Chapter 9 takes readers/listeners on a journey to Coltibuono, a historic monastery in the Chianti region of Italy, where the author and her friends explored the art of cooking in a farm-to-table class. This delightful experience serves as a metaphor for how we manage our emotions. Just as a chef uses creativity and curiosity to create new dishes, we can approach our emotions with the same innovative spirit.
Most of us are “Emotion Cooks,” following default emotional “recipes” shaped by past experiences, habits, and beliefs. But what if we became “Emotion Chefs” instead—actively experimenting, refining, and creating new emotional experiences? This chapter invites readers to think about their emotions as meals they’re preparing daily, with the goal of transforming those routines into something more intentional, flavorful, and fulfilling.
The progression to becoming an Emotion Chef involves:
Awareness: Learning to tune into bodily signals and identify emotions with greater specificity.
Curiosity: Exploring the “ingredients” of our emotions—our perceptions, beliefs, and experiences—and how they combine to create feelings.
Creativity: Experimenting with new emotional “recipes” to foster joy, resilience, and connection.
Practical tools include increasing your emotional vocabulary (yes, there’s an app for that!), paying attention to physical health, and learning to reframe challenging situations. By treating emotions like dishes to savor, we gain the power to identify, adjust, and create the emotional experiences we truly want.
The chapter emphasizes that nobody is perfect—not even the author herself—but that’s the beauty of being human. Progress, not perfection, is the goal. By approaching life with curiosity and self-compassion, we can all become Emotion Chefs, crafting emotional experiences that nourish us and those around us.
