Jason Atherton, the chef-owner of Pollen Street Social, on opening 14 restaurants around the world in just five years
I’m a big fan of David Beckham. He might kick me for saying this, but he wasn’t the best player in the world yet he worked like a dog on the things he was better at than others and became the best footballer he could be. As a child, success to me revolved around the idea of being a successful footballer. I wasn’t academic but always wanted to do something active or creative, something other than sitting behind a desk. I was a bit of a fantasist. To be honest, I didn’t know where I was heading, but everything I did want to do, I wanted to be the very best at.
When I was four, my parents had split and Mum said we were going on a little holiday to Skegness, but she never took us back to Worksop. She and the man who became my stepfather were strict, but they instilled in me that you only get out of life what you put into it, and if you do put your all in, you will succeed. From the age of 11 to 14, I did a summer job as a donkey boy on the beach. I’d get up at 5.30am to cycle to the outskirts to groom, water, feed and saddle the donkeys. When I was 15, my mum encouraged me to help in the B&B she ran – stocking the bar, preparing starters, emptying bins, everything. I’d save up any money I made and buy a quality pair of trainers. When you’re exposed young to some graft, it teaches you the virtues of work, an appreciation of money and an understanding of the mechanics of life.
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