We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Emerson Majano. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Emerson below.
Emerson , so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?
Let me tell you that it was not easy to find my purpose in life or my career because I suffered a lot of anxiety at the age of 16 and depression began to attack me very strongly at that age because all the traumas came together where there were many. times where I even wanted to take my life away on several occasions, which my family and my friends didn’t even know about, but once I realized that I always loved to motivate people to be better, always to want to be successful, and never give up. I think I’ve given up, but sometimes I wondered “how I can motivate others if I’m destroyed” and that’s when I realized that I had to take care of myself more because there was a lot of purpose for me in this life, for example, to continue motivating others. to be better and at the same time share my story because I knew that it was going to change the lives of many people who would identify with my life.
Many people said “your life is a movie life” as time went on in High School I met many more students and yet I, suffering from depression anxiety, still did not realize how much impact it had on the lives of others and in this In the case of many students who are in the same emotional process as me, over time I realized that every time I spoke to someone I impacted their lives and transmitted light and hope and a lot of strength and a lot of motivation because they looked at me and I tried a lot, I studied, I ran to work after school and I arrived tired and I couldn’t find purpose because all the time I said I’m working and working and working and I never do anything I feel like I’m not doing anything, then I worked a lot I studied a lot to my career as a Chef and yet I continued and wishing I am not doing anything for my eyes I did not see anything because depression and anxiety were blinding me, but in reality I was doing an inspiration for many other students at my same school and even for teachers and it was where I said this is my purpose to share love through my food in the kitchen, Hope, happiness and a lot. motivation
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
My name is Emerson Majano, I am a Chef, a food consultant, food designer, a foodie media person and a motivator currently working in Surfas, a culinary district in Los Angeles, California At the same time, I am an ambassador for a culinary program called C-CAP Los Angeles.
Surfas is a culinary district in a few words, a paradise for chefs or food lovers. My job is to help clients find what they need in the food area, in this case as a food consultant, one of the things that makes me different from others in this industry is that I care about their success and a lot about their recipe success, at the same time, I care a lot about each person, each client, each diner who comes to my work. As someone once told me, “Being disciplined and at the same time providing quality service is what can make people come back.” I love my job and I love the work environment in which I work, this industry is not easy industry because we encounter many temperaments of different people, but something I am very proud of is that each client can leave my work area very happy, because all their doubts were clarified and for every food and drink they digested they can feel the passion. the love and care we put on the plate.
At my job, apart from having a food specialty department, we also have a small cafe inside the district, as well as a Smallwares department and a culinary equipment department, which will help with equipment that the restaurant needs and if you did not know it, at Surfas we also do kitchen designs in a few words at Surfas they find everything a chef or cook needs if they can’t find it, we will find it for you.
The most fun thing about my job is that every day you learn a lot about different cuisines and from my boss Frank you always learn something new from the kitchen equipment. in this place, you never stop learning, which is exciting every day
One of the things you should take into account is that you will leave Surfas with all your questions answered.
In other words, this place, is basically, the “behind the scenes of the restaurant Industry” is shown.
and not only that, I also help friends in different culinary projects/events.
as well with C-CAP LA, I volunteer every year to their cooking competition as a volunteer or a judge during their practice competition. IT’S FUN!!
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
When we talk about looking back and thinking about three qualities that have impacted my journey. I would say that patience, consistency and passion have been qualities that have kept me strong and standing, because let me tell you, it is not easy and one of the pieces of advice that I would give to all those young adult people who are in the university who are in school who are in school I would tell them no matter how hard it may seem, don’t stop I studied and worked at the same time I spent 19 hours or sometimes 20 hours on my feet awake and sometimes resting just four hours to continue the routine and that was for approximately five years my body got tired yes but I had more desire to move forward as I said before patience is the most important thing and to be consistent not looking around because that will be a distraction I advise everyone to continue firm, looking towards your goals, but not getting distracted to the sides and be very patient, it is not easy, if you see that it is difficult it is because you are on the right path, always be sure that it is not easy, but in the end it will be worth it and when cooking, to all those people who are struggling, why can’t I do this, it can’t be the other, keep trying, keep practicing, that practice is what makes the master.
Alright so to wrap up, who deserves credit for helping you overcome challenges or build some of the essential skills you’ve needed?
The person who has helped me the most to overcome the challenges that life has given me and obtain knowledge is also mainly my mother who has never left me in every moment in every process, whether emotional or professional, she has always been there guiding me. with their advice, as well as certain friends like my friend Mari and Gustavo, who have been essential people in my life, very frank and professionally speaking, Chef Alex Porter, Chef Steve, and the entire C-Cap Los Angeles team Eli, Gail, Lisa have been people They have been the driving force behind my career as a Chef, I would be nothing if it hadn’t been for them. They have given me a lot of guidance even though I am new to this career, compared to Chefs who have had 50 years of experience.
Doing all the volunteering that I did, helping with all the cooking projects that I did, has helped me create new qualities and new skills in the kitchen, that I would never have known about if it hadn’t been for them.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: chefemersonmajano
