Coffee Talk

Contemplating how to start this blog, I find myself thinking about all the great conversations I've had over coffee. My first memorable cup was at the Starbucks at 202 N. Michigan in Chicago. That Starbucks isn't there anymore, but boy does it still live in my heart and memory. Looking back, that first cup was the beginning of a shift I would feel for a decade. Even as I sat there savoring my coffee, I really didn't know how badly I needed that shift. I remember the simple details. Like what roast it was, Ethiopian Sidamo. And where I sat, a high top bar along the south wall with the hum of Chicago in the background, a place I will always call home. Emotion still overcomes me as I think of who I was then. And even more, who I am now.

I began to study at that Starbucks regularly and eventually got to know the manager. One day she asked me if I needed a job. I said sure and the rest is history. Little did I know how accepting that job late December of ‘96 would change my career trajectory so completely. At that point, I had been working on my Masters in Psychology. Analyzing people comes easy so it seemed like the right thing to do. But that was the catch, a lot of what I had done up to that point had seemed like the right thing to do. Few of the decisions made about me were actually made by me.

Not that I hadn’t made decisions, but nothing life changing. I didn't want to create too many waves, or more accurately wanted to just ride the waves. But to be the creator was different. It reminds me of a quote I read recently by Ralph Waldo Emerson:

“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.”

I was about to create my own path. Go where no one had walked before because it was my trail. Being a part of a workforce like Starbucks in the late 90's was priceless. I call those days with Starbucks the "glory days". It was a perfect pairing of me and a fast paced and exciting company. I couldn't help but grow in an environment where they poured out so much time and money to our training. I rose quickly through the ranks because  the environment paired two of the things I loved, people and coffee. And during this time, I was growing up and becoming my own person forging my own path. Over time, others have come to walk along side me on my trail, too. As these people have walked beside me, I discovered how I want to share my path to help guide and direct others.

This blog will be an extension of that path. I want it to be a trailblazer, or a guide, or even a shady spot to make someone’s journey a little easier. Where we gather and walk together, the path is much more vibrant and alive.