4 Tips to Help You Close Out 2019 As a Coffee Industry Professional or Business Owner
The end of 2019 is finally upon us and what a year it’s been. As we get ready for 2020, I wanted to talk about the opportunity this time of year provides us - particularly this year, the last of a decade, as a coffee industry, as employees, and as employers!
We're entering a new decade. I'm sure we'll call it the '20s and there will be a resurgence of fashions of yesteryear, cafes will start hunting down glassware and mugs from that era and people will relish in the potential of what comes from this exciting potential.
Love it or hate it, agree with it or disagree with it, new beginnings are powerful. The chance to reset with a different frame of mind is important no matter whether you're a professional employed in the coffee industry or you're an employer of professionals in the coffee industry.
Here are some tips I have for approaching the last few weeks of 2019:
1. Take a moment to consider your intentions for the next decade. Ask yourself "How old will I be in 2030 and what do I choose my life to look like at that age?" Forget for a moment about the "how". Just take some time to be indulgent and relish in the safety of the pondering. The creative thinking that comes from this kind of pondering is an important first step to getting to where you want. You won't ever have your dream roastery if you don't go on the voyage of imagining what it looks like first. You won't have your dream job if you don't first consider what it looks like and what you'll be doing. You won't ever get your business out of debt if you don't first imagine what it will look and feel like to have conquered that huge hurdle. Do the imagining. Feel the feelings. Write it down. It's important - and this is the perfect time to do it! If understanding the science behind why you should have a clear understanding of what you want to achieve is important to you, take a listen to this podcast episode by Dr. Jordan B. Peterson "The Importance of Aim".
2. The steps to get you where you have chosen to go are perhaps more attainable than you realise. That doesn't mean it's not going to be hard work and challenge you far beyond what you thought you could do, but that's the real point of doing it anyway. It WILL change you and, if done right, it may bring you to the brink of wanting to quit. Anything worth doing will push you far beyond yourself (ask anyone that's done it) and you WILL be better for it. Map out the steps and keep an eye out for the opportunities to get you there (while also staying open to the idea that there is another path to get you there).
3. Think differently from the herd. There are some things that need to be done the way everyone else is doing them (e.g. all businesses need a website) however there are many more things that are just being done very poorly by our industry and need to be done differently (e.g. you don't have to use your website the same way everyone else is). As you come into this new decade I invite you to consider how you might go against the norm and create a unique path for yourself that drives you in a different direction to where everyone else is going. Don't follow the herd. That's where all the "sameness" is and right now that "sameness" is struggling and competing with others in the same group doing the same thing. This year I started monthly coaching sessions with business owners as a new way to approach making consulting more affordable. It's going wonderfully and in the moments when I've invited clients to consider doing things differently than what they'd originally anticipated, a new spark of ideas would go on to drive things in an inspiring new direction.
4. Gratitude is key. Lastly, as we go into 2020, no matter what your stress levels are like, I invite you to take a moment to rest and focus on gratitude - whatever that looks like for you. Take as many moments as you can to slow down, brew yourself a coffee, ponder, write shit down, smile as you remember the great moments, laugh at whatever clusterfuckery happened this year that almost brought you down and be grateful for what it all taught you. I know it's often easier said than done, especially at this time of year. Many of us in this industry are stressed, depressed, isolated, tired, exhausted, worried or some version of less than our best selves. Take it from someone who was in a horrible place this time last year, the way out of it isn't through more depression and victimhood. If this year has taught me anything it's that creating a path to your success and happiness is no-one else's job but my own and it all starts with the fleeting (but real) moments of gratitude.
And in that vein, as I get ready for next year, I want to share my gratitude for YOU! This year at MAP IT FORWARD we achieved a lot. 165 episode of The Daily Coffee Pro, 46 conversations with awesome guests, 4 workshops in the US and Australia, and explorations into subjects like the coffee price crisis and the supply chain that we're going to deep dive into even further next year.
On average, almost 12,000 unique listeners tuned into the podcast each month this year (we peaked at 14,000). Our plans for next year are to bring you even more and even better content. As always, it will be done with the intention of "Conspiring to Each Other's Success" - the MAP IT FORWARD motto.
None of this happens without people wanting to be a part of it, and that's where my gratitude starts for this time of year. I'm taking a week off starting Christmas eve to focus on rest, drinking Wu-Tang Elixir, eating copious amounts of Pic's Peanut Butter, and being grateful for all the wonderful realizations that 2019 has brought into my life.
So, as I get ready to sign off for 2019, I want to wish you joy, prosperity and amazing coffee this holiday season and into 2020!
Let's conspire to our own, as well as each other's, success in the next decade!
Peace Love and Peanut Butter,
Lee x
This article was written by Lee Safar. Lee is the founder of MAP IT FORWARD and the CEO of Elixir Specialty Coffee Inc. An 18-year veteran of the Australian Specialty Coffee industry, Lee is now based in San Diego, California where she runs both businesses and records daily episodes of The MAP IT FORWARD Podcast featuring guests from around the world specializing in all sectors of the coffee value chain. Lee travels the world doing professional business and career development focused workshops and consultations for the global coffee industry.
Lee has a bachelors degree in Science (Genetics) from the University of NSW, an associate diploma in counseling and interpersonal skills, extensive experience in project management and business analysis in the corporate sector, and was a releasing music artist and record label owner.