The Heart of a Chef: Why 2026 Could Be the Year You Finally Go All In

Hey, hey, hey, my friend, it's Chef Andres here, founder and CEO of Chefpreneur, and hope you're doing well today. Thank you for tuning in to another episode of the Chefpreneur podcast. And wherever you're listening from, maybe you're on your way to a gig, you're prepping some ingredients, or you're just taking a well-earned break, I want to take a few minutes to really speak from the heart on today's podcast. It's really because of something I watched the other night that really, really moved me.

Now, I'll be honest, this wasn't planned content. I didn't sit down thinking I'd record a podcast about it, but it hit me so hard that I knew that you as a chef or as a cook or even someone who serves from the heart that you needed to hear this, too. So here it goes. So the other night I was watching an old episode of Undercover Boss.

You know, I'm sure you've heard of the show, but it's one of those shows that I feel like always gives you a little something to think about, especially as they're kind of interviewing people and, you know, kind of the high ups are kind of doing the day to day jobs of different things, you know. And this episode was about Popeye's chicken. There was this man named Doug and Doug wasn't a chef. He actually wasn't a manager.

He wasn't in corporate. He wasn't even cooking the food in Popeye's. He was cleaning the trash cans. That's what his job was.

It was sanitation. but what really struck me was the way that Doug really carried himself he had an incredible story you could tell that he took a lot of pride in his work I mean the joy in his face the way he served people I started getting really really emotional because it's really rare and hard to find people with that genuine heart that you know that really truly care about people and I find myself again as I got emotional because Doug reminded me of so many chefs and cooks that I've actually personally met people like you and even people like me people who deeply care and they truly give everything they've got to people that they serve I think a lot of us as chefs and cooks do that and part of Doug's story was he was homeless for two years after Hurricane Katrina.

Um, you know, one of his pastors as church took him in and really gave him an amazing, I guess you would say, I don't want to say it, uh, an amazing, true reset of his foundation in his life because without that pastor I think he would have been done with in the sense of like homeless even more beyond that but he didn give up instead of just you know surviving He showed up every single week and you know, he was volunteering. He even volunteers at his church. He feeds like 120, 150 people.

And in the episode, he was actually feeding them sloppy Joes and some baked beans. And man, it was, it just really hit my heart because of the smile that he had on his face. He had no spotlight. He had no applause.

Obviously they're recording the show. Um, but he does that every single week. Um, and then not only that, but like with everything he's been through, but then he would also show up to work, like putting his 110%, you know, every single time he showed up to work. In fact, on the show, they were talking about that.

He buys his own soap. I guess it's like, you know, less chemical soap, uh, that's safer for children. And he's really big on that. He's Like, I don't want a bunch of kids touching chemicals.

And that resonated with me. I have five kids and I hate using chemical stuff in my house. That's just poison for my kids. So he didn't really want to expose any kids to those toxic chemicals.

And he did that again. He bought that out of his own pocket, which obviously I'm pretty doesn't make that much money. But but as I'm watching this and I really sat there, started thinking about this, like, wow, this is what real service is. This is what real heart is.

again he wasn't a chef but honestly he reminded me of one of the best chefs I know the kind who would give the last plate of food to somebody else the kind who would find joy in seeing others nourished you know having them be seen having them been valued and it really made me reflect on something and as chefs sometimes again we fall into the trap of thinking just because we've worked hard we've grinded the back of hot kitchens we've sacrificed holidays we've missed birthdays the world owes us something.

And don't get me wrong, that hard work has value. It truly matters. It really does. But it's not what defines us.

What really defines us is our heart to serve. And that heart, that desire to make people feel loved, respected and taken care of through food. That's what makes you more than just a cook. It makes you a chaperoneur, really.

And the truth is having a heart to serve isn't enough to build a successful business. And I've worked with so many chefs and cooks over the years now who have had the heart, but they feel stuck. They've got the passion, the gift, the hustle, but they don't know how to find the right clients. They don't know how to price their services They don know how to stop working three jobs just to pay the bills And it and it becomes addictive It becomes addictive to in a way be in a bad position You know our bodies and our minds and everything about us kind of gets in this stuck mode where we feel like we're comfortable with struggle.

I know for me personally, I've had bouts of that in my mind and in my mental hurters I have to overcome where if I'm not stressing, if I'm not with my back against the wall, it doesn't feel right. It feels weird to breathe. Right. And I know that a lot of you as you're listening to this, hopefully it inspires you, but like we have to persevere beyond what our circumstances are.

A lot of you have not even started your business because again, you don't know where to begin. You're too afraid might happen. You're thinking that what if it doesn't work? What if I'm going to fail.

But I think so, so often we don't think about the latter. We don't think about the opposite that could happen, which is what if this does become a success? What if this actually takes off? See, that's what I want you to focus on today.

I want you to understand that there's the also the other side of the coin where, yeah, things might not work out exactly how planned. Trust me, building a business is not easy and you're going to make some mistakes and you're going to struggle. But what if you're successful? What if you are successful?

This is exactly why Shepner exists. It exists for people that truly want to do this. They want to go out on their own terms. They want to help people.

They want to bless people. And you don't have to have, you know, all these things lined up in order for you to just start. the faster you start, the faster the results come. And even I can get even say the faster you start, the faster you make mistakes and know not what to do in the future.

You know, in Shepreneur, we have our four step method that we talk about all the time. It's a proven process to help people just like you launch and grow their personal chef business the right way, with clarity, with purpose, and even with systems to help you understand how to actually operate this business and give you the best shot at success. And we're still going to worry. We're still going to have anxieties.

We're still going to have some bit of fear. But it really is about taking that step of faith and understanding that you have to do something more if you want to have something more And you serving others with love and kindness and with the passion that God has given you you owe it to people out there for you to take that step And I recording this at the end of December 2025. I can't even believe it's going to be 2026. It's crazy for me to think about, but it's literally as I'm recording this, this is actually, I'm recording it on Sunday, December 28th.

Whenever we release it, we'll probably release it this week. But I can't believe it's just a few days away from 2026. And so I really wanted to ask you something simple. What if this is your year?

What if this is the year you just stopped getting by and you finally built something real, something sustainable, something successful, not some fantasy dream business talk. I'm not really trying to, I'm not some online guru trying to promote some crazy marketing scheme on you. It's a real business that provides income, stability and freedom. So again, you can continue to do what I believe you were called and born to do without that burnout and confusion.

So if that stirs something in you, I really want to just, you know, invite you just one chef to another to book a discovery call with us. You can find it here in the show notes. Or, you know, maybe you're listening to this on YouTube. I'm not recording this as a video.

This is just audio, but you can click on the link and you can schedule a call with my team. We're here to listen to where you are, where you're, you know, what your goals are, where you're at and see if Chefpreneur is, is the right fit for you to help you and walk out with you building a real business and a real personal private chef business for yourself. There's no pressure. We just want a real conversation.

And so just wanted to let you know that. And so listen, this is something that has been really stirring up in my spirit for a long time. But if you are ready for that change, if you are really wanting to take 2026 and make it the best year, even if you don't have all the wins, even if it won't be automatic success, which it never is, at least you'll be starting it. At least you'll be building it.

And the very first step is to continue to get, you know, is to basically take enough courage to take that first step. So just want to know that we're here for you. We love you. We appreciate you listening.

I'm proud of you. I believe in what you do and I truly believe that 2026 can be the year you own your very own Shepardner journey and your personal private chef business. And we hope to have the opportunity to help you build it. Until next time, again, keep serving from the heart.

We love you. God bless you. This is Chef Andres and we'll talk to you guys soon. Take care.