Where to start.......
I’ve been working in the tea trade now for a number of years. Believe me when I say my first few weeks in the industry was overwhelming. First off I knew I loved history and I knew I loved to talk, so two out of three ain’t bad when your trying to be a public speaker in a particular field.
I didn’t know that was want I wanted to be when I first started in tea but I knew I want to be good at something and not just in an everyday thing. Being dyslexic didn’t help, but it did make me want to try harder and become the best that I could be.
Slowly while serving customers and reading all the books around me I started to realise that tea was really complex and had a huge history. But trying to take it all in was just too much, I never in a million years thought that I would be able to do the job that I do now and travel the world talking and explaining about tea, but I do!
My biggest tip for anyone trying to become their own specialist, take it slow and steady. Not everyone knows as much as you and some people know more than you. You will never please everyone, but you will please some. Do it for the love of the knowledge and the passion to share it. Only see it through if you find the job interesting and this will drive you forward.
Also you never stop learning, every newspaper, book and person you come into contact with, will have their own story to tell with their own knowledge, what’s important to you is what you do with it all. All ways try to lean in small bites, do not try to take it all in at once, too much knowledge will make your head hurt and you’ll only remember a third and it will frustrate you! Always check out any fact that you’ve read with at less three other sources to make sure it’s really a fact, as the world is full of opinions, you might have to dig for the facts, but that’s the fun part. Be your own detective……
Enjoy life, enjoy sharing knowledge, treat people the way you want to be treated. Sit back and have a cup of tea.
Katy xx
@theteamuseum