How polite are you? When you stop off and see your local coffee shop barista, do you smile at them and ask how his day is going?
One barista in Roanoke, VA thought that every customer should do just that. Austin Simms never intended for his actions to go viral. All that he did was write a few lines on a sandwich board.
The board (at the coffee house where he works) read:
“One small coffee” $5.00
“One small coffee, please” $3.00
“Hello. I’d like one small coffee please” $1.75
That’s right, the more polite the customer is, the less they pay.
Simms told the WDBJ 7 News that he wanted customers to realise, “We’re all people behind the counter.”
It’s easy to forget that there’s an actual person serving up your morning coffee. While it shouldn’t be, it is. We get caught up in the morning rush (or the afternoon, evening or night rush, and leave our manners at home. Between packing lunchboxes, carpool, work and everything else we do every day, it’s not always easy to see outside of our own selves.
That said, a sign (like Simm’s) reminds us all that we need to be more careful and considerate. Instead of rushing, we need to stop, take a moment and remember that there are other people out there who are deserving of our kindness.
After a customer took and posted a picture of the sandwich board, Simm’s sign was suddenly all over the Internet. Even though Simms himself didn’t make the post, his thoughtful take on manners were quickly seen around the globe.
