Helping leaders motivate their people to a higher level of performance through strong human relations, team building, and Gola jiving. This is the seven Minute Leadership Podcast with your host Paul fella Aledo.
Hello everyone, and welcome to the seven Minute Leadership Podcast. It's episode five twenty. If you're like most people, your morning doesn't really start until you've had that first cup of coffee. Maybe you have a curig machine sitting on your counter right now. You walk up to it half awake, open the little drawer and face that magical box of K cups, hundreds of options, French roast, hazelnut, dark, magic, vanilla,
breakfast blend, and every morning you make a choice. But have you ever thought about how much that simple moments leadership? Leadership is like a K cup because every day you decide what kind of flavor you're going to bring to your team. Think about it. The CA cup doesn't brew itself, You choose it. You decide what strength, what tone, what
flavor the day will have. That's leadership because every time you walk through those doors, step into that meeting, or start your shift, you are setting the flavor for everyone else's day. If you chose dark roast, maybe that's the intense, focused, let's get it done version of you. If you go with breakfast blend, maybe that's the approachable, steady, balanced version that helps people ease into a tough day. And maybe sometimes you reach for hazelnut, the calm, comforting flavor your
team needs when they're burned out and stressed. And here's the truth. Great leaders don't just react to what the day throws at them. They brew it. Every flavor has a purpose. There's a reason Cure ex sells so many types. Not every day calls for the same flavor. Not every team moment needs the same leadership style. Some days require boldness, that strong espresso kind of leadership where you make tough
calls and move fast. Other days call for patients that slow sip vanilla where you listen more than you talk. And sometimes you have to mix it up completely. Bring energy when morale is low, or quiet strength when chaos is high. That's what separates average leaders from intentional ones. Average leaders let the day pick their flavor. Intentional leaders pick theirs before the day even begins. Now let's go deeper.
The cug only works when it's clean. Run it long enough without it, and you'll start to taste bitterness in every cup, no matter which flavor you pick. Leadership's the same way. If you don't take time to clean your own machine, your mindset, your attitude, your habits. Eventually that bitterness seeps into everything you do. It doesn't matter how good your flavor is, people will taste the burnout, the resentment, the exhaustion underneath. You can't pour good coffee from a
dirty machine, so take time to reset, reflect, recharge. Don't let the build up of stress or ego ruin the flavor you're trying to bring to your team. And here's another layer. Have you ever grabbed a cake cup, popped it in hit brew and then realized it wasn't the one you wanted. Leaders do that too. Sometimes you step into the day with the wrong attitude. Maybe you bring dark roast intensity into a moment that actually called for light roast empathy, and just like that, the mood changes.
But here's the beauty. Tomorrow morning you get to pick again. Leadership gives you that same choice. Every day is a new pod, a new chance, a fresh start. And then there's this. Every cup you brew fills the room with aroma. People may not see it, but they smell it, feel it, sense it. That's your influence as a leader. It lingers, it spreads beyond words. Your team can feel your energy the moment you walk in, before you even speak, that's your brew. So when people walk into the breakroom of
your leadership, what do they smell? Optimism? Focus, confidence or bitterness? Burnout and caffeine jitters? The answer depends entirely on what you brewed that morning. Leadership is like a k cup because it's about daily choices, not one time actions. You choose your flavor, your strength, and your tone. You decide whether to bring warmth or bitterness. You maintain your machine so it doesn't corrode your impact, and you remember everyone
around you drinks what you brew. So tomorrow morning, when you walk up to your coffee machine, pause for one extra second before you press brew, and ask yourself, what flavor of leader am I going to be today? Because just like that CA cup, leadership starts one choice at a time. This has been the seven Minute Leadership Podcast, and I thank you for listening.
For more Paul Fell of Alito Podcasts, visit paulfellowalito dot com.