The other day I witnessed a disgusting display of customer complaint at my local coffee shop. I go into this shop several days a week and the employees are incredible. They always go above and beyond to make customers happy.
During a power outage earlier this year they seamlessly handled hundreds of customers in store and on mobile orders and dealt with a packed and backed up order log with grace, tremendous endurance, and humor.
This is a chain coffee shop. Not all chain shops are the same and this one is definitely one of the most exceptional locations that I’ve ever been to. I’ve been going to this location on and off since 2011 and have lived in the neighborhood for the past two years so I know it well.
Last weekend a customer came in asking for a drink to be remade. The drink had been made at another store location and wasn’t something they offered at this particular store. But the employee got right to it and started remaking the drink. She was in the middle of several other orders as well when the customer started berating her. Asking her if she disliked her job because she had a lot of attitude. Mentioning multiple times how much money she had spent on the drink. Telling her to add more milk. Rolling her eyes. The girl just put her head down and tried to get the drink done and was probably internalizing everything so she wouldn’t get upset.
It was at the point when she asked the barista for her name that I got pissed off. I knew she was going to call in and complain. And I wasn’t going to allow her to bad mouth someone who was handling her bullshit with grace and humility. I told her she was wrong. And that this barista worked her butt off. And that she was the one being rude.
What grossed me out the most was that this person wanted to treat someone else like garbage because she wasn’t satisfied with her drink. Such entitlement. I understand frustration if something is expensive and doesn’t taste good, but the person who made it most likely didn’t do it wrong on purpose or to ruin your day. And to take your frustration out in a way that belittles and demeans someone who is serving you a drink is just pathetic.
Ultimately we have the power to decide how to be in this world and to be with others. Our interactions are an opportunity to be graceful and loving. Even if something bad has happened or we want to have a drink remade. Why not go in and have a conversation with the barista and make it a positive interaction for both parties? Instead of coming at someone you don’t even know with anger and blame and disrespect and potentially ruining their day. Would it really make you feel good to make someone you don’t know cry? Wouldn’t it feel better to do the latter?
We all have the power to decide how we use our words and actions. Is it easier to be angry and hate the world? Is it easier to hold on to our pain? Wouldn’t it be better to let it go? We have the power to free ourselves emotionally if we let love guide us even in the worst of times.
