On Such Days…

I believe it’s the first day of spring today. It’s been beautiful for the past week or so. Yesterday, it was 75 in the sun. That’s beautiful in my book.

Due to a massive miscommunication, I ended up with the day off today (not complaining). I decided to take advantage of it. I slept in three hours longer than I normally would have been able to on a Saturday (which is still not very late at all). I got ready for the day, and then decided to for for a drive. I love driving with the windows down and the sun shining; it doesn’t matter where I’m going, as long as I’m on my way.

I figured I’d go to Barnes and Noble and get some new books to read, since my most recent read is a book I’ve already read three times prior. Time for new books. So I took the back roads to my favorite Barnes and Noble, browsed the shelves for about a half hour, and finally settled on two classics: Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, (I never read it in High School, instead, I read A Separate Peace [incidentally, a fantastic book]) and Ken Kesey’s One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.

A very nice man in line in front of me smiled and asked me how my day was going. “Very well, thank you,” I replied with a smile. It wasn’t a lie, I was in a fantastic mood. After I paid, I decided to stop at Starbucks. My drink came out perfectly.

On my way home, as often happens to me on such days, I had an overwhelming urge to go visit my Grandma. I was in her neck of the woods, and I usually stop in to see her on beautiful afternoons. This is the first time, however, that this has happened to me since she passed away. I immediately lost the smile on my face, and it was replaced with the same agony I felt when I found out she had died. Tears were pouring down my face and my head started pounding with the harsh reality that I’d never again be able to stop and visit her on such days.

How nice it would have been to sip my Starbucks in her sun-soaked living room while discussing my newest book purchases and asking what she had read recently. I tried to shake it off, remembering that she is in a “better place” and that it was still a beautiful day, but I couldn’t.

That’s why I’m writing about it, because if I don’t, I’ll be consumed with the agony for the rest of the day, and it’s too beautiful to be in a dark place.

I have a feeling that this will not be the last time I am overcome with the desire to visit her, but I’m hoping it will get a little easier each time, because this time, it was rough.

I miss you, Grandma ❤

The Starbucks Experience – Review

The Starbucks Experience

Book Review

(Focusing specifically on the Five Ways of Being)

They call themselves the “litter picker-uppers”; they greet us with smiles and help us get a jump-start on our mornings. They are clad in green or black aprons and they don’t just sell us coffee. The Starbucks partners (we know them as employees) pride themselves on selling us not just coffee, but also a lifestyle, an experience unique to any other.
“Leaders at Starbucks have provided a structure that allows partners to infuse themselves into their work, so that they can inspire customers in legendary ways.” These legendary ways are known to these leaders as the “Five Ways of Being”. These five ways are “Be welcoming, Be genuine, Be considerate, Be knowledgeable, and Be involved”. These five ways, along with a management development pamphlet better known as the Green Apron Book “’Truly encapsulates the core philosophies of Starbucks. Cover to cover, it may take five minutes to read…Think about it. In essence, the company is marketing to its employees how important the principles and philosophies contained in this book are.” Says David M. Martin, and industry leader in retail banking solutions worldwide. (20-21).
These concepts seem relatively simple on a basic level, but they are lacking in many areas of customer service in other companies. Starbucks, in this way, is unique, which is why the experience they are selling is so unique. One of the simplest ways they do this is their first way of being “be welcoming”. Barista Joy Wilson, a Starbucks partner, shares just how simple it is to “be welcoming”. “I’m the drive-though queen at my store” Barista say. “I always set out to do the best job I possibly can. One of the ways I do that is I learn people’s names and drinks and the name of their dog and where their kids go to school and whatever else I can find out about them.” (23)
Did you know in order to wear a black apron, a Starbucks employee must “complete a significant number or hours of paid training, pass a series of content-based tests with high proficiency and lead a number of coffee tastings.” These black apron clad partners are knows as “Coffee Masters”. They are the partners with a true passion to be coffee experts (35). This takes their fourth “way of being” to a whole new level. How many people at Dunkin Donuts do you think have gone to such extensive lengths just to help serve you better? Odds are, few to none.
Their fifth way of being, “Be involved” means be involved “in the store, in the company, and in the community.” “Starbucks leaders capture the passion and vitality of their people by encouraging the 100,00-plus partners to take an active role at the store, business, and community levels.” Howard Schultz says “ People want to be a part of something bigger than themselves. They want to be a part of something that touches their hearts.” By being so involved in everything ranging from their specific store, to their community and those surrounding, Starbucks partners have a multitude of opportunities to be a part of something that touches their hearts.
These ways of being are all part of something much larger, they are part of the first of five principles that Starbucks uses to be successful in selling a lifestyle. This first principle is “Make It Your Own”. The other four principles include “Everything matters, Surprise and delight, Embrace resistance, and finally, Leave your mark.” Each one of these alone is powerful in and of them self, but together they create a force that has propelled Starbucks into a whole new range of business. Starbucks is not JUST a coffee shop. It is a place to go to get away from the monotony of every day life. It is a place to meet with friends and catch up on each other’s lives. It is a place where employees become friends and can turn a bad day into a great one using any to all of the five principles that have made them what they are.
In the book “The Starbucks Experience” customers from Starbucks, as well as Starbucks partners share their stories of positive experiences and pleasant surprises they’ve encountered while at Starbucks, be it working or ordering a drink. From first time customers to seasoned regulars, the book is peppered with inspirational stories that will have you eagerly turning pages until the very end. The book itself is an experience, just as is going to Starbucks.