What Kind of Service Mindset Should Baristas Have? Is Being a Barista Hard?

The Changing Attitude of Baristas

"In the past, when I went to a café, I enjoyed the barista's professional skills and warm service. Now when I go to a coffee shop, I have to be careful, fearing that if the barista is in a bad mood, they won't even acknowledge you..."

I don't know when baristas started becoming less approachable. At the same time, more and more baristas like to show off their "personality," summarizing arrogant, impetuous, and rude behavior with the excuse, "This is just how I am."

Whether it's coffee apprentices who know nothing or baristas with knowledge and technical foundation, many feel that working in a coffee shop is an impressive thing, and impressive people need to show "personality," therefore baristas must have "personality."

However, everyone forgets that even with the cloak of foreign culture, the essence of a coffee shop remains the service industry, and a barista is a profession that needs to provide service to customers. Perhaps because many who now work as baristas are from the younger generation, most lack service awareness, or they intentionally or unintentionally avoid the reality that baristas need to serve others. These young people mostly feel that others serving them is natural, while them serving others is a "humiliating" and "subservient" performance.

This is why so many baristas use "personality" to package themselves, because only by showing a "stay away" attitude will customers not approach them, and they won't need to be respectful to customers. Most importantly, as long as they're "cool" enough, they won't be called "waiters."

Is Serving Others as a Barista Humiliating?

Is serving others as a barista humiliating? No! In any industry, in any position, service is a sign of professionalism. If you want more people to understand and appreciate specialty coffee, you must spread it through service! With professional knowledge and exquisite skills, yet only willing to enjoy them yourself or communicate with "experts." Then what is the significance of the barista profession?

The emergence of the barista profession hopes that through their professionalism, more people can understand and appreciate coffee, allowing coffee culture to spread healthily and correctly. But today's baristas are mostly going in the "opposite direction," only hoping to learn more professional knowledge and stand out among coffee novices. They can tirelessly tease novices for not understanding coffee, yet are unwilling to spread coffee culture positively. Isn't this violating the principle of the "teacher" in "barista"?

The Balance Between Personality and Service

"Then I'll open my own coffee shop, be my own boss, can't I have more personality?" Sure, but what's your purpose in opening a café? Even if it's not for "making a living" but truly for "pursuing passion," don't you still hope that when your coffee shop opens its doors each day, customers come in, and under the sunlight, you quietly and seriously brew each cup of coffee, while customers relax, happily, and comfortably enjoy the coffee you brew? But if you're unwilling to provide even the most basic service, how many people will be willing to visit?

The Soul of Professional Service

With the most professional knowledge, the most exquisite roasting and brewing skills, without service, everything is so empty. Knowledge and skills are the roots, professional service is the soul - the two are indispensable. Losing the soul will destroy the roots. Don't think that service is "subservient" behavior that lets customers "take advantage." After all, the hardest thing in the world is to get someone to willingly pay for your service. Everyone has to calculate whether the cost they pay is worth it.

Being "challenged" by customers is not necessarily a bad thing, because the "challenge" process also reflects the lack of one's own professionalism. Small setbacks equal motivation. Don't let the professionalism and skills you've worked hard to accumulate be buried just because of some "challenges" or because you don't want to hear criticism.

Everyone has the right to drink coffee, and everyone deserves to enjoy professional service in a coffee shop. Baristas, stop being so aloof!

Image source: Internet

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