“Looking for a skilled barista with minimum 2 years experience in a cafe located in…”. It’s how advertisements looking for barista’s seems to start more often than not. Especially in cities with more developed cafe cultures.

Recently someone asked, ‘How am I meant to get experience as a barista if everyone wants barista’s with a minimum of 2 years experience?’. How indeed.

Knowing how to get started during the first two years (what we at MIF call the Puppy Years) of your career in a way that will have long term, foundational benefits, is underrated in our industry. Most people tend not to take these puppy years seriously. They’re just “fun times in coffee” right?. Sure, and while they should truly be fun times meeting new people who share your passion for this awesome craft that we do, if you’re considering a long term career in coffee, I invite you to consider these puppy years as potentially the defining years of your future success in the industry, if done right.

We’re experiencing an interesting and intersectional time in the evolution of the coffee industry. We’re in the middle of a coffee price crisis that is causing small holder producers to abandon their farms, for at least the last for seasons, the global supply of coffee has outweighed the global demand, an increasing number of roaster are finding the confidence to establish direct relationships with coffee producers and pay a fair price for coffee, and increasingly, strides are being made to legitimise the profession of barista around the world.

A MAP IT FORWARD thought/question to chew on for today! 

How important is what I do as coffee professionals? 

Despite how some "coffee people" act (#ego), we’re not in the business of saving lives, jumping into burning buildings or landing on Mars. 

While what we do doesn’t even come close in the degree of difficulty as the above mentioned professions, we do have one very important role in the world. We get to make a persons day infinitely more enjoyable! This responsibility (and opportunity) should be taken seriously.

On the subject of Decaf and similar such things that we’re inclined to judge our customers for. Please stop it! Judging them I mean.

Whether or not a person drinks decaf, puts sugar in their coffee, adds milk, syrups, cinnamon, chocolate or whatever else, who are we to judge them for what they choose to drink or put into their drink? Further, what gives us the right to do so?

If having a job is for the purpose of making money alone, then that thing you spend a third of your life doing, your job, is doing little more than increasing your financial wealth. And lets face it, in the coffee industry, unless you’re one of the very lucky few, you’re living from pay check to pay check so it’s not even doing that.