TCMBA #27 - What if you believed there’s more and you were brave enough to go for it?
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“The universe is full of magical things patiently waiting for our wits to grow sharper.” - W.B. Yeats
We all crave more… from our lives, our hobbies and our businesses.
I know the feeling of slogging through the day, recognizing an old uncomfortable frustration, choking back all too familiar anxiety and pausing to look around and think…
“There has got to be a better way. I know there's more than just this.”
That’s why I’ve been talking with you about planning and data.
Come with me on this analogy please…
Planning is the life boat and data is the propeller that helps get you off the shore of your old familiar patterns, and heading toward a brighter future.
You’ll be heading toward a place where there's more…
✅ More growth
✅ More revenue
✅ More creativity
✅ More confidence
✅ More happy customers and employees
But sailor beware: just when you start to leave the shores of the familiar and get into the deep water of thinking differently and thinking bigger…
You may get caught in the torrential storm of thoughts and fears.
Where do I start?
There's so much to consider, and precious few resources to put towards making progress in my business.
How will I know if my resources are going to the right place?
What if I fail and then I realize that I wasted all that time trying?
What if I can’t get my team onboard and I rock the boat too hard?
You’re going to become tempted. “Shouldn’t I just turn around and head back to where I came from? I’ll keep doing the familiar, safe, “same old things,” for better or worse!”
Don’t be tempted! What feels safe isn’t always actually safe. It may simply be familiar.
To quote Simon Sinek “The fear is not from the change, the fear is from the unfamiliarity.”
In an article about why we fear change, author Scott Mautz explains this phenomenon further.
“Neuroscience research teaches us that uncertainty registers in our brain much like an error does. It needs to be corrected before we can feel comfortable again…”
So, when that mental storm starts to rage and you want to turn back to more familiar shores, repeat this mantra:
“Don’t curse the storm. Become a student of the storm.”
Take a step deeper and do the work to get you through the raging waters. The answers could be right in front of you. Consider these 3 L’s when working through your storm:
Listen
Learn
Lean in
“Listen” to your staff and customers.
Hear what they are asking you for with fresh ears.
What are they saying about your business?
Is there a common thread you can find?
Are there things they’ve been saying but you’re so caught in the weeds you haven’t been able to listen?
Have your employees hesitated to share their thoughts for fear of being shot down?
“Learn” from the feedback you receive.
Test it against your numbers and the data about your business.
What are 3 key takeaways you can become a student of from the things you heard?
Is the data telling you something that you’re ready to hear and learn from?
“Lean in” to the learning.
Don’t turn your back on what you’re seeing, even if it's pointing you in a new direction.
Don’t be afraid to lean in and explore it.
Get curious and get focused on studying the storm you’re experiencing.
Thomas C. Redman shares with us some amazing ways to get over a fear of using data in a Harvard Business Review article.
“As your knowledge grows, push forward. Dig into other data sets to uncover the stories behind the data. Learn the distinction between causation and correlation. Construct graphics to help visualize what you’ve found. Share these visuals with your team, so they can see what you’ve discovered and how it improves your work.”
Most of us miss out on finding what’s possible for us because we give up too fast.
We get stuck in the patterns we know.
We don’t trust that there’s a better way on the other side if we just keep going and don’t turn back.
We let fear and uncertainty rule our decisions rather than letting the storm teach us, letting the plan guide us, and the data propel us into a new MORE.
Keep rowing!
Heather
Life-Affirming gif Moment!
Friends and friends of friends.
Brian Cornelsen
Sales Director, Western US
Industry beginnings:
Brian started in the specialty coffee industry as a barista in the 90’s. He went on to work at many other cool brands including Fetco, David Rio, Unic, etc.
One special day in 2005 at a Western Barista Championship in Denver, Co, Brian brewed up a natural process Ethiopian Harrar roasted by Flying Goat Coffee using a FETCO brewer and a muslin filter. He served it to the masses, and among them was Colby Barr. Coby later tells the story that this was the moment that he fell in love with specialty coffee. He went on to start Verve Coffee Roasters in Santa Cruz, CA.
BRIAN’S PICKS:
Music you work to: Grateful Dead or Jazz
Film that inspires you: Interstellar
Podcast you’re binging: Radical Responsibility with Flett Maull
Coffee you want more of: Too many favorites and I adore too many roasters to choose just one
Product you’re obsessed with: I love my For Life Teapot
Self-care practices: Meditation
Miranda’s Corner
I’ve spent an entire year dreaming of this moment… the unveiling of The Coffee MBA educational platform! It’s finally begun, my coffee friends!!!
Bit by bit we’re going to be releasing new full courses, mini-courses, and webinars to help support you on your specialty coffee business journey!!!
And here are our first mini-courses! Available now!
In Loving Memory of Gianni Cassatini.
