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S3E14: From Barista to Barista Trainer: Andrew Jay’s Journey of Growth and Resilience.
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In this episode of the I’M NOT A BARISTA podcast, we catch up with Andrew Jay, a passionate coffee professional, who shares his inspiring journey from being a barista to becoming a regional coffee trainer. Andrew opens up about the challenges he’s faced, including imposter syndrome, the impact of the pandemic on his business dreams, and the fine line between his professional and personal love for coffee. We discuss the importance of every coffee story, no matter where you are in your journey—don’t let your current stage blind where you want to be.
Join us as we explore Andrew’s story of growth, resilience, and the pursuit of new opportunities in the ever-evolving coffee industry. Plus, hear about his exciting plans for the future and how he’s balancing his love for coffee with a potential career as a writer. Don’t miss this honest and heartfelt conversation that reminds us all why every coffee story matters.
Make sure to follow Andrew on Instagram here.
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Transcript
Podcast Introduction and Guest Welcome
00:00:04
Speaker
Welcome to the I'm Not A Barista podcast. We're here to talk about all things coffee from industry careers, brewing tips, community support and more. We hope their stories inspire you because humanity runs on coffee and together we can empower all the people behind every cup.
00:00:24
Speaker
Hello, hello, welcome back to the I'm Not A Barista podcast. Welcome to the show. Thank you for having me. this is scary.
Impact of Story Sharing
00:00:34
Speaker
So actually we featured your story back in 2022, two years yeah ago, and the story was written by our intern Amaniro.
00:00:44
Speaker
It wasn't that scary, right? No, it wasn't it wasn't scary to do that. um i I wasn't expecting it to be um an audio story. I didn't know someone was going to um speak my story, and that was really interesting to hear. Yeah, it was cool. um Especially because I didn't know if my story is particularly interesting. It it seems like...
00:01:11
Speaker
A lot of people in coffee have like similar stories, and I haven't had some some sort of illustrious career, but it's it's it's my career, so that's that it's cool that it was being told. I know, right? ah Not everybody is a champion. Not everyone is a barista champion, and that is okay. I believe that every story has its audience. Sure,
00:01:35
Speaker
champion stories may grab the spotlight, but your story is uniquely yours. And it's a special one. And it's special to people around you and people who know you. So every story matters. And to be honest, that's why I like i like this the this. I'm not a barista. It's nice to to read everybody's different stories from every from every background.
00:01:57
Speaker
Yes. Thank you. So, last time we shared a story that was back in 2022 and it has been two years since since then.
Career Transition and Growth
00:02:04
Speaker
So, could you please tell us how your life and your coffee career have changed since then? um Yeah, I sort of. So, i was um I was an assistant manager um in a coffee shop in Cardiff and i i I left that job for a job closer to home.
00:02:28
Speaker
um And basically for the sake of to save money because the the travel was a lot. I live about an hour away on the train from where I live to where I was working. The the public transport system in the UK is not cheap. um And it was costing me like almost £200 a month, which is a a lot of money to take out of my paycheck.
00:02:52
Speaker
and this opportunity came up in a ah place which is sort of a it's a chain of like coffee shop restaurants um and i was I was apprehensive about going there originally because I didn't know whether I want wanted to be part of that big restaurant atmosphere and because I really enjoyed the we're working especially coffee shop you sort of you make friends with other baristas and everyone there and it feels a bit more family-ish. So I thought going to a big chain would be um
00:03:29
Speaker
and a stack ah step backwards, not not professionally, but personally. And I was, I'm happy to say that I was wrong. it's it was It's been brilliant. The people I work with are fantastic. And um I came in just as a barista originally, but now I'm a a ah coffee trainer for the Southwest region, um which is something I've never really done before. And that was very scary.
00:03:57
Speaker
So I've gone from i gone from being just a barista or an assistant manager to now having um to being able to train baristas in about 50 different sites, I think it is, and get them up to a ah a really good standard for the company. So it's been been of a weird, wild journey of self-discovery as well, to see whether I can actually do this. Because it's one thing to make coffee and know your own know your own skills but then to try and make them transferable to other people and me make it so other people learn from you is ah is a ah is another is a different ballgame altogether and it's it's been it's been a challenge but it's been been very good it's been and it's been fun as well, it's been a lot of fun.
Barista Training and Challenges
00:04:44
Speaker
What I would say being a barista trainer is definitely one of the paths in a barista career since you have your SCA certification. So it's important that you have to use it. Yeah, i got I got my, I do have to yeah i do have to use it. um I've got my intermediate. I still do want to do my professional. It's just the expense of it. um And I still do want to eventually get my AST, teach the SCA course. But at the moment, within this company, it's I'm training today as standard, which is a good standard.
00:05:17
Speaker
um But it's not within the SCA guidelines. It's sort of how this company does it. So I train how that company does it. eight it's so It's still good and it's not it's not far off. And it's also like dipping my toe in the water of what it would be like um if I were to become a trainer.
00:05:39
Speaker
through the SCA. So yeah, it's space very it's very good. OK, so you mentioned that you had to travel to 50 shops. That sounds like a lot. I haven't gone to 50 so far, but that's the option. I think I've done about 10 or 12. But um yeah, but there there's I think there's about 50 in the region. um So how many people do you usually train? oh God, it can be 10, 10 at maximum in one place.
00:06:07
Speaker
um they sort of pick and choose like who they need at that time to be um up to a certain standard. And then I would go back there again and train a lot of people. Yeah, so I'll i'll visit at a place multiple times to get through, get some quality time with everybody, which is good. um It's mainly like coffee basics, how to dial in ah your mise en place, like how to set up your work your workflow and um milk quality and that that type of thing and how to actually
00:06:37
Speaker
construct the beverages to a certain standard because I am finding that a lot of a lot of the people are just excited by latte art and I have to explain to them, latte art is cool but you you can't taste latte art. You have to have the fundamentals of the beverage right first otherwise because I could I could pour a perfect swan into the most over extracted horrendous espresso ever. And it'll look pretty, but it'll taste horrible. So so you need to know the fundamentals first. There's no doubt that most new baristas are really into the latte art. and But hey, your story is definitely very interesting to your trainees. Yes, yes, which is it's it's terrifying, but yeah. So tell us, what do you think are the biggest differences between being a barista and being a trainer?
00:07:30
Speaker
um There's just responsibility. there's now from From being a barista, you're in charge of the um the beverage that goes out and you make and you make sure that that is the best it can be for the customer. Now I'm sort of in charge of making sure that the people that I train have the knowledge to make the beverages to that go out so they're the best that they can be, if that makes sense. um so it's it's ah It's just a different responsibility altogether. They solve this imposter syndrome of being like, am i am I good enough to do this? Am I good enough to train people?
00:08:12
Speaker
um and The only real way of of knowing whether you are is feedback from most people and feedback from higher-ups. Also, luckily, I have like access to the statistics of where feedback from customers. Also, there's a system where we work where they want every drink to go from order to table within five minutes.
00:08:39
Speaker
um so They're sort of timed in a way. um So they've got all those statistics that they can send to me to be like, this store is like running
Maintaining Quality and Efficiency
00:08:50
Speaker
at 20 minutes. We need to understand why. Or this store is like always under five minutes, like perfect perfectly. And then if you couple that with customer feedback, it's like you're making sure that they're not just chucking drinks out there to um to get the times right, but making sure that if the customers are like, yep, this is great, and they're still under five minutes, then I know I'm doing my job properly. But if it's but at the same time, if it's like over 20 minutes, but but no one's complaining, it's one of these weighing up whether you care that much about the time versus the the quality, um and it's getting that happy medium.
00:09:26
Speaker
for everybody involved, for the customer, the barista, and obviously the managers to see whether they um whether the store is actually improving from my guidance, if that makes sense.
00:09:38
Speaker
I'm curious about the people that I work with, those new trainers, new baristas. So what are they like? Yeah, yeah. There's there's there's ah there's a combination of a lot of people. um There's people who are just in new university, and this is just a part-time job for them. and There are people who want to make careers within the company because there is a lot of room for progression there to go from supervisor to assistant manager to manager to to whatever you'd like. um So there are people there who are um are there for their career. and There are also people there that that i we I know it's just a stopgap and that they're gonna go off either to finish university or go into a different career. But regardless of the people of what what what they want and where they are, I'm gonna try my best to teach them something so that they can
00:10:27
Speaker
um They've got that for life. They're all super happy to be doing what they're doing though, which is good regardless of whether it's just um just temporary or not. So it's it's nice. So it's a good company to work for.
Learning and Teaching Coffee Skills
00:10:40
Speaker
I think Beres today are pretty lucky because there are many ways to learn about coffee. They can learn from trainers like you, they can learn from YouTube and even social media. and But when you were started, how did you learn to make coffee?
00:10:53
Speaker
Oh God. um Yeah. So when I started, I, uh, as fuck about it in my coffee story. Um, I, I couldn't steam milk. I, I, it didn't make sense to me when I was introduced to a coffee machine, I tried to steam milk and I was, I, I find there's two different types of starting baristas. There's these people that can make like perfect cappuccino milk. And it's like, it's all for me and it's good. And there's, and.
00:11:22
Speaker
they can They can nail the amount of foam that they have for a cappuccino. But that's all they can do. They can't steam like latte milk or any or any other type of milk, or there's the other type of person where they pick can't form it at all. They don't understand how it forms. And I was i was that person. I would steam the milk, and I'd be like, OK, this is just hot milk. There's no form on this. And I couldn't get it for a while. um and i did
00:11:53
Speaker
I utilised YouTube videos and doing my own research and just watching what people were doing to understand, okay, the milk has got to spin. um It's got to spiralise or whatever the term is for it. Took a while, but then it it became a weird obsession um to make sure I got this right. And then I started pouring latte art when I wasn't supposed to in my first job. And the boss was like, yeah, this is this is cool, but don't do this all the time because we've we've got a standard to uphold here. I'm like, yeah, that's fine. when i i remember When I became a manager of that store, he was like talking to me in front of like the other baristas, and he was like, he's the only one that can free pour their drinks. Everyone else is going to use a spatula. And I was like, OK, that's permission for me to keep pouring latte art, so I'm going to try and practice now. So we are training these young baristas today. Did they get the chance to pour latte art?
00:12:46
Speaker
Are they allowed to do that? Yes, yes, no, they are allowed to pour latte out. It's encouraged as well, but it's um but it's not it's not the be all, end all. It is about making sure the drink to drink is the drink that it's supposed to be and it tastes great. um and like that The coffee's dialed in correctly. um so everyone So when you drink the drink, it's nice as opposed to it looking nice. But I think a lot of, especially the younger people that I train, they're um they are a little bit like oh I want to be able to do that I want to be able to do a tulip or a rosetta or a swan and like yeah you you can but let's make sure this coffee tastes okay first before we start learning how to do that but I think it's like it's it's instagrammable isn't it it's very visually appealing when you when you have like
00:13:35
Speaker
a swan or a sea horse or something on on your latte art. And I still get a kick out of when you pour something nice and someone gets their phone out and starts taking a photo of it. there is there's There's still like a sort of artistic pride in me and of i'm like, oh, I've created something really nice. But it'd be terrible if they sip that coffee and it was like, okay, it looks nice, but it tastes horrible. But um yes, they're allowed to pour latte art. And I find it really difficult to teach. It's the only aspect that I find it I find really strenuous to be able to explain to somebody without grabbing their hands and putting it in the right place. Obviously I can't do that, but without without taking control of the milk jug itself, it's difficult to explain where to put the steam wand and and how to pull properly.
00:14:24
Speaker
because people have their own ways and they um they will they'll figure out how to do it. But there's no um great explanation on how to visually show somebody unless you're watching a YouTube video where they've put the lines and where you should pour in the cup and all this sort of stuff. So I just say to them, look, if you want to learn how to do this, watch this YouTube video or watch this and this this will be able to they'll be able to explain a bit more in detail than me.
00:14:49
Speaker
Okay, so whose YouTube video do you recommend them watch? ah For just caught anything coffee in general like Lance Hedrick, he's brilliant. um He knows a lot about everything to do with coffee. And it's it can be, he's I think i think he's some he's some sort of rocket scientist, but here it' see it can seem to be it seems to be a little bit overwhelming with that with the the the scientific aspect of it. But for the basics and stuff, he's ah he's also got some fantastic videos.
00:15:18
Speaker
um So yeah, Lance Hedrick, I usually push them towards, and then just whatever pops up in their YouTube feed, just keep watching, and they'll eventually figure it out themselves. And it's nice when they come back to me, or they've got a WhatsApp group that'll send me pictures and be like, I did a heart, and I can do it consistently now. And I'm like, that's great, that's great, brilliant. ah sugar So yeah, it's been it's been fun.
00:15:42
Speaker
So when your trainees finish the training the course, do they have to pass an exam and then get a certificate? No, it's not it's not that structured, unfortunately. It's just so they can work independently on and on their own, not get overwhelmed. And the main metric is measured at the moment is by the times of the coffee. So if the times reduce, then it seems that they they're doing well.
00:16:09
Speaker
It mainly is the feedback from customers that you need to and need to watch because the statistics can only tell you so much. They can only say, right, this coffee, before, when when it got ordered, and it got to the table within five minutes. That's all you that's all you can know.
00:16:24
Speaker
throughout an entire shift unless the manager is giving you feedback about how they're doing the coffees or and the customer is giving you feedback. So there's no real structure to it in regards to it being a qualification or whether whether there's um a point that you have to reach. um it's It's not like that. this isn't We're not dealing with like specialty specialty coffee. We're dealing with just just really good coffee in a sort of restaurant bar environment. um it's It's very different for me. to me um I'm not quite sure why there isn't um why there isn't something that you can do like a review or
00:17:05
Speaker
actually gauge the level that they're at. um Maybe I'll put that to to the higher ups to see whether I should go back and do a review because at the moment I i turn up a couple of times and then they're like, yeah, they're all good to go. I'm like, well, I don't know if they're all if they're all good to go.
00:17:22
Speaker
But to be honest, it's more personal feedback from the actual people that I've trained themselves. They tell me if they're improving or they feel like they are. And if they if they're not, then they will ask me tips and tricks and how how do I do this? So it um it's it's more they're responsible for their own development after I have left. But but if they don't feel like they're developing, and then i will I will talk to them and I will guide them more.
00:17:51
Speaker
Getting feedback sounds really important. It really is. Maybe it would be a good idea to have some mystery customers come in and taste their coffee, right? Yes, mr mystery diners would be good. They have them for the food um and they' all there's other aspects. They do have mystery diners a lot, but I'm not sure if coffee is the main focus and I'm trying my best for it to be. I'm trying to like bring it to the forefront of their brains because I think it's 30% of um wet sales, so and beverages are coffee in this place. So I'm hoping it can be taken a bit more seriously.
Chain vs Specialty Coffee Experience
00:18:30
Speaker
That's that's my goal.
00:18:33
Speaker
So right now you're at a less especially focused coffee shop, cafe. Compare with those more advanced especially coffee shops where the training and the trainings are more intense and do you feel a bit sad or you're you know, I'm fulfilled because that you have to stop training them and those advanced skills.
00:18:55
Speaker
and No, um it's not that I'm not supposed to teach them more. it's um it's I'm teaching them the within within the realms of what um the company I work for does. um Because there's no pour overs, there's no there's no filter coffees, there's no get guest blends. it's just It's Clifton Coffee. I know you've heard of Clifton. They're massive in the UK. Clifton is a huge company. um have a here um the but And they deal with anyone who just wants to open any sort of cafe and that wants a coffee and a coffee machine. They deal with equipment with that. Or they also go to the very specialty end all as well. So they sort of look across the whole industry and the coffee that the company I work for uses is is very nice. It is very nice. But it's not at specialty standards because the the customers that we that we are catering for, they don't want specialty coffee. If if I try to explain to them like the nuances of like an anaerobic fermentation or any sort of varietals, they'd be like, I don't care. I just want a black coffee. And I'm like, OK, fine. And that's fine. But it is different from what I'm used to. like i'm i'm usually up with when I was in specialty coffee I used to get asked a lot of questions about the origin of the bean, whether it's like asking whether it's like a micro lot or like okay some stuff that I that i don't even know I am used to but at the moment I'm just doing the best with what i what I've got and trying to yeah doing the best with what I've got.
00:20:38
Speaker
Oh that sounds like a sad story for me. It is, it you know, you know it it it is in a way what my actual sort of hobby barista mentality is for me is two different things. I go into work and I use what they have and I do the best that I can do but then I also have the, okay, i can do I can do my specialty stuff at home. And honestly, I'm a little, I feel a little bit better about it. It depends what type of person you are, but with me. When you work all day in specialty coffee, or when I work all day in specialty coffee, I'll come home and I look at like the the bags that I have or the coffee that I've got and I'm like, do you know what?
00:21:26
Speaker
I don't really want to spend five minutes making a B60 at the moment. I don't, it's sort of, my love for it has gone because I've been doing it all day. And now, but now I'm in two different areas. I'm still working in coffee, which I love, but I can come home and be like, you know what? I've been drinking this espresso like for the last five days in work. um know I it's all starting to taste the same. I need i need something that,
00:21:52
Speaker
I need that time to make an AeroPress and with some a really funky coffee and actually appreciate it again, because it got to a point where when I was working in specialty, I didn't want to drink specialty. I didn't want to, I didn't want to go through the trouble of myself in the house because it, it was this weird separation of work and home life where I felt like I'm just bringing work home now.
00:22:18
Speaker
which it which it doesn't feel like anymore because that's my job and then this is what I actually like. um it and It sounds bad and i'm I'm hoping if my company does see this that they're not like
00:22:34
Speaker
They are like, oh, well, you we're not specialties. soha So I'm not saying anything bad about it. It's just it's two different things. It's totally understandable since they're in the similar but also very different markets. You are there to do what you're supposed to do. Yes, of course. I would imagine if you try to train versus to teach them more than they need, it could be tough for them um to actually practice those skills at work. Yes, big because there's there's like 300 stores that they have. And if it was like if it was a couple of chains and they were sort of delving into the into the coffee aspect of things, then it would be easy to talk about it and see what more interesting things we could do. But because it's such a massive company and I'm one tiny cog in such a big machine, then i i it it would be like shouting into the void.
00:23:31
Speaker
um And I think the goal would be probably to to get a little bit more, not influence, that sounds bad, but a little bit more um to be like, well, maybe we should try this or maybe we should try this. Maybe there there is a call for this because we do have some customers come in and ask us for certain things that we don't do.
00:23:50
Speaker
and it's I'm fortunate that we have to we have to disappoint those people, but um but it's a different it's a different market altogether. and it's it is It is nice to work in this environment and then come home and play in my environment with with the coffee that I like. so Well, I bet now after a day of training, you're probably eager to go home and enjoy your favorite coffee.
00:24:16
Speaker
it it it it It depends what how much espresso I've drunk on shift. Because if i will if if I want to come over and relax, I don't want to be doing i don't want to be making a yeah another pour over because then I won't sleep.
Personal and Professional Reflections
00:24:30
Speaker
So we heard about your new coffee journey as a bursar trainer. and What is next for you? Oh, good good good question. I've been toying around with the idea of of opening my own place again. I remember you told us that you took over a coffee shop before and then the um the pandemic hit. Yes.
00:24:52
Speaker
um and Well, it it it and it didn't close. I had to step away. um Unfortunately, like i'm i'm I'm epileptic, so I can't drive. doing the whole pandemic During the pandemic, we um me and my business partner, she was sort of able to make money because she could drive, so she was doing delivery jobs. And that's not that sort of stuff. And I was sort of just working and not getting paid. and I was getting into a lot of debt, um so I had to step away from it. um And it's still going.
00:25:22
Speaker
um under under her, which is great, um I'm really happy for her. I'm now toying with the idea of opening my own place again, now that I'm not in any debt, now that ah no there is no pandemic is over with, touch wood. Speaking of pandemic, I've heard rumours about a new wave of coming And with all the chaos happening around the world, the wars, the economic slowdown, it seems like a tough time to start a new business. But I would like to hear more about your coffee dream and what is your vision for it? um So i had I had an idea of um of opening in my own place again, um for the sake of also being my own boss again. but
00:26:11
Speaker
um There is, there in my hometown, um Port Olber in Wales, there isn't really anything remotely specialty coffee. There are cafes, there's coffee shops. ah there ah There have been a couple of places that have opened that are doing doing well and that are really cool. um But I wanted to open something in in my in my hometown.
00:26:37
Speaker
um That's um ah something that was gonna be like a community coffee sort of place. Like it was gonna be really good coffee. And then also like an all have events, open mic nights, art, like live music, um maybe be a wine bar. there's a lot there's a There's a lot of things, a lot of aspects to it that I need to pin down, but because there is nothing there' nothing here that is like that. And I wanted it to be a lot really community focused because in my town, my town is it's it's sort of, I don't know how to put it, we have, and it's financially not great. And ah yeah it it yeah, it is everywhere in this current climate, but a lot of things are closing down and it's pushing people out of the town. And there are a couple of things that have opened that i that I've brought like a lot of comm community spirit to the town back.
00:27:34
Speaker
um and I want to sort be a part of that um and work with other businesses in the area to create this sort of um nice little ecosystem but of community within the town. It is still just in my brain and on paper and because I'm basically just scared to be in debt again. That's that's the that's the main that's the main thing that's stopping me is it's just frightening to take take take more money out and then maybe it not succeed or maybe there's issues along the way. I've been scarred by the pandemic basically.
00:28:12
Speaker
That definitely sounds like a huge challenge and a bit scary too, especially after you went through ah during that last pandemic. The overall environment is just not as favorable as before, um but as I say, there's a will, there's a way.
Future Aspirations and Advice
00:28:30
Speaker
um It's whether I want to take that leap or not, and I'm still toying with it. Maybe um maybe i'll have I'll have a drink or something one day and think, F it, and then just get my loan, and then then do it. but That sounds like a solid plan. Head to a bar and make some magic happen there.
00:28:49
Speaker
Yeah, go to the bar first, have a whiskey or something and then and then and then apply for loads of business loans. I think that's what I need. So do you plan to have a partner this time? In my head, it would be it would be me first. I would start myself first and then probably bring people on board later if if if i if I need help.
00:29:13
Speaker
that's so and it's ah so It's a bit of a naive way to do it, but I think I'm a bit of a control freak in that way that I'd have to do this my way at the beginning. And then when I realize, maybe you need someone else to tell you what to do, then I'll bring someone on for to be the voice of reason.
00:29:32
Speaker
My suggestion will be when you go to the magic bar, make sure to take your notebook and the pen. So jot down a great business plan when you're there. And from my own experience running the MLM Barista for the last four years, I can really relate to that process. You know um you always have tons of ideas and they all seem great for you yeah get to get an area down.
00:29:55
Speaker
to the best two or three and really focus on them. So when do we expect to see your crawfish off? Oh god. Depends on when I go to the bar. um yeah and Yeah, tonight, um yeah you'll get an email off me tomorrow saying, oh, I've started, by the way. um Yeah, um I don't know. I think I've set a time limit of by the end of 2026, maybe, um just to get everything fleshed out and to make sure I'm in ah i in in a good position personally before I start.
00:30:33
Speaker
taking on any more financial burdens. Yeah. So maybe by the end of 2020, 26, see where I am. Um, I might, I might have changed careers altogether by, by that point. Um, I don't know, but we'll, we'll just see. We'll see where the wind takes me.
00:30:50
Speaker
I really hope you will continue to stay in the coffee industry. Yes, me too. <unk> i've put I've put too much time and effort into this over the last, I don't know, 10, 10 years, 10, 11 years that I think it'd be it'd be silly of me to leave it now. um I've learned too much. And I'm still learning. It's impossible to learn everything about this industry. And anyone who says that they have learned everything is lying. So here's a new question for you. If you ever decided not to stay in the coffee industry anymore, have you ever thought about what might come next?
00:31:19
Speaker
What would your after coffee chapter look like? Yeah, I like to be a writer. I dabble in writing. um So I write i right ah write poetry and short stories, and I've been toying with trying to put ah put a poetry book together as well. um Again, but that's like putting yourself out there, and that's what's scary. It's getting over that roadblock of putting yourself out there and accepting criticism. So if it if it's if I do leave coffee,
00:31:50
Speaker
It'll be because I've become a full-fledged writer. So that will be that'll be nice. Becoming a writer doesn't sound like a bad idea at all. Who knows? Maybe a future coffee shop will be the perfect spot where you finish your first book. Exactly. they cut this There's no reason where they can't be hand go hand in hand. There's no reason. 2026. Here we go. By then, maybe our coffee book will be published too.
00:32:17
Speaker
And if you remember, we have this book called One On One Coffee Story. Yeah, I do remember. that I do remember. I contributed to the ah to the fun. It was such a cool idea. It was an amazing idea. You know that your coffee story is going to be featured in this book. And I can only imagine how good it will be to have your own coffee shop with a book on the shelf that tells your story. That would be that will be nice. that would be That's the dream. That is the dream. One last question for now. For this time, if you could travel back, let's say,
00:32:45
Speaker
10 years ago, I meet your fresh burst of self. What advice would you give it to yourself? Could you job as soon as possible? ah and well No, not quite. No, not not ah not at all. My advice to my younger self would be to talk to people or reach out to people in the industry and don't try and do it all on your own. If it's so if it if if you're interested in it,
00:33:15
Speaker
there's only so There's only so much watching YouTube videos can do, although that's contradictory to the advice that I'm telling people right now. um cra But is to reach out to people in the industry who have already done it and already have this interest um and ask questions and get first-hand accounts or not not for this to be a shameless plug, but listen to other people's stories. Like what you guys are doing is is great because everyone's story is unique. And I think if people, for for me when I was younger, I think I found it all quite overwhelming. I couldn't steam milk. And then I was like looking at, I was reading the coffee dictionary by
00:33:59
Speaker
by maxwell colonna dashwood and I was like okay i I have no idea what these terms mean and I found it a little bit overwhelming so if it's a bit so I would say don't get overwhelmed and actually speak to people don't you don't need to do this on your own.
00:34:15
Speaker
So that's what I would tell myself. thanks for tuning in to this i'm not a barista episode subscribe to this podcast and follow us on instagram at i am not a barista for more empowering vibes and true coffee stories that connect you with coffee lovers around the