We’re looking forward to introducing you to Melissa Houston. Check out our conversation below.
Hi Melissa, thank you for taking the time to reflect back on your journey with us. I think our readers are in for a real treat. There is so much we can all learn from each other and so thank you again for opening up with us. Let’s get into it: What are you most proud of building — that nobody sees?
The legacy of my family tree, and all the hurtles of entrepreneurship that I’ve faced. It’s truly something that evolves with time, and there are so many chapters. Recently my father passed away, and with that left a large amount of land and a home for us in a trust. He and his brother ran a cattle ranch with many smaller income streams. They had regular jobs throughout life, but managed to build this in their free time, a bunch of puzzle pieces that is now a living thing of it’s own. With his death brought a lot of upheaval, and now a settling in of what tomorrow may look like. I’m finding my footing inside all of it, with my siblings. It’s a lot to take on as adults with our own lives and the paths we’ve all forged on our own. But now, we are being asked to come together for this legacy. And with that, I’m looking at how I can use my business and past experiences to help out. It’s a push to find what’s next and how do we get there while still doing what we love individually. Overall, I just want to bring a sense of ownership to my part, and use my talents and skills as a chef and entrepreneur to bring us into some new abundance. I believe in using what we have, working with others in our area and offering collaboration over competition opportunities. I know that we all go together or nothing works. And I’m ready for the challenges, but have learned to lead from the heart. Mine is a heart centered business, and when it comes to what’s been given, I want to use it for good, and opportunities for others to succeed as well.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Well, I’m a chef by trade, and have been in the restaurant/hospitality business for over 30 years. I have worked all over the US as pretty much everything you can do in the industry. My favorite jobs have been being a private chef on a 50 foot boat in Southeast Alaska and British Columbia. And being a Culinary Designer, doing menu test kitchen and R&D for a very large catering company in Kansas City. I am the owner and chef of Green Girl Personal Chef, my own business I started about 9 years ago after a back injury took me out of working in the restaurant world. I had open back surgery at 35, and was home bound for almost a year. I had a lot of time of introspection and decided it was high time for me to use my Culinary Arts degree from many years before, and work for myself. I started with 3 clients, and could barely walk. I pushed myself to overcome many challenges, including learning first hand how to start a business, self funded, and do everything. It was a two steps forward, 1 1/2 steps back kinda thing for the first couple years. I did the research, I designed everything from my website, to my logos and business cards, did my own marketing, and just worked hard. I was word of mouth for a very long time, and eventually my reputation built itself. I eventually went into my niche market (special diets/holistic nutrition) and have worked away at is, always evolving, through the pandemic, then after, to now. It’s been physically and emotionally trying, and sometimes you wonder how it can continue, then a whole new world opens up and you are so happy and thankful you persisted. I’m working on new ideas all the time, networking with others in the city and now the countryside to see how I can use my background to collaborate and work with our farm.
Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. Who were you before the world told you who you had to be?
A bubbly, rose colored glasses wannabe hippy from the beach cities in LA. I was raised moving around the country with my family, and we settled in West Torrance, CA right before my 8th grade year. I learned a lot life in the 10 years on and off I lived there. I loved to move, so I kept going and ended up independently moving all over until I decided to go to culinary school in San Francisco. I had a lot of risk taking behavior in me. I definitely like to rebel against the “normal”. I loved to just get on the road and try a new place on. I loved the culture of different parts of the US. The food, the people, the accents! I loved being thrown into new situations and forging my own way. I guess overall, before the world told me I had to be anything, I had already decided that I’m okay walking this world alone, and meeting people all along the way. Sharing this world together, accepting each other, and knowing that no one has it all figured out.
When did you stop hiding your pain and start using it as power?
This question really hit me. Being someone that has always been a people pleaser, I had to unlearn that part of me. It’s a big thing now to say “create boundaries” and “learn to say no”. I think the combination of a lot of tough years in both business and personal life threw me for a loop. I came to understand really fast that people I trusted were not friends, that those I loved couldn’t emotionally give anything when I was down. I had to become a lot more lonely, a lot more neglected, and a lot more left in the dirt to find myself again. It was a very good but unfortunate lesson. But with it, I found new friends, new relationships that brought me more than just companionship but real connections. With this I found my voice. I was terrified to use it before. The thought of public speaking or speaking up for myself was unheard of in my life. I would clam up, turn bright red, or even hyperventilate. It ruined so many huge achievements for me because I didn’t know how to just stand in my own body and be heard. But I have found, with lots of ongoing spiritual counseling, meditation, and just plain opening up to strangers, that I am very much worthy of my own power. And that is everything. I have amazing clients that find me, I reach out and build relationships with all others in my field or anyone that is also a creative, artistic or musical person. I above all else am sincere, and I am honest. Sure, I can get defensive, or even mad if someone really pushes me, but it is nothing like the rebellious youth I was. Now I stand up for what I believe, and I stand up for others that are being used/taken advantage of. I have no time for that anymore. I know now that if I come to a fork in the road with someone that is going to treat me wrongly or horribly, I have the choice to take the other path. Yes, sometimes you do have to stay and work through a better way to make it work. But that becomes a choice on your end too. And that is how you grow, but you do not have to put up with anyone mistreating you.
Sure, so let’s go deeper into your values and how you think. What are the biggest lies your industry tells itself?
Scaling is the only way to go. Everyone is in such a hurry to become a system, a chain, and just sit back and have the income come in. Yes, I do agree we all need income to live, but in the personal chef world, you lose that personal touch. As someone who went down that route, I stopped because I saw how quickly I lost connection with the client, the only reason I was doing it the way I was. Yes, there is a huge need for better food in an efficient way, and special diets need many avenues of scaling in business. But every time you take what it is we do and you scale it, it becomes just like everything else. There are very good plans and companies out there, and I love that there are options, but I think it’s like going to only chain restaurants and never going to a privately owned restaurant. I like to support the small business owner that takes the leap and makes their dream into a reality by taking on their own clients. Now if all you want is to make bulk meals for 1000, then scale. But if you are a weirdo like me and enjoy being creative, not repeating unless you want to, and love working with your clients, then you can only get so big before that is impossible.
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. What do you understand deeply that most people don’t?
I’ve always felt a deep understanding of the rhythms that run under the surface. The electricity in the air. The quiet under the water. The connections that bring everything together. I love the first moment your skin touches the waves when you go to the ocean. The smell of the forest. And the light from the sun stopping you in your tracks so you can recharge directly, like it just paralyzes you in the best way and you have to stop. I love that my work lets me leave and recharge in nature. Even going from my car into the grocery store, just the smell of rain about to start is worth it in my work. The seasons changing, the beautiful produce and flowers throughout the year, the animals going from young spring babies to adulthood. It’s an amazing thing to be part of as a person, let alone a chef.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.greengirlkc.com
- Instagram: @greengirlchefkc
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissa-houston-757292217
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Melissa.houston.10
Image Credits
Melissa Houston
