertainty that come with stepping out of my comfort zone. When I’m unsure of a decision I try my best to weigh the options and the potential outcomes. But as with everything in life, you can have this picture painted about what that risk will result in and taking the risk could be the complete opposite of what you expected. With this in mind, when I’m taking a risk, I think back on all of the risks I’ve taken throughout my life because that is what life is, a journey full of risks. The new job, applying to that school, landing in that foreign country, loving someone or starting a business. I reflect on the growth that all of my risks gave me, even when it wasn’t what I expected and I hold on to those reflections and focus on the growth part. If it weren’t for risks I wouldn’t have the life that I have now, much less my business and career, so sometimes I just translate a risk into a leap of faith and go for it. Life will always be full of uncertainties, and unless its something detrimental to your health or someone you love, then I err on the side of risks. Its better to have risked than wondered.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
Currently I am a baker and probate paralegal. I am juggling both because I love both professions so much. However, life is slowly gearing me towards my baker life and I am realizing that because of the growth of my business and the fact that I love being a baker so much. I think that what encourages me to keep being a baker and look towards a future as a baker is people’s love for my pastries. It was an accident that I would bake because I picked it up as a hobby during covid and lo and behold turns out I’m very good at it and people love it. Before this I knew my way around a kitchen, but you could never convince me that I would be good at baking, in both the process and the science. Its not an easy feat to create and bake something that people love and little did I know that it would be so rewarding. The growth I’ve experienced and people’s receptiveness has been wonderful.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
The qualities that I had to further develop was patience, attention to detail and research as I began to bake more. As I stated earlier Im a paralegal and I do have a Masters degree in International Relations, both of these areas of my life taught me how to research in depth and ask questions. I took these processes and applied them to baking. I realized that I couldn’t just follow a recipe word by word, I wanted to create something unique to Piccolinas Treats. For example. I took a cookie recipe and experimented with it until I created a texture and taste that I wanted for it. How did I manage this? Well, I researched the effect of eggs, egg yolks, brown sugar, baking powder etc. I took the learnt skills from being a paralegal and graduate school student and applied those the same way I do to legal research or a final class paper. Im glad I took the time to do this because I was rusty, but once immersed it all began to fall into place and here I am baking some amazing cookies.
My advice for those beginning a journey is to be patient and research everything about what you want to do. Understand it as you jump into it. It will make you love the journey more and you will be more successful at it. Also be willing to fail, you have to fail to learn.
Any advice for folks feeling overwhelmed?
There are so many levels to me being overwhelmed because sometimes I dont realize that I am until I stand still. Baking and having my legal career can take so much of my time somedays that I find myself on this autopilot. It gets messy in my head as I list all of the things I need to do, from shopping for baking to making myself a meal or washing the dishes. As this journey has continued, I find myself tuning into my thoughts and feelings more often during those overwhelming moments. Once I compose myself, I write down what I need to do in the order of most importance. I try my best to start with self care because If im not caring for myself I cannot be fully present as a baker or paralegal. Once I start there, I move on to the task that I would like to have done after that. For example, if I have alot of baking to do, aftere having my meal, I will make sure my dishes are washed and that I have all of my supplies and ingredients in order.
I have noticed that setting up my tasks in an order of importance has helped me immensely.
Contact Info:
- Website: piccolinastreats.com
- Instagram: piccolinastreats
Image Credits
Ana Ramirez – Marketing director & Co-Owner of Piccolinas Treats Monica Ramirez – Founder of Piccolinas Treats
