If I Could Do Anything I'd Open a Coffee Shop☕
Mastering the art of productive daydreaming + how it benefits us...
You know how some people are obsessed with the idea of moving to the English countryside and opening a bookshop or relocating to Bali and hosting meditation retreats?
My secret little daydream is to sling artisanal cold brew in a small, artsy town along the Wisconsin River. The idea has been in my head for years. When I’m bored I quietly browse commercial real estate in towns without stoplights and add menu layouts and interior design ideas to a pinboard I’ve been curating for years.
Is this dream highly unlikely? Yes. Do I even know how to use an espresso machine? No. But is this one of my favorite ways to waste time? Definitely.
But is it actually a waste of time? Or are us daydreamers on to something?
Neuroscientists have found that when we daydream, our default mode network kicks in — the same part of the brain that helps us remember, imagine, and connect the dots between ideas. In other words, letting your mind wander is like giving your creativity free rein. It’s why so many of us get our best ideas in the shower or while we’re zoning out on a walk: our brains are quietly piecing things together in the background.
Daydreaming also makes us more open to opportunity. Once you’ve imagined something, you’re more likely to notice the little signs and possibilities around you that connect back to it. It’s not “manifestation” in the woo-woo sense — it’s selective attention. Your brain is simply tuned to see what it’s already been primed to look for.
✅ How to Daydream Productively
Okay, so maybe you, too, have a daydream that occupies a little corner of your brain. It might not be a coffee shop — maybe it’s a flower farm, an antique stall, or an online business. However it looks, the effect is the same: a playful way to keep your mind creative, curious, and open to possibility. So I say — when you start zoning out, lean all the way into it!
If you’re wondering how to get the most out of your daydream sessions, here are two things that help me:
Actionable daydreaming: It’s one thing to let your mind drift for a few minutes, but I think the real magic happens when you take it one step further. Peek at the real-estate listings, sketch out ideas, or start a secret Pinterest board. It might feel indulgent (or like procrastination), but this is often where daydreams cross over into actual ideas, solutions, and possibilities you can use in real life.
Document your ideas: When you come out of a particularly good daydream, jot down what came up: images, themes, or even half-baked ideas. What came up for you during it? What ideas did you have? What themes or visions were most prevalent? You never know which one might turn into something tangible later. Plus, it’s fun to flip back and see the throughlines in what your imagination is drawn to over time. I do this digitally using Google Keep for short-term capture, and then Google Docs arranged by topic for long-term capture (more about my digital organization methods can be found here).
👀 A Peek Inside my Daydream
Because daydreams are so good at sparking creativity, I have, of course, ended up with an embarrassingly long list of coffee shop ideas tucked away in a notebook (errr…Google Keep + Pinterest Board). I love how they remind me that imagination doesn’t have to be practical to be worthwhile.
And since the likelihood of me ever opening a coffee shop are pretty slim, I figured I might as well share them here just for the heck of it. Plus, something tells me that many of you love a good coffee shop as much as I do and might enjoy this indulgent escapism or perhaps open up the coffee shop of my dreams?! So, if I had a coffee shop, I would:
🍵 Offer plenty of non-coffee drinks: Don’t get me wrong, the coffee menu would be perfection, but I’d also offer a menu of hydrating, caffeine-free beverages so that you can spend more money without a caffeine crash or stomachache. This would look like infused waters, iced teas, agua frescas, smoothies + more. I’m surprised how often I’m at a coffee shop and there are no options like this.
💦 Provide a hydration bar: Along with hydration-focused menu items, I also love the idea of a hydration bar — a selection of infused water and other hydrating ingredients you can access all day by purchasing a refillable glass or bottle.
🥪 Make you little snacks: During a 4-hour coffee shop session, I could easily eat two meals. But I don’t need huge portions when I’m quite literally sitting on my ass. I’d offer small, simple dishes that fuel you but don’t make you feel stuffed and are at a price-point that benefits the shop but doesn’t blow your budget. I’d also offer simple take-away items in case you want to step out and grab some fresh air.
🙃 Not make it awkward: I’d be up-front about whether laptops are welcome in my space (they would be! But I know this isn’t the right fit for every business). The Wi-Fi password would be easy to spot, I’ll be clear about where laptops are or are not allowed, and tell you if there’s a time limit or recommended minimum spend for using the shop as your work space. To top this off, the menu would also include a 2 or 4-hour “Wifi Pass” so that you can choose to work guilt-free. These things make life easier for everyone — especially neurodivergent people or people with social anxiety.
🛍️ Give you other ways to spend money: Most people working on their laptop in coffee shops know that their $6 latte isn’t fair compensation for 6-hours of Wi-Fi, electricity, + workspace. But we also can’t spend $50 on coffee every day?! So my shop would have a small retail section stocked with local items that coffee-shop-regulars would want to buy. Along with the obvious coffee mugs and bean grinders, think cute notebooks, pencil sets, great pens, planners, calendars, art prints, ceramics, handmade soap, candles! I’d also offer an area where you can buy bulk items like rice, pasta, flour, nuts and other items to restock your pantry. And I love the idea of having a selection of greeting cards made by local artists, selling postage, and providing a place for you to drop your letters so we can pop them in the mail for you (this cost would be factored into the price of postage and, honestly, plenty of people will pay $5-10 for a card, stamp, and mail service).
🤠 Make cute merch: Going off that, I’d also offer merch as another way for you to spend your money (and advertise for me, for free!). I wouldn’t try to guess what you want, I’d ask you with a short survey at checkout or sent out to our email list. Hats, totes, and to-go mugs are obvious winners — but maybe there are things specific to our location and customers that would make sense, too (ex. Bike accessories if you’re a Copenhagen cafe. Beer holders that fit in a canoe if you’re a river town. Stadium cushions if you’re near a college. Camping gear if you’re near a state park etc.). Bonus: the coffee industry is rife with great puns and slogans — our logo can be on the merch without being the focal point
🐁Help you not occupy unnecessary space: I know it’s awkward to occupy a table for two (or four) when you just need space for yourself + your laptop. I’d add lots of bar top seating, communal workspaces, and tables for one so that you aren’t forced to occupy a seat unnecessarily. Maybe there’s even a co-working corner for people who are interested in collaborative work or table-talk.
🥰 Make sure you’re comfortable: I’d personally test out all our seating to ensure the tables are laptop height and the seats are butt-approved. And all those bar stools? They’d have backs and a place for your feet to rest.
⚡Have chargers on hand: There’s nothing worse than having that low-battery light come on and not be able to find an outlet. I’d make sure they were plentiful, easy to access, and we’ll even keep some standard chargers on hand for laptops and mobile devices (maybe these can be rented for a small fee).
🖨️ Give you access to a printer: So few of us have printers at home anymore, especially in cities where living spaces are small. I’ll offer printing services to help save you time + stress.
☎️ Have a small private booth you can reserve: I promise none of us want to hear you talk about Q3 earnings while we sip a cappuccino — so there’ll be a couple private booths you can reserve in advance for a small fee.
🌛 Offer an evening menu to keep the vibes going: Caffeine after 4PM? Not this girl. When the sun goes down, we’ll offer an evening menu with creative, artisanal drinks that you can order with a “No, Low, or Classic” amount of alcohol in them (an idea I learned from Ish Spirits) so you can keep the productivity going with or without a different kinda buzz.
🫱🏼🫲🏼 Be a hub for the community: workshops, political organizing, game nights, lectures! Our space is your space and we’d have reasonable and accessible ways to reserve and use it for various types of events and gatherings.
🎖️Offer membership to a bean club: I already know you love coffee, so an obvious service I can offer would be a bean club — for a fixed monthly price you get one bag of new beans you can pick-up in-person each month.
It’s so fun for me to think creatively about a brick and mortar business, as someone who owns and primarily works with digital, online businesses. But the best part is that I’m flexing the same muscles I use in my daily work: imagining possibilities, spotting patterns, and solving problems from fresh angles. And who knows, maybe some day I will be a barista after all.
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Not surprisingly, you've thought of EVERYTHING. I'm thinking we crowdfund this and just get you going 😊
💯 !!! I'd totally partner with you on this and we could have an adjacent creative space for workshops, art-making, and a gallery. I'll send you my fully-formed business plan and Pintrest boards 😆