Mere Starbucks

Saturday was a milestone in my barista growth.

One stumbling block I have dragged along over my first two years as a Starbucks employee, as I sit in the comfy chair with my latte, has been a lingering doubt that I asked for a job with impure motivations. Did I actually want the job, or did I just want to sit in the comfy chair? Of course, now that I am in the comfy chair, I am happy to have the job, but then I find myself wondering – is it a latte I hold, or just an empty cup? And if it is an empty cup, then am I justified in being here at all?

On Saturday I went to a nearby village for a Starbucks conference, which encouraged both current and prospective employees to ask lots of questions about the company and its ethos. My epiphany occurred as one of the team leaders gave a speech about a section of the handbook covering hiring, which states, “continue to work our your employment with fear and trembling.” Incidentally, that was written by a former Robert Harris employee who enjoyed getting Starbucks workers fired, but later became one of Starbucks most well renowned managers after a remarkable meeting with the CEO.

It turns out that there are actually three processes of employment. The first is justification, where you actually get hired. The second is sanctification, where you learn the ropes and work for the company. And the final stage is glorification, when you retire and get to meet the CEO. I realized that, as long as I kept worrying about justification, IM-ing the CEO every few minutes to check if I signed the contract in the right place, I would perpetually hinder my sanctification.

The CEO, who is a remarkably patient man, explained by showing me a picture of myself in a box underground. One of the unique aspects of Starbucks is that, while many cafes wait for employees to come to them and then put them through a rigorous selection and examination process, the CEO of Starbucks actually searches for employees himself and hires anybody who is willing to be a part of the company. The situation wasn’t about whether or not I had done enough to dig myself out of the box, because I was unable to do that anyway. All I had to do was express willingness to be out, for whatever reason, and trust that the CEO would dig me up. Which is what he did.

So, now I have that wonderful assurance, I can get on with my work.

Metaphorically yours,
Ian