Different positions bring different perspectives, but communication naturally occurs when there is a shared purpose. The key to effective communication is to establish a strong purpose and work towards it. If you are passionate about your purpose, communication will follow.

People often talk about communication as a problem, but it’s not a lack of communication itself that is the issue, it’s a lack of pursuit of purpose. Teamwork is essential to accomplish a shared purpose. The three elements of success are Purpose, Gratitude, and Trust. The purpose of having a purpose is to always question why, and to keep exploring the deeper purpose behind each action.

Organizational problems can stem from money or relationships. The goal is to achieve a 10% surplus over 5 years, which will require changes to the current dimension of operations. To achieve success, it’s important to pursue absolute dimension, which means having a clear conscience and being creative.

You can only answer as much as you know. However, learning and development come not just from acquiring knowledge, but also from taking action. The local market price of the farmer’s purchase price determines the farmer’s purchase price. The farmer knows the price they’re bringing in, but I buy it for more, taking into account additional costs. This year, international prices are expected to decrease, but labor costs have increased, which means that the cost of production has gone up despite a decrease in production volume. The goal of anaerobic processing is to raise the quality of the product, not to make so-so products even better.

My favorite cup: No. 1 or No. 2. Wete. 

The pre-harvest forecast for the surrounding farmers is not much different, as they discuss and forecast the dry season, rainy season, etc.

The contrast between the two areas is remarkable and the experience has been amazing so far. 

I had a great conversation with Goto-san and Tommy-san during the drive today. 

I found myself getting lost in my own thoughts and realized that I’m not very good at discussing management and visions.

I do what I love and what makes me happy, but today I realized that I need to think a bit more about other people’s happiness as well. 

I hope to start with the staff at MOUNT COFFEE and work together to find their happiness.

I feel like a big shift has happened inside of me.

I also talked with Sunaga-san, who praised MOUNT COFFEE, and I was glad to be able to tell her about milk brew properly. 

She wants to be at the forefront of the coffee industry and be the world’s number one roaster. 

Her words and ideas were very fresh for me, as she is a completely different type of person from me.

I learned a lot from Tommy-san today, and he and Goto-san made me realize many things.

The day was very meaningful. 

I was impressed by Moplaco’s dry mill, which was beautiful and huge, and you could feel Eleana’s passion everywhere. 

Ito-san said “good coffee can only come from a clean heart.”

I was also surprised to learn that Heleanna sells her coffee online.

I am curious to learn more about their differing perspectives before leaving Ethiopia. 

Masa, the CEO of TYPICA, suggested that the differences between them could be down to the size of their operations. 

Heleanna is the largest coffee exporter in Ethiopia, while Elias is up-and-coming, just starting out.

Although they both view the Ethiopian coffee world in different ways, I believe they bring unique insights to the table.

Today was a day filled with long car rides and lively conversations. 

I rode with Nomu-san and Atsushi-san, who I had promised to travel with yesterday. 

To my surprise, we had a lot in common, both in our careers as coffee shop owners and in the way we think and feel.

Our in-car conversations were some of the most meaningful I’ve ever had. 

We bonded quickly and became fast friends. 

I’m looking forward to tomorrow, where I’ll be riding with Ito-san, Masa-san, and Tomi-san, who are all very different from me. 

I’m eager to see what conversations and relationships will emerge from this new dynamic.

I woke up early this morning and watched as the starry sky slowly brightened, the stars fading into the light of day. 

It was a beautiful sight, but I felt like there was so much more I wanted to share with others. 

Sometimes, despite our best efforts, there are things that just cannot be shared.

Later in the day, I spent time with Heleanna, visiting two different washing stations. 

It was inspiring to hear about her passion for coffee and the drive behind her desire to change the Ethiopian coffee industry. 

I’m eager to hear more about the source of her motivation and the story behind her journey.

In the morning, I took a video while walking around.

But I accidentally held it vertically instead of horizontally as I was instructed. 

The boiled eggs for breakfast left everyone impressed, they were delicious. 

The South Korean team treated us to coffee they brought and it was properly roasted, tasting great.

After breakfast, Heleanna took us on a tour of Moplaco’s dry mill, where we had stayed the previous night. 

She explained the facilities and different types of beans. 

We then visited Wete Ambela’s wet mill, where we met Elias. 

Back at Moplaco, we listened to Heleanna’s talk again. 

Her passion and enthusiasm about the deteriorating state of Ethiopian coffee was the most memorable part of her talk, which she also spoke about the night before. 

Heleanna is passionate about the topic of Deforestation, and pays close attention to the changes in the ecological systems.

She is highly concerned about the loss of biodiversity and its effect on the coffee varieties, hence the loss of uniqueness for Ethiopia.

Later, we traveled to Sidamo with Heleanna and made a stop at a school her father was involved in establishing. 

I was amazed by Heleanna’s authenticity.

So far this trip has been different from my previous trip to Guatemala. 

I am able to ask more questions now than I could have back then.

I have changed as well. 

We also made several stops along the way to admire the scenery and Heleanna gave us a tour, telling us about the changes she had seen. 

Coffee trees had been replaced by eucalyptus and other plants, and I could feel the impact it was having on the soil as I looked at the landscape. 

Knowing this made me see the beauty in a different light and made me realize how our understanding of things can change with knowledge.

Knowing this fact has changed my perception of the beautiful scenery and made me see it as unnatural and with intractable problems.

We hit the road and drove for about five hours to get to farms in Guji. 

When we finally arrived, we were given a tour of the first coffee farm on our trip and got an explanation of everything. 

Afterwards, we had some lunch and coffee right there at the farm.

During the drive over, I had a great chat with our Ethiopian driver. 

He’s such a character – always cracking crude jokes, but still so adorable. 

On the way back to the hotel, I got to spend six hours in the car with Atsushi-san from Standart and Ito-san from Kariomons Coffee Roaster. 

We had a really meaningful conversation, and I loved listening to their experiences and just taking in the scenery. 

We talked about all the possibilities of coffee.

And it’s clear that everyone is just obsessed with the charm and potential of coffee in their own way. 

Coffee really is the best!

I was really moved by the scenery on the drive back. 

If it weren’t for coffee, I never would have come to Ethiopia, and I never would have seen all of this. 

Afterwards, we headed over to Heleanna’s place for dinner and listened to her story. 

We learned about the tough situation in Ethiopia, and how coffee is actually in danger here. 

Everywhere you look, coffee trees are being replaced by eucalyptus and khat as they are more lucrative and easier to process.

In fact Eucalyptus needs no care, no work and khat is harvested twice a year at very good prices.

Chat, although classified as a Class A Drug, its cultivation is not forbidden as it generates also Foreign Exchange for the country and it is also a cash crop just like coffee.

However Chat is water intensive, and it dries up the land. Coffee is so integral to the Ethiopian Identity and the Coffee World as a whole it is the HOLY plant that it should be looked after.

But how could one encourage this, when decisions are made on daily subsistence?

But here’s the thing: eucalyptus and these other plants need a lot of water to grow, both are water intensive and they suck out all the underground water.

Plus, once farmers start growing eucalyptus, it’s tough to switch back to coffee as nothing will grow in the soil that has been depleted by Eucalyptus.

So the old Ethiopian landscape of big trees with lots of coffee plants under them is slowly disappearing.

After learning all of this, I was just blown away.

 I mean, yesterday I was thinking coffee was just this cool, interesting thing.

 But now it’s so much more. 

I talked with Ito-san and Tommy late into the night, and Tommy taught me a lot about business management. 

He even said that the roasting industry would be totally different if people just studied management more. 

I totally agree – I want to study and learn more.

It was 10 when I left my home, so it’s been a 28 hour journey.

Then I boarded another flight to visit a coffee farm.

An amazing experience awaited me.

At the hotel, we had a welcome party hosted by two producers from Wete Ambela (exporter), and checked in.

We had a workshop where each of us came up with a personal theme for this trip.

 Through these workshops and meals, I’ll get a chance to talk with everyone else.

Japanese roasters, South Korean roasters, and Ethiopian producers.

I’ll also do some other things, and I get to take in knowledge and information and share them with others throughout the day.

During the workshop at the check-in, I was able to hear thoughts and ideas from South Korean roasters.

Their ideas were surprisingly similar to mine, and that itself was a big takeaway for me.

South Korean roasters are looking for self-transformation, which left a strong impression on me.

Then we headed to a dinner party later on, which turned out to be a great experience.

We split into two tables. The two guys from Wete Ambela, Mekuria and Elias, sat close by. I was able to hear various stories from them.

It was such a wonderful night.

This is what you can experience when you visit coffee producing regions.

They were so kind that they shared many stories with me during the night.

It was Elias who mostly shared his thoughts.

I was able to hear many stories, but two things particularly stuck with me.

What does coffee mean to Elias?

It’s hard to answer this question in one word. Coffee can mean many things for Ethiopians.

Something you drink with your family is one possible answer.

Here, coffee is always at the center of family, and human life.

When you come home to your wife, she brews a cup for you, and you and your wife start talking about what happened that day or that week.

There is always coffee where people gather. Coffee gets served, and everyone starts talking.

In Elias’s case, of course coffee is his job, as well.

One other thing, what does he cherish in his day-to-day life?

Work hard and play hard.

And sleep well.

I got the impression that he deeply cares about his family.

He has three kids.

I asked him if he wants them to take over his business, he said he hopes so.

Other stories also left a strong impression on me.

I realized how much coffee loves Ethiopia and particularly this region.

And people living here also love coffee back, I think.

I only talked to two people working in one exporter. So my ideas may change toward the end of this trip. But that’s how I feel right now.

We will be traveling to farms starting tomorrow.

I want to know the people making the product I sell.

I want to ask them many questions.

I want to learn about the hard work they put into a cup of coffee that we serve every day.

About people working on the farms, people running the farms.

About what coffee means to Ethiopian people and their way of life.

I want to get a glimpse of the secret behind coffee, a drink that enchants people around the world.

I hope this trip will be a special experience beyond my imagination.

One more thing. I’m looking forward to meeting and sharing this trip with other roasters from Japan and South Korea.