1 00:00:00,699 --> 00:00:05,386 I will never forget that cup of coffee. 2 00:00:05,386 --> 00:00:10,936 A couple years ago, I was traveling when my schedule worked out on Christmas Eve. 3 00:00:10,936 --> 00:00:15,951 I thought the airport was gonna be a zoo, so I got there a couple hours early -- it wasn't. 4 00:00:15,951 --> 00:00:19,497 It wasn't crowded at all, so for me, that means coffee. 5 00:00:19,497 --> 00:00:22,820 So, I get down into my terminal -- terminal D -- and I see the green sign. 6 00:00:22,820 --> 00:00:27,819 And when I travel these days I always wear earbuds, so I'm rockin' out to Coldplay. 7 00:00:27,819 --> 00:00:31,502 And I see the sign, I get in line, and there's one woman in front of me. 8 00:00:31,502 --> 00:00:35,621 She's having a very animated conversation with the barista. 9 00:00:35,621 --> 00:00:38,635 She's kinda waving her arms and they're both smiling and laughing. 10 00:00:38,635 --> 00:00:42,247 I wasn't in a rush, but out of curiosity I popped out my earbuds. 11 00:00:42,247 --> 00:00:46,985 Sure enough, they're going on about their holidays, and their plans, and the kids, and presents. 12 00:00:46,985 --> 00:00:51,754 And she starts to move down the line, so it's my turn to order. 13 00:00:51,754 --> 00:00:54,584 And I was greeted with this very warm and sincere welcome. 14 00:00:54,584 --> 00:00:59,197 This woman said to me, "Hi, my name is Lily. What's your name?" 15 00:00:59,197 --> 00:01:02,020 I said, "I'm Ryan. [laughter] 16 00:01:02,020 --> 00:01:04,502 She said, "Ryan, what can I make for you today?" 17 00:01:04,502 --> 00:01:07,637 I said, "Well, I want a grande pumpkin spice latte." 18 00:01:07,637 --> 00:01:10,722 She said, "You want whipped cream on that, don't ya?" 19 00:01:10,722 --> 00:01:11,722 [laughter] 20 00:01:11,722 --> 00:01:14,124 I said, "Yeah, yeah, I want the whipped cream." 21 00:01:14,124 --> 00:01:15,871 She said, "I tell ya what I'm gonna do." 22 00:01:15,871 --> 00:01:18,707 She said, "I'm gonna make it extra hot, load it up with whipped cream, 23 00:01:18,707 --> 00:01:20,995 sprinkle a little nutmeg on top. That's how I like it. 24 00:01:20,995 --> 00:01:23,246 You're gonna love it." I said, "Sounds great." 25 00:01:23,246 --> 00:01:26,930 She said, "Where ya goin'?" I said, "Cleveland." 26 00:01:26,930 --> 00:01:31,448 She said, "Are you goin' back to Cleveland to spend the holiday with your family?" 27 00:01:31,448 --> 00:01:34,469 I said, "Yes." [laughter] 28 00:01:35,115 --> 00:01:39,303 At this point I start lookin' around for the camera, right. I mean, I'm tryin' to get a latte! 29 00:01:39,303 --> 00:01:44,520 And so I move down the line and the conversation continues. And she's funny. 30 00:01:44,520 --> 00:01:48,015 She's asking me questions about my family and our holiday traditions. 31 00:01:48,015 --> 00:01:52,820 She's laughing and I'm laughing and she hands me my drink and says to me, 32 00:01:52,820 --> 00:02:00,167 "Ryan, have a safe trip back to Cleveland. Go create some extraordinary memories with your family. 33 00:02:00,167 --> 00:02:06,188 When you come back through the Minneapolis airport, I want you to stop here and tell me all about it." 34 00:02:06,188 --> 00:02:09,587 [laughter] 35 00:02:10,283 --> 00:02:16,486 I get my drink, I start walkin' away, and I stop and look back at this woman. 36 00:02:16,486 --> 00:02:22,703 And I think to myself, "You know it's Christmas Eve. 37 00:02:22,703 --> 00:02:29,721 most people would rather be anywhere else in the world than serving coffee in an airport." 38 00:02:29,721 --> 00:02:33,954 Not her. It was like she was meant to be there. 39 00:02:33,954 --> 00:02:36,371 So, I couldn't help myself, I had to go back. 40 00:02:36,371 --> 00:02:39,204 So, I did, I walked back and said, "Excuse me, Lily." 41 00:02:39,204 --> 00:02:41,753 And, you know, she jumps around, "Ryan, is everything okay with the latte?" 42 00:02:41,753 --> 00:02:46,868 And I said, "No, the latte is perfect. I just had to come back and ask you: 43 00:02:46,868 --> 00:02:52,787 What is your secret to making such meaningful connections over serving coffee?" 44 00:02:52,787 --> 00:02:57,186 She corrected me. She said, "Ryan, I'm not serving coffee." 45 00:02:57,186 --> 00:03:00,271 I said, "Okay...what are you doing?" [laughter] 46 00:03:00,271 --> 00:03:03,237 She had thought about this, she had thought about this. 47 00:03:03,237 --> 00:03:09,260 What she told me was, "I'm pouring happiness into people's lives." 48 00:03:09,260 --> 00:03:11,555 I said, "You're pouring what?" 49 00:03:11,555 --> 00:03:15,661 What is pouring happiness? And her definition of pouring happiness? 50 00:03:15,661 --> 00:03:18,797 She wants to be happy in her life, she wants to be around happy people. 51 00:03:18,797 --> 00:03:22,196 She cares about her customers. She wants them to come back. 52 00:03:22,196 --> 00:03:24,930 So, she chooses -- even on Christmas Eve -- 53 00:03:24,930 --> 00:03:30,245 to smile, to have fun, to help people, to just be happy. 54 00:03:30,245 --> 00:03:37,681 Instead of just focusing on how to be successful, focus on how to be helpful. 55 00:03:37,681 --> 00:03:41,585 The other thing she understands and masters straightaway 56 00:03:41,585 --> 00:03:48,358 is the very specific and intentional decision around how she chooses to show up -- 57 00:03:48,358 --> 00:03:50,721 even on Christmas Eve. 58 00:03:50,721 --> 00:03:52,294 You know this. 59 00:03:52,294 --> 00:03:56,860 A lot of things happen in work and in our lives that are beyond our sphere of influence or control. 60 00:03:56,860 --> 00:04:00,459 She doesn't control the weather in Minneapolis. Trust me, I live there. 61 00:04:00,459 --> 00:04:06,887 All she gets to own is how she chooses to respond to those things. 62 00:04:07,213 --> 00:04:10,312 Decide how you show up. 63 00:04:10,312 --> 00:04:16,115 You know, it's interesting. When I met Lily, she would have had no way of knowing this, but I, uh... 64 00:04:16,115 --> 00:04:19,254 I was pretty heavy in the heart and had a lot on my mind. 65 00:04:19,254 --> 00:04:25,523 My parents -- both retired school teachers and married 45 years -- 3 months before that holiday 66 00:04:25,523 --> 00:04:29,990 I got a call from Mom: "We got some really tough medical news about Dad." 67 00:04:29,990 --> 00:04:34,135 It was a terminal diagnosis. We knew we probably weren't going to have a lot of time. 68 00:04:34,135 --> 00:04:39,723 So, I was sitting in that airport on Christmas Eve, not in the best place in the world. 69 00:04:39,723 --> 00:04:47,106 I will never forget that cup of coffee. When you decide to show up consistently 70 00:04:47,106 --> 00:04:53,006 as the best version of who you are, it gives you your best opportunity to meet people where *they are." 71 00:04:53,006 --> 00:04:57,903 And you never know when someone needs you to be your best.