It's been almost a month now since my family opened our coffeehouse. It took us a really long time to remodel the building, buy supplies, learn the machinery, etc. My parents, sister, and I run it. My mom loves coffee and had worked as a barista before, my dad is learning coffee stuff and is the one who did the majority of the remodel, my sister took a semester off from college to help, and I just graduated college and am starting teaching in August so I'm helping this summer. We pretty much have it under control. My mom and sister know all the drinks, I know about half, and my dad knows a few. My sister, dad, and I are proficient on the cash register, and my mom is learning it slowly (but she's usually making drinks because she's so good at it!). Some of our family was really nice to help out while my sister and I were on vacation in New York (mostly on the register), but before and since then it's just been us. My dad and I do the bookwork, and we all work together to keep things stocked and buy supplies.
So what I'm getting at is that this is a family business, we're there all day, and while we are still learning, and will be for a while, we pretty much have things under control. Yet despite all of this, everybody feels the need to offer their unsolicted opinions! I've been told how to charge people, how we need to approach advertising, what we need to add to our menu, we need to deliver, we need to hand out samples, we need tablecloths (not kidding, this was seriously suggested...by someone we didn't know), we need live music, we need poetry readings, we should do karaoke....this list goes on and on and on. We receive advice from family, friends, strangers... some know what they're talking about from experience and some are just pulling out random thoughts.
Now don't think I'm overly complaining. I have probably done the same thing to other people. I know all of these people probably have the best intentions. They want us to succeed (so do we!), and I really do appreicate the support. Some of this advice has come from people who have business experience (not coffee business, but business is business is what I've heard), and some of the advice has been good advice. We had one couple come in from out of town and stop by; they had actually owned their own coffee place in another city for several years. They had even started out like us, taking things slow getting going, and they ended up with a successful business. They had a lot of good information to share, and they were so nice to take the time to share their knowledge. We really appreciated it and enjoyed talking to them!
However, besides that one couple and the fact that everyone else has really good intentions, I sometimes get really tired of people telling me how to do things! Especially if it's something I really don't want to do and they stand there for 5 minutes telling me how great it would be. Of course I'm polite and agree, but inside I'm thinking please be quiet! Or if I'm really busy or trying to figure something out and people keep throwing their opinions at me, I really just want to look at them and yell "I've got this!" We tell people all the time that we are open to ideas and would like to know if there's something they would like that we don't have, etc. So please don't think I don't appreicate good advice and constructive criticism; it's just frustrating sometimes!
Has anyone else ever opened their own business? How did you feel about the plethora of others' opinions?
Monday, June 25, 2012
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Tennis Anyone?
So I set up this blog quite a while ago, and I could never decide what my first post should be about. I know what you're thinking, you took all that time to write about tennis? Well, I have a lot of things I want to write about (just as the title says, "A Million and One Things Going Through my Head"). Most of them are more intriguing and in depth than a post about a sport, but I'm tired of this blog sitting here empty. I would also like to tell you about opening a family business and about my first trip to New York City that I just took. However, what led me to a post on tennis is rather simple: I'm tired, therefore I don't want to write something very complicated. Also, I just played some tennis, so it's in the forefront of my mind.
My past relationship with tennis:
As far as I can recall, I had never played tennis in my life until I was about to go into high school. When I was in 8th grade and was given the task of choosing my classes for freshman year, my choices for physical education (which I was required to have a year and a half of in order to graduate) were Athletics, Marching Band, P.E., an after school only sport, or Tennis. Well, Athletics was out. I am by no means a natural born athlete. I'm more of a natural born anti-athlete (I wish I were athletic, but it's just not something that comes easy to me). I took the minimum amount of P.E. classes in junior high, and my experience in sports was limited to soccer in kindergarten and cheerleading for a little league football team with my friends in 5th grade. I'm not sure they would have even allowed me in Athletics, and I'm pretty sure I would be kicked out soon after if they had. Marching Band was definitely out. I don't play any instruments. While other kids were taking band in junior high, I was signing up for choir, tech, accelerated reading, and being a student helper in the library. I could have taken regular old P.E. However, that seemed like the boring, easy way out. (It turns out I was correct. From all I heard in high school, P.E. was walking a few laps and study hall.) I gave some thought to the after school thing. My choices would have been cheerleading (which I didn't stand a chance at, I lacked the dance skills, gymnast skills, and large bank account), softball (which while that sounded fun, I had never played before in my life, I did breifly consider trying out anyway in the spring, but that thought lasted about two minutes), and my last option was golf. I seriously considered golf. Outside of putt-putt, and hitting some balls out of the yard with my cousin one time, I had never actually played golf. But how hard could it be to learn? I would walk around a pretty golf course in my polo shirt and hit the balls in the holes in the ground. Besides, I was only 14, I figured there weren't too many golf pros around yet so I couldn't be far behind the others. So I was left deciding between golf and tennis. I think what really made tennis win out in the end was the fact that golf was after school. Who wants to stay late, when you have to fill up 8 periods anyway? So I chose tennis.
I was interested in taking a tennis class for several reasons aside from the fact that I had to have physical education credit. It seemed more interesting than basic P.E., it was the chance for me to learn and play a sport (even anti-athletes would like to enjoy sports sometimes!), I wasn't worried about being a long way behind everyone else in development of skills (there was no junior high tennis program at that time, so this was basically the first opportunity for people my age to learn the game of tennis), and of course it helped that most of my friends were signing up for tennis. I was excited to play but also nervous. So once or twice that summer, my dad took me up to the courts to practice. Of course, my dad didn't know much about how to play tennis, let alone know any of the rules or how to score, but at least I got to hold a racket in my hand and stand on that hot green pavement.
Anyway, I'll make a long story short. I ended up playing all 4 years of high school, far beyond the required 1.5 years. I was never the top player by any means, but I loved the game. I had a great coach who was fun and encouraged me to do MY best. It felt good to be part of a team and compete in tournaments. I lost some, but I won some too. It turned out to be a wonderful experience, and something that I would later miss from high school.
After high school, I went through phases where I would play several times a week to going several months without playing. Now I'm 25 years old, and tennis has become a love I visit now and then. I wish I played more though.
There are many things I like about the game of tennis:
-It's a great workout, yet it's still doable for a non-athlete like myself. Tennis is a series of points, games, and sets. This allows me moments of pause throughout that make it possible to play for long periods of time. Yet it works many parts of my body and can become very intense at times.
-It's a complicated and honest game. It's complicated because of the complex rules and scoring. The players move position after every point, switch servers every game, and switch sides every odd game. It stays interesing. Also, no matter how far behind a player falls, there's always a chance of a comeback. It's an honest game, because it can be judged only by 2 players involved. The players call the ball in or out, and the players keep up with the score. So not only is a person working out their body, they also must use their mind and their judgement.
-What other game can you play in sweats, shorts and a t-shirt, or a skort and tank. The uniform possibilities are endless.
-It can be played by men and women, who can choose to go alone in singles, or team up in doubles. With the right opportunity, tennis can be adapted many ways to your preference.
-It's not a game that can only be played on a team while you're young. Tennis is a life long sport. All you need is one other person willing to play, or if you're really desperate a wall works too.
My past relationship with tennis:
As far as I can recall, I had never played tennis in my life until I was about to go into high school. When I was in 8th grade and was given the task of choosing my classes for freshman year, my choices for physical education (which I was required to have a year and a half of in order to graduate) were Athletics, Marching Band, P.E., an after school only sport, or Tennis. Well, Athletics was out. I am by no means a natural born athlete. I'm more of a natural born anti-athlete (I wish I were athletic, but it's just not something that comes easy to me). I took the minimum amount of P.E. classes in junior high, and my experience in sports was limited to soccer in kindergarten and cheerleading for a little league football team with my friends in 5th grade. I'm not sure they would have even allowed me in Athletics, and I'm pretty sure I would be kicked out soon after if they had. Marching Band was definitely out. I don't play any instruments. While other kids were taking band in junior high, I was signing up for choir, tech, accelerated reading, and being a student helper in the library. I could have taken regular old P.E. However, that seemed like the boring, easy way out. (It turns out I was correct. From all I heard in high school, P.E. was walking a few laps and study hall.) I gave some thought to the after school thing. My choices would have been cheerleading (which I didn't stand a chance at, I lacked the dance skills, gymnast skills, and large bank account), softball (which while that sounded fun, I had never played before in my life, I did breifly consider trying out anyway in the spring, but that thought lasted about two minutes), and my last option was golf. I seriously considered golf. Outside of putt-putt, and hitting some balls out of the yard with my cousin one time, I had never actually played golf. But how hard could it be to learn? I would walk around a pretty golf course in my polo shirt and hit the balls in the holes in the ground. Besides, I was only 14, I figured there weren't too many golf pros around yet so I couldn't be far behind the others. So I was left deciding between golf and tennis. I think what really made tennis win out in the end was the fact that golf was after school. Who wants to stay late, when you have to fill up 8 periods anyway? So I chose tennis.
I was interested in taking a tennis class for several reasons aside from the fact that I had to have physical education credit. It seemed more interesting than basic P.E., it was the chance for me to learn and play a sport (even anti-athletes would like to enjoy sports sometimes!), I wasn't worried about being a long way behind everyone else in development of skills (there was no junior high tennis program at that time, so this was basically the first opportunity for people my age to learn the game of tennis), and of course it helped that most of my friends were signing up for tennis. I was excited to play but also nervous. So once or twice that summer, my dad took me up to the courts to practice. Of course, my dad didn't know much about how to play tennis, let alone know any of the rules or how to score, but at least I got to hold a racket in my hand and stand on that hot green pavement.
Anyway, I'll make a long story short. I ended up playing all 4 years of high school, far beyond the required 1.5 years. I was never the top player by any means, but I loved the game. I had a great coach who was fun and encouraged me to do MY best. It felt good to be part of a team and compete in tournaments. I lost some, but I won some too. It turned out to be a wonderful experience, and something that I would later miss from high school.
After high school, I went through phases where I would play several times a week to going several months without playing. Now I'm 25 years old, and tennis has become a love I visit now and then. I wish I played more though.
There are many things I like about the game of tennis:
-It's a great workout, yet it's still doable for a non-athlete like myself. Tennis is a series of points, games, and sets. This allows me moments of pause throughout that make it possible to play for long periods of time. Yet it works many parts of my body and can become very intense at times.
-It's a complicated and honest game. It's complicated because of the complex rules and scoring. The players move position after every point, switch servers every game, and switch sides every odd game. It stays interesing. Also, no matter how far behind a player falls, there's always a chance of a comeback. It's an honest game, because it can be judged only by 2 players involved. The players call the ball in or out, and the players keep up with the score. So not only is a person working out their body, they also must use their mind and their judgement.
-What other game can you play in sweats, shorts and a t-shirt, or a skort and tank. The uniform possibilities are endless.
-It can be played by men and women, who can choose to go alone in singles, or team up in doubles. With the right opportunity, tennis can be adapted many ways to your preference.
-It's not a game that can only be played on a team while you're young. Tennis is a life long sport. All you need is one other person willing to play, or if you're really desperate a wall works too.
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