I felt the same way it’s only my second going on third month here but I didn’t start being actually useful until my 3rd or fourth week. It was really hard and I cried a lot because I didn’t feel like I was contributing and I was in the way. But honestly just watch your coworkers, show your coworkers your determined to learn as much information you can, and be confident about the work you do. Even if you mess up, be confident and open to criticism. It shows determination and drive to your work. And be kind to yourself. You’ll have shitty days but it’s all to better yourself. Remember, GET THAT MONEY. 😩 EVEN IF YOU FEEL USELESS YOUR STILL GETTING PAID

id say it depends on how long you’ve been there bc if it’s only been a few shifts then yes that’s definitely typical for green beans to be stuck in the “easy positions” for the first few shifts, but if it’s been a couple weeks then definitely say something! some of the shift leads at my store try to put green beans on bar kinda often even just for a little bit every shift so that they can get practice but I know that’s actually pretty rare bc I’ve heard a lot of people are unfortunately in the same situation as you. explain to your shift leads that you’d love to get more bar, food warming or POS practice so you can be a better partner for the team! if things still don’t progress after saying something then maybe take it to your store manager? but don’t take it personally, during peak it can be rly stressful so they just wanna position ppl in a way that’ll be most efficient but there’s nothing wrong with letting them know you wanna do more :)

I've been at Starbucks for a little over a month now and I've managed to get a lot of experience on bar. What I did was after my training was over, I found the most friendly barista on bar and I asked her if I could practice with her when it was slow.

My situation was a little different since I was trained for a new store so the manager needed people proficient on everything. Due to this, I was allowed to practice with her and she kept an eye on me to make sure I wouldn't horribly mess up. Your situation may not work as well as mine so take it with a grain of salt.

However, you'll get there. Maybe request to start out on cold bar or, while on break/lunch, request to learn how to make your own drinks/food, especially if they're super busy (which would help them out as long as your manager allows baristas to make their own items while on break). If allowed to make your own things, once they see that you're making your own things proficiently, they'll probably be more likely to be like "oh, can you make this?" Trust me, managers and shifts notice things like this and generally will appreciate the desire to learn.

Register wise, ask to be on front and take the initiative of greeting consumers right when they walk in, it takes practice to learn where everything is but everyone is so understanding it’s easy to say sorry I’m new can you repeat that for me? Okay awesome got it! When I was learning and doing that they often tipped!! You can also take pictures of the register screens and just read it over a few times at home to get used to where to find stuff. All your coworkers will be happy to help and answer any questions so ask a million and you’ll grow to be more confident (:

I’m 3 months in and am now on cafe bar most of the time, but I started on dtr and cs for awhile because the store was so busy and it takes time to teach bar, after peak or during slow hours they would teach and train me then, if that’s not happening I’d recommend asking to during those times! And ask a bunch of questions at first to make sure you’re doing it right and you’ll get it down in no time and then be seen as a huge asset on bar!!