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Permalink Reply by Deferio on June 26, 2009 at 5:40am

Lots of great advice in there. Thanks for the link!

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Permalink Reply by Samantha Bako on June 26, 2009 at 1:46pm

I think I'm comfortable with being unprofessional, then... I value diversity in my workplace much too much (and I think the business people who frequent our shop enjoy the rather un-mainstream sort of vibe we've all got).

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Permalink Reply by ray peck on July 29, 2009 at 10:47pm

The article has some very good points indeed. However, I am thankful it is only "his" point of view.

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Permalink Reply by Thomas Ervin-Ward on July 29, 2009 at 11:22pm

hmmm... "Keep it generic."
hmmm... "Wear nice slacks and a shirt."
hmmm... "Do not express any stong opinions about sports, politics, or religion."
ahhhhh... "Keep it generic."

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Permalink Reply by Brady on July 30, 2009 at 5:43am

There are some good thoughts in there, though they certainly go too far in the "generic" direction. There certainly is some validity to the idea of the blank canvas (like a simple white plate for a dinner at a fine-dining restaurant) but this is not a one-size-fits-all approach.

A professional gets the job done, and creating the right atmosphere is part of your job. A better rule that "be generic" is to understand the effect that your appearance and actions have on your shop's vibe (and therefore customers' experience). Then you can use that understanding to help create the kind of experience that you (and your manager) are going for.

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Permalink Reply by Jason Haeger on July 30, 2009 at 7:12am

That's a very large number of words to express what can be condensed quite easily.

1. Present yourself as you or your company wishes to be perceived.
(that may be generic. that may be anything but.)

2. Know your audience (or get to know your audience) and provide a product and/or service that they are willing to pay for.
(this may mean presentation. this may mean conversation. this may mean stupid breakfast sandwiches that I'm pretty sure the entirety of bX wishes were never introduced into the coffee retail world. whatever it is, there is no one answer.)

3. Take pride in your work.
(this pretty much covers the bases on getting along with co-workers, bosses, etc.. if they don't care about the quality of the products reaching your customers as much as you do, then the place is probably not a good fit for you. The converse is also true.)

4. Have a desire and willingness to learn from others.
(see above's description, plus add the benefit of fewer glass ceilings along the way)

fin.

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Permalink Reply by Allie Johnson on July 30, 2009 at 10:23am

haha! "Obviously, wearing "gang-colors" would be inappropriate." This shit's great. I also like the part where we it says we aren't supposed to voice our opinion on anything. Is there a barista anywhere that doesn't say exactly whats on their mind?

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Permalink Reply by Brady on July 30, 2009 at 10:54am

Allie Johnson said:

haha! "Obviously, wearing "gang-colors" would be inappropriate." This shit's great. I also like the part where we it says we aren't supposed to voice our opinion on anything. Is there a barista anywhere that doesn't say exactly whats on their mind?

Um, me.

I work in a very politically conservative part of the bible belt, so I keep my mouth shut unless what's being said is offensive. We are a business, and with a few exceptions, my personal religious or political views are irrelevant when I'm on the clock. They come to me for good coffee. If given the opportunity I will speak on issues related to coffee and food. That's it.

I do rarely make exceptions for customers that I trust to be reasonable, and we have had very good and mutually beneficial discussions. But they are definitely the exception. They will not get angry at our shop when Obama does something they don't like... but I can't say that all of our customers wouldn't.

This is my approach, and it works for me.

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