"It Feels Like I'm Living My Dream"

Yesterday was the official launch of our new canned cold brew partnership with The We Will Collective, Iowa State University's NIL collective organization. We started by offering cans in our brick-and-mortar shop, followed by retail availability early next week and direct-to-consumer online sales a few weeks later. As I watched TJ pass out cans to eager Cyclone fans at our soft launch event yesterday morning, I couldn't help but smile. It felt like something big was happening, though none of us could adequately define what that truly means.

Several hours later, I received several missed calls from TJ. I was in a meeting and couldn't answer, but I started getting concerned. I texted him and asked if everything was ok, and if he needed me right away. Turns out, he was just really excited to talk about everything.

A few hours later, I finally had a chance to connect with him. In the first few minutes of the conversation, TJ said something I suspected earlier in the day. "I feel like I'm living my dream." I know this is true. I've felt that way for a while now, but yesterday seemed to cap off a wild 9-month run since opening our doors.

TJ's recipe is simple. Know your calling, grind, fail, learn, grind, fail, learn, continue following the call, grind, fail, learn, and suddenly, you're an overnight success. It's been a 4.5-year journey for him. Nothing about it has been easy. Lesser people (myself included) probably would have given up by now. But not him. His mission was so clear, his why so big, and his patience so great, that nothing was going to defeat his spirit or crush his dream.

Living our dream has a price. We all have different dreams, and the prices to achieve them vary, but there's no free pass. The cost is steep, but the rewards are grand. I suspect TJ already knew this, but having a front-row seat to watch it play out in real-time is special.

Here's my parting thought. I don't think TJ is special. He's just a regular guy, but a regular guy living his dream. If he can do it, so can you, and so can I. If that's true, what's stopping you from going for it?

Buy That Coffee

It's been a week. Today will mark my seventh consecutive day working at my client's office in Midland, TX. I've really enjoyed the work, and the people, but I'm spent. I've really poured myself out this week, and we've made some massive progress along the way. All in all, it's been a tremendously worthwhile endeavor. 

Yesterday, in an effort to give myself a much-needed kick-start, I stopped for a coffee on the way to the office. As I was paying the cashier, all I could think about was all the financial gurus shaming and belittling people for buying coffee. 

**In my best condescending financial bro impersonation voice** "Did you know that instead of spending $6 on that coffee each workday, if you invested it in the stock market, you'd have $220,000 in your investment account after 30 years? I hope you enjoy your coffee!!!"

A few thoughts:

1. The math is correct. 

2. $220,000 is a lot of money.

3. That coffee really made my morning.

4. Life is about so much more than a financial equation.

5. Meaning over money.

6. I'm not going to feel one ounce of guilt.

As a finance guy, I could obsess about hoarding every penny I earn, investing it well, and watching it compound into millions of dollars so that one day I can swim in it like Scrooge McDuck. But that sounds terrible. 

I'm not advocating reckless financial irresponsibility. I'm not suggesting we shouldn't save or invest. Rather, I'm suggesting that we shouldn't give up little things that add value to our lives. If you love buying coffee each day, but that coffee. If you love going to your fancy gym, go to your fancy gym. If you love eating at excellent restaurants, bon appetit. 

There's always a place to sacrifice, but it doesn't have to be what others tell us it should be. It's sad to watch clients reluctantly give up something that adds value to their life simply because everyone around them is slowly but surely guilting them into it. At some point, we convince ourselves that what we're doing is wrong or stupid. But in many cases, it's not. We're exactly where we should be. 

I'm really glad I bought that coffee yesterday. I just may do the same today. Or not. Either way, I won't sweat the things that add richness to my life. There are plenty of places to sacrifice.....this won't be one of them. 

You Don't Know Until You Know

Several years ago, I was listening to an Adam Carolla podcast when a caller asked an interesting question. This was shortly after Adam had released his second documentary film. To paraphrase, the caller asked, "How did you know how to make a documentary?" Adam's response was simple, but profound. "I didn't know how to make a documentary until I made a documentary. Then I knew how to make a documentary."

In other words, we don't know how to do something until we do it. There's rarely a playbook for us to reference. Instead, we must simply act. One foot in front of the other, step by step. We don't know what we don't know.....until we know it.

I bring up this topic today because of our big announcement last night. After several months of development, we're introducing our first canned beverage at Northern Vessel. It's a variation of our signature Oat Milk Cold Brew Latte. This has been one of TJ's visions for many years now, and it's surreal to see it materialize in front of our eyes.

Truth is, none of us know how to make a canned beverage. TJ knows how to make an amazing cold brew latte in the shop (which he's perfected over the last 4+ years), but creating a canned version is an entirely different animal. We don't know what we don't know.....until we know. After many meetings with food scientists, flavor chemists, and canning experts, we've finally finished the first iteration of our inaugural product. In the words of Adam Carolla, we didn't know how to make a canned beverage until we made a canned beverage. Now we know how to make a canned beverage.

This is one of my favorite things about TJ. He's as equally fearless as he is humble. He has no idea what he's doing, the humility to know he has no idea what he's doing, and the courage to figure it out. I wish I could can this energy (see what I did there?) and pass it around to all the people I know. It's ok to not know how to do something, but that shouldn't stop us from trying. I had no idea how to make a podcast.....until I had a podcast. I had no idea how to coach people.....until I started coaching people. I had no idea how to start a company.....until I started a company. One foot in front of the other, step by step. First we do it poorly, then we do it average, then we do it good, then we do it great. There are no shortcuts. We don’t know until we know.

Today's challenge: Find something you don't know how to do, then do it.

Work That Matters Matters

On Saturday, I had the pleasure of spending the morning with our Northern Vessel Coffee team at the Des Moines Farmer’s Market. This market is one of the top markets in the country and welcomes more than 20,000 visitors every Saturday morning. Being invited to participate in the market this year was a huge win and honor for the business, and an opportunity we don’t take lightly.

When the idea rose to the surface, two of our full-time guys immediately stepped up and said they wanted to take ownership of it. This is a tremendous amount of work! The brewing, the prep, the transportation, the setup, the actual market, the teardown, and the part where they do it again next week (for 25 more weeks). The operation is primarily run through those two guys, but a third person (my job this week) is needed to help keep the train on the tracks by making sure they have ice, cups, lids, kegs, and everything else constantly stocked. After all, the market is pure madness and they can easily go two hours without even a 10-second break. They ended up killing 14 kegs of our signature oat milk cold brew lattes.

One thing is clear. Those two guys were ground to a pulp by the time it was over and we had finally loaded all our gear back into the truck. Here’s the thing, though. They were living their best life. The entire time, they served people well and did it with a passion you could read on their faces. Their work matters to them. It matters deeply. I see it in the shop, and I see it at the market. The entire team, and these two guys in this particular scenario, are driven to excellence and believe in the mission. They aren’t serving coffee…..they are adding value to people’s lives. They are injecting joy, hospitality, community, and yes, some tasty coffee, into people’s day.

This is the beautiful part about work. All work matters, but not all work matters to you or to me. We are each called to identify, pursue, and embrace work that matters to each of us. Not fun work. Not easy work. Not simple work. Not status-driven work. Not lucrative work. Not glamorous work. Work that matters. Work that moves the needle in our lives. Work that we’re excited to do when we wake up in the morning and feel fulfilled in when we’re going to bed later that night.

My favorite moment was towards the end of the day. The market had closed and we were nearly done packing up the Truck with all our gear to take back to the shop. The two guys, beat red from a combination of the sun and five hours of straight grind, looked at each other and smiled. They had just done something special, together, had the time of their lives doing it, and felt a sense of fulfillment for what just happened. Work that matters, man! Work that matters.

What We're Really Buying

We think we’re buying a car, but we’re often buying status. We think we’re buying plane tickets, but we’re really buying memories. We think we’re buying a college degree, but we’re really buying credibility. We think we’re buying an app or software, but we’re really buying time and efficiency. We think we’re buying a babysitter when we go on a date night, but we’re really investing in our marriage.

I was thinking about this idea recently while sipping on a Spanish Latte at our coffee shop, Northern Vessel. As I’m enjoying my drink, and watching other people enjoying theirs, I realize none of us really paid for coffee. We paid for hospitality and a feeling. We can get a cup of coffee anywhere, and I often do. I make coffee at home each morning and I frequent many different copy shops around my metro. Each one offers a different experience. Some offer a bland experience, some offer a bad experience, and some offer something worth investing in. Yes, the coffee matters. Nobody wants to pay for bad coffee. However, at the heart of it, especially when done well, it’s not really about the coffee. It’s about how the experience, staff, and product make us feel.

When we walk into a business and are met with a smile and warm welcome, it matters. There’s nothing more demoralizing than walking into some business and immediately feeling like we’re inconveniencing them. It makes me not want to buy their product. Why? Because we’re really not just buying the product…..there’s something more.

The message behind this post is two-fold. First, as a consumer, we should take a moment when we’re about to make a purchase and ask ourselves what we’re really buying. I’m about to buy new bikes for my kids. They like riding bikes, they need new bikes, and they will benefit from having new bikes. But if I ask myself my own question, I have a different answer. The nighttime and summer rides I share with my boys are sacred to me. It’s a chance to spend meaningful time with them, explore, get exercise, teach them about pushing themselves, and create memories. In other words, these bikes are priceless. Through that lens, these bikes may be the biggest bargain I pay for all year.

Second, we should think about this idea from the perspective of a business owner, employee, or whatever role you play in your work. We aren’t just selling products. We are offering something much deeper. Whenever someone purchases my services, listens to our podcast, reads this blog, or listens to me speak, it’s not about the product. Instead, it’s about how they feel and experience it…..meeting that deeper need. Everything in my career changed when I learned this lesson many years ago. You have your own version of this in your work. Really embrace that and use your opportunity for impact. Even something as simple as a cup of coffee has the power to make a difference. Just imagine the opportunity in front of you!

As you start your day, please take a moment to think about this idea through the various aspects of your life and work. It can be a game-changer!

Try, Try, Try Again

One of the primary drivers of my partnering with Northern Vessel and becoming a part owner was the business plan to launch of weekly bottle subscription service. Through our proprietary app, people could subscribe to a recurring monthly membership that would provide them with one 64-ounce bottle of our signature cold brew latte each week. I knew this idea was gold, and I was willing to invest my time and money into it.

Three months into the program, it completely failed. Not only was it not a wild success, but it wasn’t even a little bit successful. It bombed, to be frank. I still believe in the idea as much as I did back when we were formulating the business plan, but our execution didn’t give our customers what they wanted, how they wanted it. In our model, people were committing to their bottle every week, on a specific day. There was no way for them to skip when traveling out of town, nor was there a way for them to buy additional bottles when they wanted extra. Requiring pick-up on a certain day also caused inconveniences for people’s schedules and logistics. Lastly, the price tag of $120/month was simply too high for most people. They were getting a fantastic deal for what they were getting, but $120 is still $120. In other words, there were a lot of reasons for people to say “no”…….and that’s exactly what they did.

Every ounce of us wanted to hold onto the idea and try to jam a square peg in a round hole, partly out of conviction and partly out of pride. But we need to listen to the customer. They don’t want that program. They spoke with their actions……or lack thereof. This week we introduced a new program. Instead of people committing to a large sum of money for a certain amount of product, they are committing $10/month to become a club member……which has many benefits to choose from (one of which is an attractive discount on our 64-ounce bottles of cold brew latte). That’s the beauty of this new model. People can use the membership in a way that best suits their lifestyle, schedule, and interests.

Here’s the kicker. This program will allow us to accomplish the same goal as the original model, but better. It’s easy to play Monday morning quarterback and say we should have done it this way from the start, but that would be unfair. We didn’t know what we didn’t know. We learned a lot through this experience (er, failure). It has allowed us to put together an even better program that meets people’s desires. Will this new program succeed? I don’t know, but there’s only one way to find out!

That’s the importance of trying, trying, and trying again. If we admit failure, be willing to humble ourselves, learn from our mistakes, and try something new, we’ll ultimately end up in a far better place!