Time Management Lessons from Salt Fat Acid Heat

Over the last two decades, my husband and I have watched various types of food-related shows hosted by the likes of Emeril, Giada, Paula Deen, Andrew Zimmern, Anthony Bourdain and Stanley Tucci. But there’s one limited series that truly helped us become even more adept at cooking: Salt Fat Acid Heat, hosted by Samin Nosrat and based on her best-selling cooking textbook/recipe book of the same name.

We’ve enjoyed all the other shows we’ve watched, learning about different recipes, ingredients, people, cultures and places. But Samin’s approach is different. It’s about understanding the foundation of cooking knowledge.

I liken this to my approach to coaching time management. There’s nothing wrong with the hacks and quick tips that proliferate the internet. I share some of the very same tactics during my sessions and seminars. But what’s far more important to me to teach my clients are the foundational strategies of time management – because if you understand and implement these philosophies, you can tell your time what to do in any situation in which you find yourself. With this knowledge, you won’t have to rely solely on others’ hacks; you’ll be equipped to create your own.

This is the approach Samin takes. She breaks cooking down into four foundational components and clearly explains how they work and what your options are. When you understand how these pillars function, you can go beyond using the hack of a recipe. You can modify and adjust according to your dietary, nutritional and/or culinary tastes.

My goal is not to become a chef, but to create healthy, flavorful meals that meet our nutritional needs. Many recipes we’ve tried haven’t quite hit the mark for us, but all of that changed after watching her four episodes and then reading her book. Life is tasting even better now.

Wondering what healthy cooking has to do with time management? The mantra that I preach is time management is all about mind management. Therefore, I’m a firm believer that self-care is of utmost importance both for better brain function as well as not losing time to dealing with medical issues. Healthy eating (and if you so choose, cooking) is a big part of self-care. Find out more here about Salt Fat Acid Heat:

For the complete guide to improving your productivity through understanding the foundational pillars, check out The Inefficiency Assassin: Time Management Tactics for Working Smarter, Not Longer.