It’s Wonderful to Take Part: Finding Your Power Beyond the Win
- Food Business Coach Tracie
- 2 days ago
- 6 min read
Taking part in Food Hero two years in a row has reminded me of something I now teach every food business owner I work with: if winning matters more than the work, you risk losing yourself. If the title matters more than your customers, your craft and your community, you’ll forever be chasing validation instead of building a business and a life that actually feels good to live in.
I’m writing this as Tracie Daly, food business coach, obsessive about real food and real people on the island of Ireland. I care deeply about how we show up in this industry – not just on awards nights, but on wet Wednesday mornings when the ovens are barely up to temperature, the team is tired and you’re wondering if anyone even notices the effort you’re putting in. That’s where the real hero work happens.
When not winning becomes a lesson
Not winning Food Hero two years in a row stings. Let’s not pretend it doesn’t. You invest emotional energy, time, hope- real hope, and a part of you imagines your name being called. When it isn’t, there’s a split second where your stomach drops and your inner critic (who I have actively worked on for 9 years to date) pipes up: “oh feck, am I morto or am I thrilled someone else got a chance.”
This is the crossroads I see so many food business owners standing at:
One path leads to bitterness, comparison, and quiet quitting in your own mind.
The other leads to growth, clarity and a stronger, more grounded version of you.
The difference between those paths is not the result – it’s how you talk to yourself about the result. It’s how you interpret the “no,” the “not yet,” or the “not this time.”
Here’s the reframe I want you to borrow:
“I didn’t lose. I learned. I gathered data about my impact, my visibility, my brand – and now I get to decide what I do with that information.”
Celebrating Kilkenny’s winners
Last night, Kilkenny turned out in force at the Irish Restaurant Awards Leinster final, and the calibre of food and hospitality in this county was on full display. Campagne was crowned Best Restaurant, while John Kelly of the Lady Helen at Mount Juliet Estate took home Best Chef, continuing to raise the bar for fine dining in the region.
Across the county, many familiar names were recognised: The Left Bank, Knockdrinna, Tabú in Thomastown, Arán Artisan Bakery & Bistro in Kilkenny city picked up 3 awards, Campagne, The Dizzy Goat, The Dylan Bar, Cafe La Coco. Rinnucinis, Zuni, Stathams at The Pembroke, The Wildflower Tea Rooms, and Food Hero went to Sean Ring of Rings Farm. I hope I havemt forgotten anyone, forgive me if I have.
These wins matter. They show visitors and locals alike that Kilkenny is not just quietly doing good work – it is confidently leading from the front when it comes to food, welcome and innovation. And I am proud to stand in that company, even on a night when my own name is not called.
Awards as brain training, not final judgement
There’s a reason I call this “brain training.” Every time you put yourself or your business forward – for an award, a grant, a collaboration, a new concept – you are training your brain in one of two directions:
Towards resilience, courage and clarity.
Or towards fear, avoidance and self-doubt.
When you enter awards or step onto a stage, you are practising:
Being seen and heard in your industry.
Standing over your values and your work.
Articulating why what you do matters.
That practice is invaluable. Even if you never won a thing, the act of putting yourself out there changes you and your business. It’s like reps in the gym: you may not see the definition straight away, but the strength is building.
So here’s your coaching question:
When you think about recognition – are you using it as a tool to sharpen your story, or as a verdict on your worth?
Gratitude as a business strategy (not a cliché)
“Lean into gratitude” can sound fluffy, but in a small food business context, it’s actually strategic.
When I look at my own Food Hero journey, and at the Kilkenny winners lined up this year, here’s what gratitude reveals:
The customers who show up week after week, quietly voting for you with their feet and their wallets.
The producers and suppliers who consistently go the extra mile so the food on the pass can shine.
The staff members who steady the ship when you’re exhausted.
The mentors, peers and pals who push you to enter, nominate you, or send you a message when you don’t win.
When you consciously notice this network around you, three powerful shifts happen:
You stop feeling like you’re doing this alone.
You remember that your impact is bigger than one night in a room.
You make better decisions, because you’re rooted in service, not ego.
From a coaching perspective, this is vital. A business built on “I’ll feel good when I win” will always be fragile. A business built on “I’m grateful I get to do this work, and I’ll keep improving” is robust, steady and sustainable.
The value of difficult interactions
Let’s talk about the awkward stuff.
Not every interaction in our industry is warm and fuzzy. There are difficult customers, dismissive peers, judges who don’t “get” your thing, and people who overlook you completely. These moments can bruise your confidence, or they can become part of your resilience training.
Some of the most powerful growth I’ve seen in clients – and in myself – comes from:
Learning to receive criticism without collapsing.
Choosing not to internalise someone else’s bad day as a verdict on your talent.
Spotting patterns in feedback and using them to refine your offer.
Developing the confidence to say, “My work is not for everyone – and that’s okay.”
Taking part is so much fun.
Over time, these experiences help you see the wood from the trees. You stop obsessing over single comments or one result and start paying attention to the bigger arc of your journey: the quality of your food, the integrity of your sourcing, the consistency of your service, the relationships you’re building locally, your incredible and remarkable story.
What this means for your food business
So, what does all of this mean for you, the café owner, the restaurateur, the food truck operator, the artisan producer, the butcher, the baker, me?
Here’s what I want you to take away and apply:
Keep entering, even when you don’t win. Use it as an annual audit of your progress, brand story and impact. How has your offer, your team, your standards and your visibility improved year on year?
Separate your worth from the result.You are not your last review, your last service, or your last award outcome. You are the sum of your daily actions, your values and the experience you create for people.
Make gratitude practical.Thank your team specifically and often, tell your producers how vital they are to your story, and acknowledge regular customers by name and with sincerity.
Reframe difficult moments as resilience practice.When something knocks you, ask: “What is this trying to teach me?” It might be about boundaries, systems, communication, pricing or simply courage.
Focus on the long game.Awards are snapshots. Your business is a film. One frame doesn’t define the whole story. Keep directing the film.
As for me, no, I didn’t take home Food Hero two years in a row. But each year confirms that I am in the right arena: supporting food businesses, championing real food and real people all over this island, and using every “not this time” as fuel to show up even more powerfully for you.
If you’re reading this as a food business owner who has ever felt overlooked, under-recognised or disheartened by awards, hear this:
You are not here to decorate a shortlist. You are here to feed people, create jobs, shape your community and build a business that feels aligned with who you are.
That is the work.
The titles are just the glitter on top.
Tracie Daly
Your Food Business Coach
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