We were lucky to catch up with Melonee O’Keefe recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Melonee , thanks for sharing your insights with our community today. Part of your success, no doubt, is due to your work ethic and so we’d love if you could open up about where you got your work ethic from?
I get my work ethic from my mother for sure. She has always been one of the hardest working people in my life. She always put her all into everything and never worked just for herself. Growing up, I always witnessed her putting out her efforts for those that she loved. She worked full time at a school to support our family to make sure my brother and I had what we needed and the things that we wanted when possible. I remember teachers and other employees of the school always telling me (as I was a student there) how wonderful my mom was and how much they appreciated her. They would talk about how helpful she was and how much she put into her job. Everyone loved her and loved working with her. She always taught me to strive toward being appreciated in whatever job you do, Work hard, work efficiently, and be respectful of your coworkers. Work how you would like them to work and maintain high standards for yourself. This didn’t end at her job at the school, it continued into other aspects of life. I grew up seeing a mother who gave her all at her job and then came home to give her everything to her family. She showed us through her actions how much meaningful work outside of a “job” was just as important. She took care of both of her dying parents for years, worked her job, gave us a great mother, and put so much of herself into her church. She was a superwoman in my eyes. As an adult looking back, I wish she would’ve taken more time for herself because I am able to understand the toll now. I am so appreciative for all that she gave me and exemplified for me. She always motivated me to do better and be better. To give my best self to others, whether its my job or my family. It does get hard; it’s exhausting. At times I definitely need a break and I have learned to give myself that but I always continue to work hard in every aspect of my life. Including looking inward and working on myself.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
Professionaly, I am a pastry chef. This is my passion and I couldn’t imagine doing anything else with my life. Being a creative person definitely spills out past pastries in my day to day life as well. I love to be creative and artistic in any form. I have been a pastry chef for almost 16 years. I have worked almost every kind of pastry position possible in my career. Restaurants, hotels, grocery stores, bakeries, wholesale, assisting, being the head pastry chef, etc. Throughout I have found my true food love lies in quality, classic desserts. Taking simple delicious ideas that have been tried and true and making them the best they can be. I find customers appreciate that as well. People love familiar, delicious, comforting flavors and styles given to them in potentially the best version they have had. I love to make pastries that focus on flavor and quality first. I strive to make them beautiful of course, but I would much rather hear from my customers that it’s the most delicious thing they have eaten versus how gorgeous it was. I have also found that I much more appreciate and feel at home in small kitchens where staff is a family, not a hierarchy. I truly feel that it is so incredibly special to be part of people’s most important moments. Whether it’s a wedding, a celebration, a sad family moment, or just a dinner party with friends. These moments are what make life and food has always been an integral part. Knowing my passion is adding to these moments and being part of these memories is such a privilege. Feeling chosen by customers over and over again when they have so many options to choose from is such an amazing feeling. I love that what I have made for them leaves an impression; it means so much. Theres nothing like the feeling of putting your art form out into the world and seeing it mean something to someone. Even if it is just food. I have had an interesting year in my life and career. After working for someone ese while running my own business on the side for years, I took the plunge in 2022 to quit my job and focus solely on my own business. It was amazing. I had an entire summer of amazing markets and my orders became almost too much for me to handle. A great problem to have. I was so looking forward to the future of my business. Unfortunately, the following fall we got hit by life and were forced to move within a very short time causing our rent to literally double. In order for me to bring enough income being a one woman home-based pastry business, I would literally have had to work 20 hours a day. Aside from the only ending to that scenario being severe burn out, I would never get any time with my child. Motherhood is far too important to me for that to be ok in my heart. So alas, I had to go back to work for someone else. I no longer wanted to do the double duty of working for someone and then running my business on the side because I was exhausted so I made the very tough decision to close my business down temporarily. It was heartbreaking and difficult but I am so incredibly lucky to be working at a place that has the same care for quality that I do, I get to be proud every day even if it’s not my own business. I am also very fortunate to have a boss that cares about me being a mother first, so my son’s needs are never an issue. The shut down of my business is temporary for sure. It’s my dream and I won’t let it go. When I figure out how to make it work, I will be up and running again. I have amazing loyal customers that miss me and are just waiting for me to let them know im back. I feel so lucky for that. Hard work pays off and I will eventually get there. Life is pivoting and refiguring constantly to make it what you want and get where you need to be.
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?
I would say one for sure is self respect. This is something that I didn’t start to fight for until my son was born and my world view shifted. The food service industry in particular is a cruel world that abuses its employees. When I was younger and first getting up in my career I allowed myself to be used and abused by employer after employer. It’s just the way it was and I felt I could never stand up for myself or fight for myself. If I could go back to young me I would slap her and tell her to stop being treated like a doormat. There was always a looming threat of losing your job and being exhiled in the community if you weren’t willing to work yourself to death. You were expected to be three people and get paid to be one. Work 70 hours and have no life but be treated like you’re completely unappreciated and never be paid what you deserve. The industry is hard and shameful. It makes me very happy to see this recent shift in the service industry of employees coming together to stand together against the abuses in the industry. Change is needed. Respecting yourself can be so hard when youre trying to advance your career. When you’re trying to prove yourself. You have to though. No one else is going to stand up for you and fight for you, you have to. I experienced this with my own business as well in being afraid to price my products at what I deserved for them. Treating yourself well and making sure you are getting what you deserve is so important to set yourself up for future success and confidence. Once they see that they can take advantage of you, they will. It’s scary at first, but when you start to put that energy out, people respond and its encouraging. Another one would be balance. This kind of ties into offering yourself respect. Balancing your life is so so important. It’s important for your health, both mental and physical. Its important for your relationships, both personal and professional. You can not be your best professional self if you are burnt out. It’s a real thing that, unfortunately, is taboo in the society and economy we currently live in. Working your life away is what we’re taught but that’s not sustainable. You have to find balance to find peace. Time with loved ones, time for yourself… it’s just as important as the time you put into your professional life. Your professional life really does take off in a whole new way when you find the balance for you that keeps you at your healthiest. This is all trial and error really. Unfortunately experiencing burn out is what brings your awareness up and teaches what, where, and how to shift. Lastly, for something that applies specifically to girls/women in the food service industry, you do not have to accept being treated poorly to succeed or advance in this industry. Don’t let the masoganistic energy and crappy men make you feel otherwise. You do not have to be “one of the boys”. You can go into any position in this industry as your beautiful girly self and kick butt. Stand up for yourslef, protect yourself, and ignore all of the garbage. Keep your head up and charge on. Plow those jerks over and put them in their place. You can prove them all wrong and rock this industry just being you the way you are without engaging in anything you don’t want to.
Do you think it’s better to go all in on our strengths or to try to be more well-rounded by investing effort on improving areas you aren’t as strong in?
I feel as though you can do both. Thrive in your strengths. Use them for you and celebrate them. Any strength you already have can get stronger. I live under the belief that you are never done learning or improving. You are never at the highest of anything. Keep growing, keep learning, keep improving. Even if you’re of advanced age or advanced in your career, if you’re an “expert” in what you do, there is always more to learn and more room to grow. Our strengths are so important for us and our communities. Everyone can contribute in a different way with their strength. On the other hand, don’t brush off or forget your weaker aspects if it’s something you care about. If it’s a skill you’re interested in but feel bad at it, keep working on it. If it’s something about yourself you see as a weakness or shortcoming, work on it. Making our weak spots stronger can inadvertently also make our strengths stronger. Being well rounded professionally and emotionally keeps us thriving all over in life. Don’t be afraid to try new things or fail, it’s important for growth. Most importantly, don’t ever feel you have nothing left to learn.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @sweet_petits
- Facebook: facebbok.com/sweetstuffpastries
- Other: [email protected]
