Before I wrote blog posts or edited books, I stood in the kitchen of a French bakery in a flour-covered dress, flattening thick slabs of dough into thin layers for croissants.
I was a college student in Florida in need of extra cash. The local French bakery hired me as a croissant maker. The bakery was styled with French authenticity. The kitchen was open behind the counter, so I had to wear a dress along with my apron and bakery hat. The bakery didn’t serve beverages because authentic French shops specialized.
One of my coworkers was from France. She added her charming accent and bubbly personality to the authentic traditions. People loved to come in, talk with her, and select their favorite treats: sweet and savory croissants and tarts.
What Does a Croissant Maker Do?
Every day, the baker prepared thick slabs of layered croissant dough. Part of my job was to use an imported French dough roller to flatten the dough into thin sheets. This step involved lots of flour, which I often ended up wearing on my dress.
Next, I had to cut the thinned-out dough into triangles and rectangles at just the right size for the croissants. I added fillings and rolled the croissants, setting them on trays for the baker. Each day, I followed the owner’s daily production chart for how many of each type of croissant to prepare.
The Hardest Parts of Croissant Making
Croissant making required a lot of physical labor and repetitive movement, even with the help of the dough roller. I had to work quickly to meet the production chart totals but without sacrificing quality. Each croissant was expected to come out perfectly for our customers. I learned to balance speed with perfection.
I worked around my class schedule. Sometimes I was on day shift, which always felt lighter because my coworkers were awesome. Often, I worked alone at night when the shop was closed. That was harder. I would end my shift by cleaning the equipment and floor while exhausted and covered in flour.
What Croissant Making Taught Me about Writing and Editing
The bakery taught me a customer-centered lesson I still carry into my writing and editing life today: speed matters, but quality matters more. I learned how to balance the two. How to move things forward to reach goals, while constantly focusing on quality and customer experience. The customers may have changed—readers instead of croissant enthusiasts—but the focus on providing an enjoyable, quality experience is the same.
Guidelines are important. At the bakery, I followed the owner’s production chart. Today, I follow my client’s guidelines or outlines.
Repetition built skill. Making hundreds of croissants taught consistency. Writing and editing regularly builds strength and speed.
Precision matters. No customer wants a sloppy croissant. No reader wants a typo or weak paragraph.
Speed matters, but quality matters more. Projects need to move forward consistently but with excellence. It’s possible to balance both.
Working alone built discipline. Night shifts alone at the bakery prepared me for freelance writing and editing alone.
Teamwork matters. My best shifts were when my coworkers were present at the bakery. Today, collaboration with clients and authors makes work stronger.
At the time, I didn’t realize I was learning lessons that would follow me into my future career. At the end of each shift, I just knew I was tired, flour-covered, and ready to go home.
If you’re young and working a job that feels repetitive, exhausting, or unrelated to your dreams, don’t underestimate it. Every job teaches something: discipline, people skills, endurance, precision, teamwork, or resilience. You may not see the purpose today, but one day you may look back and realize that job prepared you for exactly where you’re meant to be.
Janet Eriksson 