the pop-up coffee shop
how to throw wonderful parties without the stress
A few weekends ago we hosted a pop-up coffee shop in our apartment.
This was the text invitation:
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You're Invited!
To our first-ever, apartment pop-up coffee shop.
When: Sunday, March 12
Time: 9:30-11:20am
Must: Bring a mug!
Drinks: $1 (if you want 🤷🏻♀️)
Where: Our house!
Instead of going to your favorite coffee shop, swing by our kinda bad one! We'll mispronounce your name but make you feel like we're flirting with you when we do it.
We have two cute coffee wenches making better-than-bad espresso drinks. We'll also have matcha, drip, and pastries! We'll make everything with oat milk because #theenvironment.
Come alone, bring friends, and leave whenever you want.
Want to contribute something? A bag of coffee beans or cartons of Oatly are also welcome.
And this vid is how it went… (click here)
It was a big hit. Everyone loved the idea, which I can’t take credit for because I stole it from a stranger in New York.
I love planning gatherings.
I like the creativity, the theatrics, and the way it pulls people out of their shells.
I like coming up with fun ideas - or foraging for them in the “wild” - and then imagining all the ways to bring them to life.
I like incorporating small, thematic details that people can discover if they are paying attention that will bring them more fully into the experience.
I’ve also learned that I don’t get stressed about parties, while many others do.
My secret?
I build the gathering around things I would like to see, experience, and do with or without other people. So regardless of who comes or what happens, I am eating food I love, drinking beverages I like, listening to music I enjoy, playing games that light me up, and rallying around activities I find fun. Turns out this also happens to delight a lot of other folks too!
I don’t worry about people making it or not making it. Whoever comes is the exact right crowd. Big or small. Quiet or boisterous.
I aim to have everything ready on time, but I don’t worry about it if it’s not. I’ve found that people love to be invited to help and contribute, so if there is still stuff to do when folks start arriving, I put people happily to work.
I playfully kick people out if the ending drags on longer than proposed and my energy reserves are spent. I’ve had several folks tell me they respect and love this the most. At a recent party, I just went to my room washed off my make-up, put on my pajamas, and told everyone goodnight trusting they could find their way out when they were ready.
I ask people to contribute something. Whether it’s snacks, beverages, or flowers. And I usually require costumes or a dress code of some kind.
I also encourage people to bring friends because I genuinely believe that more is merrier.
And I explicitly support folks to leave whenever they want. Irish goodbyes and french exits are completely okay. I see you introverts!
I share all this because I think I’ve found the sweet spot where parties don’t feel like a lot of work and I co-create amazing experiences for all.
So, this is your invitation to plan something you love and rally good people around it. Steal my ideas* or come up with your own. Go full out in ways that tickle your whimsy. Let your freak flag fly and commit to doing more things “just for fun”.
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*A friend just told me she borrowed a lot of verbiage from one of my invitations to use for her birthday bash. I couldn’t be happier. Copy and paste amazing things from others people’s lives and weave them into your world. Make them your own. The more joy, creativity, and connection each of us have the better a world we create. This rising tide raises all our boats.
Extra Magic:
Invitations:
I have time and energy to take on two more consulting clients. If you have a small, service-based business with a team of one or more, and you’d like support to grow sustainably and consistently over the next year, let’s chat!
This is for you if:
you’re working your tail off and want to know if there is a strategy that is more supportive of your nervous system (you want to work smarter rather than harder)
you’re approaching your next growth spurt in business but are too busy and can’t see how you are going to go bigger without the time to do more work
have too many good ideas and want help intelligently prioritizing what comes next and in what order
want support upgrading your marketing, service/product suites, onboarding for retention, or improving client retention
you want a thought partner to help you reimagine your leadership style so that you can break bad leadership habits, and empower your team
In this session we’ll:
Focus on one project, challenge, or system in your business
We’ll zoom out and get a 3-year view on where you and your business are headed
Reverse engineer what you need to focus on in the next 4 months
This is a stand-alone session for you to tackle one project or problem in your business. If you want longer-term support, this is a great way for you to experience what working with me is like and if you have an awesome experience and want to continue working with me, we can discuss that afterward. (If you do continue on, I subtract the investment from this session from our first month of work together!)
If you’re ready, book your Mindful Business Strategy Session here.
Tiny Little Gifts (aka Extra Magic):
A friend sent this to me a couple of days ago and I absolutely plan on making this available at future parties. As someone that can get sensory overwhelm, I’m excited to make a quiet, soothing space for people who need a peaceful place to recharge.
My downstairs neighbor works at the local zoo. We are both avid plant enthusiasts and they offered to collaborate with me on this year’s veggie and flower garden. Saturday morning we are picking up a truckload of zoodoo! You guessed it. Compost made from zoo animal poop. The little kid in me is pretty jazzed.
Last week, I watched an episode of New Girl, and all the guys end up pouring their hearts out in a blanket fort. Enviously I reckoned that I hadn’t made a blanket fort in decades! On Tuesday I was feeling particularly blue, and I enlisted my partner and father to help me make a blanket fort. It didn’t dispel all the blues, but it helped a little bit. I highly recommend it.
This week’s song. Role down your windows. Turn it up. Warm up those pipes!
