The Simple Secret To Happiness | Ryan Estis | Goalcast

I will never forget
that cup of coffee.

A couple years ago, I was traveling when
my schedule worked out on Christmas Eve.

I thought the airport was gonna be a zoo,
so I got there a couple hours early -- it wasn't.

It wasn't crowded at all,
so for me, that means coffee.

So, I get down into my terminal --
terminal D -- and I see the green sign.

And when I travel these days I always wear
earbuds, so I'm rockin' out to Coldplay.

And I see the sign, I get in line, and
there's one woman in front of me.

She's having a very animated
conversation with the barista.

She's kinda waving her arms and
they're both smiling and laughing.

I wasn't in a rush, but out of curiosity
I popped out my earbuds.

Sure enough, they're going on about their holidays,
and their plans, and the kids, and presents.

And she starts to move down
the line, so it's my turn to order.

And I was greeted with this
very warm and sincere welcome.

This woman said to me,
"Hi, my name is Lily. What's your name?"

I said, "I'm Ryan.
[laughter]

She said, "Ryan, what
can I make for you today?"

I said, "Well, I want a
grande pumpkin spice latte."

She said, "You want whipped
cream on that, don't ya?"

[laughter]

I said, "Yeah, yeah,
I want the whipped cream."

She said, "I tell ya
what I'm gonna do."

She said, "I'm gonna make it extra hot,
load it up with whipped cream,

sprinkle a little nutmeg on top.
That's how I like it.

You're gonna love it."
I said, "Sounds great."

She said, "Where ya goin'?"
I said, "Cleveland."

She said, "Are you goin' back to Cleveland
to spend the holiday with your family?"

I said, "Yes."
[laughter]

At this point I start lookin' around for the
camera, right. I mean, I'm tryin' to get a latte!

And so I move down the line and the
conversation continues. And she's funny.

She's asking me questions about
my family and our holiday traditions.

She's laughing and I'm laughing and
she hands me my drink and says to me,

"Ryan, have a safe trip back to Cleveland. Go create
some extraordinary memories with your family.

When you come back through the Minneapolis airport,
I want you to stop here and tell me all about it."

[laughter]

I get my drink, I start walkin' away, and
I stop and look back at this woman.

And I think to myself,
"You know it's Christmas Eve.

most people would rather be anywhere else
in the world than serving coffee in an airport."

Not her. It was like she
was meant to be there.

So, I couldn't help myself,
I had to go back.

So, I did, I walked back and
said, "Excuse me, Lily."

And, you know, she jumps around,
"Ryan, is everything okay with the latte?"

And I said, "No, the latte is perfect.
I just had to come back and ask you:

What is your secret to making such
meaningful connections over serving coffee?"

She corrected me. She said,
"Ryan, I'm not serving coffee."

I said, "Okay...what are you doing?"
[laughter]

She had thought about this,
she had thought about this.

What she told me was, "I'm pouring
happiness into people's lives."

I said, "You're pouring what?"

What is pouring happiness?
And her definition of pouring happiness?

She wants to be happy in her life,
she wants to be around happy people.

She cares about her customers.
She wants them to come back.

So, she chooses --
even on Christmas Eve --

to smile, to have fun, to help
people, to just be happy.

Instead of just focusing on how to be
successful, focus on how to be helpful.

The other thing she understands
and masters straightaway

is the very specific and intentional decision
around how she chooses to show up --

even on Christmas Eve.

You know this.

A lot of things happen in work and in our lives
that are beyond our sphere of influence or control.

She doesn't control the weather in
Minneapolis. Trust me, I live there.

All she gets to own is how she
chooses to respond to those things.

Decide how you show up.

You know, it's interesting. When I met Lily, she
would have had no way of knowing this, but I, uh...

I was pretty heavy in the heart
and had a lot on my mind.

My parents -- both retired school teachers and
married 45 years -- 3 months before that holiday

I got a call from Mom: "We got some
really tough medical news about Dad."

It was a terminal diagnosis. We knew we
probably weren't going to have a lot of time.

So, I was sitting in that airport on Christmas
Eve, not in the best place in the world.

I will never forget that cup of coffee.
When you decide to show up consistently

as the best version of who you are, it gives you
your best opportunity to meet people where *they are."

And you never know when someone
needs you to be your best.