November 6, 2019 by PJ Antonik
PJ is the owner of Hingham based Oak Development & Design and host of “Heart of Oak” on NESN. He resides in Hingham with his wife and two kids and will be sharing his view on Real Estate and all things lifestyle.
Follow PJ on Instagram: @heartofoaktv
The mobile order... you know what I’m talking about. Love it. Hate it. Whatever your opinion, it’s pretty damn convenient. But let’s be honest, it’s just another step further away from human interaction in the ever evolving age of technology.
When Starbucks introduced this brilliantly fast way for me to grab my cup of joe I was blown away. Not because it was a faster way for caffeine to hit my veins, but rather, it worked pretty much flawlessly right out of the gate. Let’s face it, Starbucks doesn’t screw many things up. In my opinion, the way they rolled this initiative out pretty much changed consumer habits overnight. I am not sure what the stats say but if our spending habits changed the way mine and so many others I know did, I can only imagine that the coffee giants numbers skyrocketed. I certainly know the number of times I have hit that ‘reload’ button(without even thinking about itmight I add) can not be a singular event.
But with every action there is a reaction, right? As great as this option is on a daily basis one thing I’ve learned is that now it means I walk in, stand and wait for my coffee, don’t talk to a single person, and then walk out the door.
I mean...what happened to the pleasant conversation I had at the cash register every morning? That interaction that got my day off to a great start? What happened to saying hello to someone random at the coffee station while perfectly doctored up my order? On top of that I feel like this is another step towards all of us just running in the rat race as hard as we can to get to work and make money.
For example, I’m writing this as I stand around seven other people that just walked in and their order isn’t yet ready. No one has said a word to each other. Not a word. Everyone looks angry. And when they do get their order they just grab it and run, or pour a quarter of the cup out, toss some cream in it and off they go.
At this point of the column, many of you are probably screaming, thinking I should just go to a local coffee shop, right? Well yeah that’s true, and I love local coffee shops but there isn’t one close to my house or to my daily commute so the convenience factor wins here. And let’s face it,we all love coffee shops but when you’re in a rush I guarantee almost everyone reading this will go to the coffee giant.
So why am I writing this? I would say that it’s not a complaint about mobile ordering. I love it. In fact I do it every day because it’s fast, convenient and I don’t have to stand in line. But next time you put a mobile order in just think about all the other people around you and take one second and say hello. I try to do it almost every day and it puts a smile on someone’s face and it makes me feel like we really are all part of a community.
Oh yeah one more thing. Those people behind the counter that are slaving away for all of us zombies? They work their tail off and I always try to say hello and thank you even though I don’t go up to the counter.
Let’s all slow down for one minute and talk to one and other. Give it a try! I guarantee you will smile as you walk out the door.