At Samovar, we treat the business of the experience, our work, as our art. And, we're really proud of the art we are making for this world. The way we see it, the secret to being a successful artist is to really be able to listen. To listen to the customers, to our vendors, to the city, to the weather, to our farmers, our employees, and to listen to the world around us with all of our senses: sight, sound, smell, touch, and energy.
If we can listen, and really see our surroundings then we can do whatever is necessary to make our work a beautiful piece of art that improves the world around us.
And, we've figured out the secret to listening successfully. Ask questions. Any kind of question, big, small, smart, stupid, obvious, obscure, immediate, timeless, personal, professional, happy, sad, or indifferent. Because if we're always asking questions, then we're always looking, thinking, caring, and acting.
That's one reason that as a company we don't have thick booklets of training materials and checklists for managers and employees to follow. We want our people to ask questions, to think, and to be creative. Certainly we have "our" way that we brew , our way of processing payroll, or completing mail order for a customer. But, we don't want robotic drones working here.
We want people who care, think, and are creative. And, if our people are always asking questions, then they are always thinking about what they're doing. And if they're thinking about what they're doing, then, they're thinking about creative solutions for whatever it is they are doing and how it might be done better.
It's all about creativity. And with thoughtful, mindful, creativity, comes beautiful art, beautiful business, and beautiful life.
