Prodigy Coffee in the West Village brews the smoothest Americano I have ever had the pleasure of consuming–and the temperature is always just right.
Moving to Santa Monica I worried that I wouldn’t find a proper replacement. I mean, it’s LA, right? If you want cold-pressed green juice and green tea chai lattes you’re in the right place. But coffee? No way anything SaMo had to offer could compete with NYC.
Lucky for me, I was wrong.
The first morning in our new home I woke up to something strange after having spent so much time in NYC…quiet. Absolute silence. It was glorious.
Summer mornings on the west side of Los Angeles are a beautiful thing to experience, so I threw on my sneakers and wandered a few blocks over to Groundwork Venice–what has now become my go-to spot for Americanos and Hemp-Almond-Lattes. I stop by about once a week, since I typically brew a french press at home. Sometimes it’s nice to have someone else make your coffee, you know?
Groundwork is almost always busy, as it’s once of the best places in Venice to grab a brew, but the staff are typically very friendly and accommodating. There’s one dude in particular who I think should be employee of the month–who am I kidding? HUMAN of the month. This guy is the actual BEST.
And I don’t mean the best in the sense that he is better at taking or making coffee orders than anyone else. It’s not just because he’s friendly or likable, although he is those things indeed. It’s really because of this:
“Good morning! I love your hat! What can I get for you today?”
The first time this happened I thought, man my hat really is killer. Glad someone noticed. The second time, when he complimented my skull print scarf I thought, this dude has really good taste! The third time (a hat again) I realized what was happening. He found something with which to compliment me (and probably every other customer) every single time. Every time! Talk about practice and creating habits–this guy was onto something.
What’s more is not just the fact that he routinely doled out compliments, it’s how I felt when I received them. It always felt genuine, sincere. I walked away, coffee in hand, smiling and grateful and more inclined to dispense compliments to others. I felt so light and carefree, all because of a simple compliment! Kindness is contagious, and this guy was spreading it.
This got me thinking, how often do I express adulation towards others, even in the simplest of ways? Do I tell people they look nice? Do I compliment their hair or their attire? Do I tell other women at the gym how much I appreciate their skill or strength? Does my husband know how much I like his hair today (seriously, he is really into his hair)?
Upon reflection, I didn’t feel that my compliment game was up to snuff. I realized that I get so caught up in the general day-to-day of things, that although I may have thought kind things about others, I didn’t always express them. This would simply not do! Thus, I decided to practice complimenting others regularly with the intention of turning behavior into habit.
People often ask me how I was able to accomplish “x” habit. How did you figure out how to eat mindfully? How did you make exercising a non-negotiable part of your day? Well, the answer isn’t sexy. Honestly, the answer is almost always practice. Practice, practice, practice…then practice some more. With enough (consistent) practice, behaviors become habits–and habits are ingrained. This is what I set out to do in the compliments realm, and guess what?
It worked!
For the next few weeks I practiced giving compliments, to everyone. Because you know what? There is always something nice to say. And man, did it feel good–particularly because it’s not just about spreading light into other people’s lives, it’s how far that light might go. “Hey, I like your hat” has since become a practice for me; I don’t even have to think about it anymore.
Seems so simple and frivolous, doesn’t it? Who cares if your co-worker is wearing purple and purple looks nice against her skin? What does it matter if your fellow gym-goer is rocking sweet leggings? I mean, really, is your friends new haircut really that consequential?
It is! They are. It matters–a lot. Never underestimate the transformative power of a genuine compliment; for some people it can change their entire day. For others, it can start a domino effect, flooding the world with more compliments and ultimately, more kindness. We need that, don’t you think?
*Neghar Fonooni, fitness & lifestyle coach, entrepreneur *Founder: Eat, Lift, & be Happy negharfonooni.com
