Starbucks Baristas: The daily grind
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Green bean has anxiety. What to do? (self.starbucksbaristas)
submitted by Not_Another_Karen
I have a new hire as of the 14th of August, today is the 25th of August. We work in a licensed location inside of a slow grocery store. Currently they are part time at 3 days a week, for 8 hour shifts.
The new hire has cried twice today, and has had or almost had 7 panic attacks in the short time they have worked.
Whether it's over drinks or customers "breathing through their mouth" or the receipt printer not working. Having to do dishes, etc.
I am not sure how to assist them other than continuously sending them for breaks which I cannot keep doing because it puts too much of a work load on me to compensate their absence.
Any advice?
The new hire has cried twice today, and has had or almost had 7 panic attacks in the short time they have worked.
Whether it's over drinks or customers "breathing through their mouth" or the receipt printer not working. Having to do dishes, etc.
I am not sure how to assist them other than continuously sending them for breaks which I cannot keep doing because it puts too much of a work load on me to compensate their absence.
Any advice?
lil_egg98 16 points 10m ago
I remember when I was a green bean I was SUPER overwhelmed with everything I was learning, even 8 hour shifts seemed like forever until I got used to the pace of things. But that was at a super busy store, not a licensed slow store.
I would try sitting down with them and saying "hey, i notice when things get overwhelming it can be very distressing for you. I wanted to check in and see how you're feeling about the job so far, and ask what I can do to help you learn to do the tasks independently. Can I ask what concerns you have in those moments where you feel anxious? If you're unsure of the task I can always help with questions, but if there's something else making you anxious, I'd love to help fix that." Just share a gentle observation and give them the chance to address their needs. Or even asking "what can I do to help you feel supported and safe?" would suffice.
You could also try putting them on one or two stations/tasks each day so they have extra time to get used to those, and don't really have to worry about the others. I could see just the amount of different things to do as anxiety-inducing. Talk with them to come up with a plan to accommodate reasonably, but if this continues and you need to keep compromising your own time/workload, it may just not be a good fit.
I would try sitting down with them and saying "hey, i notice when things get overwhelming it can be very distressing for you. I wanted to check in and see how you're feeling about the job so far, and ask what I can do to help you learn to do the tasks independently. Can I ask what concerns you have in those moments where you feel anxious? If you're unsure of the task I can always help with questions, but if there's something else making you anxious, I'd love to help fix that." Just share a gentle observation and give them the chance to address their needs. Or even asking "what can I do to help you feel supported and safe?" would suffice.
You could also try putting them on one or two stations/tasks each day so they have extra time to get used to those, and don't really have to worry about the others. I could see just the amount of different things to do as anxiety-inducing. Talk with them to come up with a plan to accommodate reasonably, but if this continues and you need to keep compromising your own time/workload, it may just not be a good fit.
Not_Another_Karen [OP] 6 points 10m ago
Thank you very much, this was extremely insightful. I just became team lead today but have been guiding them while I transitioned into my position, so I haven't had much experience with this yet.
I do too deal with anxiety but for me, Starbucks really helped bring me out of my shell.
I do too deal with anxiety but for me, Starbucks really helped bring me out of my shell.
SneezeBurger21 3 points 10m ago
This might sound stupid, but when I was a trainer I would purposefully drop things/spill things to ensure they knew that everyone messes up, no one cares, and that it’s an easy clean up. And I always offered green beans to switch if they felt overwhelmed! A welcoming environment always helps :)
Not_Another_Karen [OP] 1 points 10m ago
I purposely steamed a sample milk wrong and did a bad pour over as an example to make their seem better. I've also let them know I've sprayed whip cream all over my face first thing, and had mocha all over myself. Mistakes happen and hopefully we learn from them.
Unfortunately because we only are with each other for 2 hours (after sequencing breaks), it's hard to back them up and give them the assurance they need. I do try to get them to do smaller and easier tasks.
Or I express how much I "dislike" making frappuccinos because they find them easy, and they feel proud of how nicely theirs turn out. Then I let them know how fast they did, and that I can't crank them out in that time.
Unfortunately because we only are with each other for 2 hours (after sequencing breaks), it's hard to back them up and give them the assurance they need. I do try to get them to do smaller and easier tasks.
Or I express how much I "dislike" making frappuccinos because they find them easy, and they feel proud of how nicely theirs turn out. Then I let them know how fast they did, and that I can't crank them out in that time.
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