We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Angela Keen. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Angela below.
Angela , we’ve been so fortunate to work with so many incredible folks and one common thread we have seen is that those who have built amazing lives for themselves are also often the folks who are most generous. Where do you think your generosity comes from?
At the end of the day, we are all trying to be happy. That’s everyone’s end goal. Whatever brings happiness depends on the person but it’s still our ultimate goal. So when you can look at the world in that macro of a level, you start realizing we’re all here to help each other achieve that goal. It doesn’t matter who it is or what they’re doing, we all deserve that same respect. Even when someone is harsh to you, it is always rooted in pain which means they are suffering and definitely require some compassion. Even if that compassion is just walking away and not engaging. But my generosity definitely comes from wanting to help anyone I can in achieving whatever it is that makes them happy.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
My story of how I started is rooted in tragedy that turned in action. My uncle passed away in 2011 from cardiac arrest and then my father suffered a heart attack and quadruple bypass surgery shortly after. I was a senior in college, getting my degree in history, just got accepted into an amazing teaching program and was on track to start my masters program at LMU when my whole world turned and none of that mattered anymore. I started hyper focusing on figuring out how to get my dad back on track. I took my research skills and hit the books about health and wellness. I discovered cold-pressed juicing, bought my first juicer at a garage sale for $5 and started concocting juice recipes for my dad. I would make gross juices and me and my dad would “SALUD” before guzzling them down. I eventually perfected some recipes and started making juices for coworkers at a restaurant where I was working at the time. Word spread and I became the “juice lady” that delivered juice out of my car around town. The operation eventually became too much for my tiny 3rd story apartment so I moved into a commercial kitchen and then eventually opened my first location on 4th and Cherry in Long Beach in 2015. We opened our 2nd location the same year in Belmont Shore of Long Beach and now employ between 20-25 Long Beach residents and really love serving this community! We have been voted best juice bar in Long Beach year after year and we are so grateful for our employees and extended Salud family (our customers).
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
1. Hire slow and fire fast – A good team can make your company and a few bad apples can break it. Set your standards from the beginning and hold your team to those standards. If you ever feel like it’s not going to work out with someone, often times you are right and you should separate yourself as soon as you can.
2. Delegation is key – When you get to the point where you’re hiring a team, remember what you are paying them for: to lighten your load. If you are still feeling pulled thin between departments you hired people in, often times you are not delegating because of 2 reasons: you haven’t taken the time out to properly train your staff or create the training necessary OR you have trouble losing control. Whichever reason, fix it, delegate and then move on to working ON the company not IN the company.
3. Maintain one-on-ones with the people you want to keep – This applies to staff and customers. I try to have an informal chit chat with each one of my staff members at some point each quarter. Doesn’t have to be a sit down but just get a pulse on your little ecosystem.
Before we go, any advice you can share with people who are feeling overwhelmed?
I have found that talking out loud to myself has been the best strategy when I feel overwhelmed. My theory is you can’t talk as fast as your brain can think so it slows your thoughts down. I start with a simple, ” ok Angela. What are you stressed about?” And then I answer my question out loud and ask myself how I want to fix this problem and so on. The second strategy is action. Often times we paralyze ourselves by overthinking when really just starting the action solves the issue way faster. A mantra I say during times like this is “less thinking more doing.”
Contact Info:
- Website: www.saludjuice.com
- Instagram: saludjuice
- Facebook: Salud Juice
- Twitter: @saludjuice
- Yelp: @saludjuice
