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Probably all of us have experienced this situationyou’re forced into doing something you absolutely don’t want to do, but then after it’s over you’re glad you did it. Husbands seem to do this a lot - they often have to be dragged, kicking and screaming, into some activity or event, only to discover they actually had a good time!

This was definitely the case for me when I went to the doctor about a health concern, and she told me I needed to give up caffeine. In the scheme of things that sounds fairly minor, but at the time I was absolutely stunned! I could not fathom how I could possibly stay awake all day at work without my mug of coffee in the morning and my Diet Coke in the afternoon.

One of first thoughts was, “OH NO! Chocolate has caffeine in it, too!” Quickly my brain rationalized that maybe if I bit the bullet and gave up all caffeinated drinks then I could still have chocolate every once in a while.

After a few moments of panic, I made up my mind to take her advice. Not being one to transition well, I decided to skip my usual Diet Coke that afternoon and simply gave up caffeine cold turkey.

My husband decided to quit caffeine right along with me, and we both had roughly the same experience. For the first couple of months after quitting, we were both incredibly tired and sleepy. Afternoon naps became highly desirable and sometimes unavoidable. But after a while we found that our bodies adjusted to not having caffeine.

It was then that I made an amazing discovery - I found that I was actually less tired now than when I was drinking caffeine every day. Never in a million years would I have dreamed that I would be able to make it through the afternoon without caffeine and without feeling sleepy! My energy level was now even throughout the day, and it felt great!

After being forced into giving up caffeine, I realized I was so happy to be free of that bad habit! I was now relieved of all the many nuisances and worries involved with being addicted to caffeine, such as:

• I no longer worried about whether coffee would be available at some conference or meeting I was attending
• I no longer felt compelled to drink coffee in the summer when a hot drink actually did not sound very appealing
• Urgent bathroom breaks were no longer an issue
• On future trips to Europe, I would not be forced to pay exorbitant prices for a bottle of warm Coke just to get my caffeine fix!

I would probably still be indulging a serious caffeine habit today if I had not been practically forced into giving it up all those years ago. Examples like this are a good reminder of how often in life things that appear to be bad actually turn out to be good.

So the next time you are faced with something you don’t want to do, consider the possibility that it could actually turn out to be the best thing that ever happened to you!

Karen Wheeler Hall is the author of Illumination - Inspiring Stories about Finding the Silver Lining, available from http://www.KarenWheelerHall.com/, on-line bookstores, and through major bookstores nationwide. Download your copy of Karen’s FREE eBook Positively Incredible! by visiting http://www.KarenWheelerHall.com/.

Feel free to reprint this article in its entirety in your ezine or website, provided you include the resource box and the active link to my website. Please notify me when it is used.

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Three business partners contacted me about creating a marketing plan for a coffee shop that they were opening in Greenwich Village in New York City. They had already leased a 3000 sq. foot space, which is very large for a coffee shop. They had not worked out what type of food or coffee they would serve. The location was too large for it to survive as just a coffee shop something extra would have to be added.

I met with the three partners where I discussed my concerns about there new business venture. I convinced them to follow a plan that I created that would solve the extra space problem for them. Since they had already signed the lease on the location that was to large to succeed as just a coffee shop I created a plan for the coffee shop to be used as a place for community service groups, discussion groups, art and theatre groups, and special interest groups.

I arranged for the coffee shop to operate a two-prong strategy. In the morning it will offer coffee, cappuccino, and breakfast muffins and an assortment of pastries to the people in the morning, 65% who are professional. After 9:30 A.M. the coffee house will strive to become a meeting place for various community groups, organizations, associations, and a place for college students to meet after classes. The coffee shop will have a part time program director who will work with the various groups to help facilitate community meetings and set up interesting forums and discussion groups, and to provide other entertainment for the college students.

I conducted some research on successful coffee shops and found that the espresso machines contribute well over 50 percent to a coffee shop’s revenue and even more to its profits. The shops with the best tasting drinks did five to ten times the business of shops with average tasting espresso. To capitalize on this the coffee shop should try to get its espresso drinks to over 50 percent of the drinks served. To accomplish this, the coffee shop set up a separate espresso station, with instruction on how to make a great espresso. The coffee shop will set its pricing approximately 25 percent below typical Starbucks’ pricing.

The key to the coffee shop is the merchandising and taste of its specialty drinks, which involves having the right coffeemaker and coffee, and people who understand the art of making good coffee. I suggested that the coffee shop purchased a high-end cappuccino coffeemaker that has a shiny copper and bronze exterior that can be set out in a separate station to attract interest to specialty coffees. Two employees along with the manager were trained in the proper technique of making specialty coffee drinks.

I worked with the part time program and sales director with finding groups and creating groups that will hold meetings in the coffee shop. A discount was offered to any group or individual who would bring in groups. I created a web site explaining what the coffee shop has to offer, and what meetings are taking place and how they can attend these meetings. The coffee shop will send out coupons to groups offering a 25-percent-off discount.

I bought a list from a list broker of organizations, associations, and local community groups in the area. I wrote solicitation letters to them explaining what services the coffee shop had to offer. I created online discussion groups that would involve potential clients for the coffee shop. Articles were written for on line publication for the organizations, associations, and local community groups that held meetings at the coffee shop. These articles contained links to the web site for the coffee shop that would list the upcoming events and discussions that would be held at the coffee shop. Print ads were also taken out in a small local publication that the targeted market reads.

After about 5 months the results of these marketing efforts had paid off. The coffee shops morning business was doing 10 percent better that was forecasted. The coffee shop had 8 regular groups, organizations, and associations holding weekly meetings in the coffee shop. I got permission from the clients who are using the coffee shop for meetings to use there names in the next set of ads that will run, and on the new web site. You must promote your success to get new business.

William Dupree is the owner of I.M.P.S. (Interactive Marketing & Promotional Solutions Inc.) (http://www.intmktprosol.com) a sole proprietorship marketing firm located in New York City that specializes in developing interactive marketing strategies for small businesses. Prior to founding I.M.P.S. in 2005, Mr. Dupree was a senior partner at E.D.L. Marketing for twelve years. Before joining E.D.L. he worked for Diamond Marketing Group where he performed personal sales strategies, product planning, event planning, and created interactive marketing strategies for an assortment of small businesses.

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With so many choices in coffee blends, how do know what is the perfect gift for that java junky in your life? Look no further, we have all
the tips you need here for building that perfect one of kind coffee gift basket.

You know how hard it can be to pick out clothes to give to a friend or loved one for a present. So what makes you think it should be any
different when you buy a coffee gift basket as a present? Actually, buying a coffee gift basket for the coffee-holic in your life is a fantastic
idea all by itself. But you can perfect this coffe gift basket plan by choosing the types of coffee for the basket that you know they’ll love.

There are a few of guidelines that some experts recommend for selecting the right blends for your coffee gift basket. The first guideline is
to decide what kind of coffee body your friend or family member prefers. For instance, do they like the bottom of the pot? That means they
probably like their coffee stiff or bold. Or do they usually add less than a whole packet to their pots of coffee? That could indicate that they like their
joe on the light side.

Next, take this preference to a map. You see, if you’re going to figure out the perfect coffee gift basket, you’ll need to know your geography.
Different regions of the world tend to have different coffee flavors. The Central and South America continents, for example, tend to grow coffees
with light-bodies, higher acidities, and sweeter flavors. The African continent, on the other hand, offers blends with medium bodies, medium
acidities, and wilder flavors. Finally, the Asian-Indonesian-Pacific continent grows the coffees with the stiff, heavy bodies, low acidities, and hearty
earthier flavors.

Some examples to look for in a coffee gift basket from Central and South America, or the Caribbean, would be the delicious blends that come
out of the Jamaican Blue Mountains. Brazil and Colombia also are huge coffee producers, so anything from those two countries will fit the bill.

If you want to include African varieties in your coffee gift basket, look for specific types from Tanzania and Yemen. As for Asian blends, particular
coffees from Sumatra are well known for their dark roasts, as well as brews from New Guinea, Sulawesi, and Java. Whatever you choose, you will be
sure to bring a smile to the face of your friend and loved one.

Tamara Marie is a successful Webmaster and publisher of http://www.Hottest-Coffee.info/coffee She provides more coffee brewing solutions, tips and information on what
are the best rated coffee brewers that you can research while enjoying your favorite cup of
coffee on her website.

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