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UNLEASH YOUR SUPERBRANDS
OPINION / EDITORIAL
Editor’s Note It is with great pride and excitement that we present to you the first issue of the Los Angeles Tribune’s Quarterly Special Thought Leader Edition - the world’s first newspaper exclusively dedicated to leadership. Since its launch in 1886, our newspaper has had a long history of rising up in times of transition, and we have always been dedicated to delivering insightful, thought-provoking, and forward-thinking content to our readers.
For The Love Of Coffee, My Heritage, and Keeping The Indigenous Coffee Art Form Alive in Mexico BY CYNTHIA MCCONNELL
This edition is particularly special as we honor the thought leaders in some of the fastest-growing industries of our time. From tech and finance to healthcare and sustainability, these leaders are shaping the future of our world through their innovative ideas and uncompromising beliefs. At the Los Angeles Tribune, we understand the importance of recognizing and celebrating the achievements of these thought leaders. These individuals represent the very best of what our society has to offer and they embody the spirit of innovation and progress that drives us forward. Through their tireless work and dedication, they are creating a better future for us all. In this issue, we have invited the brightest minds in their respective fields to share their thoughts, ideas, and perspectives on some of the most pressing issues of our time. From business and healthcare to technology and culture, these thought leaders offer unique perspectives and insights that will challenge and inspire you. We are proud to present this first issue of the Los Angeles Tribune’s Quarterly Special Thought Leader Edition, and we hope it will serve as a valuable resource for our readers. We believe that the exchange of ideas and viewpoints is essential to a thriving and dynamic society, and this edition provides a platform for just that. I want to acknowledge 2 of our team leaders who demonstrated utmost commitment to publishing the newspaper you now hold at the highest standards: our Copy Editor Olivia B. Soria and our Design Editor Maybelle T. Dejasco. All you gotta do now is sit back, relax, and enjoy this issue of the Los Angeles Tribune’s Quarterly Special Thought Leader Edition. We hope it will inspire you to think more deeply about the world around you and engage in discussions that will help shape our future. Sincerely,
I grew up with three older brothers, so I was a little tomboy. I was a confident young girl and never experienced anxiety while going to school. It’s only unfortunate that now as an adult, I experience it because of my desire to discover what I am good at. I always took on new challenges, traveled to new places, or tried new jobs to find my niche. When I realized that I like to travel and would drink coffee from different places every time, I thought to myself: Coffee makes me happy. It prompted me to do some research in a bid to find the perfect coffee beans. I knew Mexico grew coffee because my grandfather was a farmer, and my mom helped out when she was young. Plus, I speak Spanish, so I made phone calls to some farmers I found a farmer whose family has been growing their coffee at high altitudes up at Tapachula Chiapas, Mexico, near the Volcan Tacana since the 1800s. The indigenous people were told they could do what they wished, so they’ve been growing coffee beans with natural water and picking them at the right time, giving them the best flavor. Because they believe that the coffee beans that grew from higher elevations have the best flavor, the family would go way up in the hills to grow and pick their coffee beans, then carry these 100-pound bags of beans on their back when going down. They have to move the coffee beans every three hours to dry. They also have to know how much to roast and how much to grind. Their specific technique is an art form that has been passed on to them from their grandfathers’ grandfathers.
When I found the source and the family was willing to work with me, we started negotiating. They sent me samples of two types: Robust and Arabica, but they recommended Arabica because it grew at a higher altitude and has a smoother chocolatey taste while also being less acidic. I tried it, and I was stoked because the coffee was excellent and was nothing like what I had tasted anywhere else. I also got other people to try to see if I was being a little biased, and everyone I asked liked it just as much. After finally deciding to go for it, we immediately went to work on the permits, customs, FDA, and all other regulatory requirements that we had to comply with. I felt like a little detective doing all this stuff because there was so much research that I had to do, but I loved all of it. I also enjoyed the research and development process, including working on my company name, logo, and packaging details and dealing with logistics issues. It was definitely not easy, but we got through it. I recently got my first shipment through the border, and I’ve been putting it out there and selling it through my website at LeafyBeansCoffee.com. I want to grow this business to help keep the coffee artform among the indigenous people of Mexico. Coffee farming and production are art forms we must protect for the next generation. There are not many independent workers nowadays because their family has grown up, and the kids want to do something else because coffee-making is such hard work but not profitable enough to sustain their families.
About the author: Cynthia McConnell is the founder of Leafy Beans Coffee LLC, which began its operations in 2021, born out of her love for a good cup of coffee. The company imports and distributes organically-grown Mexican coffee, working directly with an indigenous family to create medium-dark roast coffee.
My vision is to get the best coffee beans available for my clients while at the same time helping the coffee farmers preserve their traditions. I want to help our natives continue doing what they have done best since the 1800s and allow us to enjoy the highest quality of coffee out there. And so when people get their Leafy Beans Coffee delivered, and when they open it, they’re getting a piece of the mountains of Chiapas, Mexico, of the indigenous people, their hard work, their heart, their passion, and their culture.
Ava V. Manuel Senior Editor LA Tribune SpecialThought Leader Edition
The Art of Writing, Creating,and Persuasion BY MARY STEPHENSON
The story draws you in as the writer weaves the words across the page, planting an image you can’t shake, capturing your mind, and compelling you to keep reading. It’s the same overwhelming desire you feel when you sit on the edge of your seat, straining to hear the punch line at the end of a joke. I remember when my English high school teacher wanted to test our
creativity. He put on a classic instrumental record whose name I can’t recall other than the word ‘sunset’ that was in the title. The others sat intently, listening to the music, probably hoping to capture and interpret the emotions that filled the room. Meanwhile, I grabbed my pen and started writing as I looked out the window. I could see Galiano Island, sitting across the strait from where I lived. I looked at
the sheer rock that was part of the cliff, reaching several hundred feet from the base, and I recalled the times when I watched the sunset dance across the bank. As the others sat, I wrote the images that flashed in my mind, writing what I felt. The music ended, and my article was done. I took it home to correct the errors before typing out the assignment. When the teacher graded the assignments, he read mine to the class. At 16, it even impressed me, not to mention getting an A+ felt mighty awesome considering I was a C student. I learned a couple of valuable lessons from that experience. First, being an ‘A’ student isn’t necessary to write captivating, expressive words that compel people to want to listen. Second, creating is possible when you put your heart and soul into the task. Those were the days of manual typewriters and before the pleasure of using liquid paper. Those days of carbon paper and printers resembling a mini press in the typing room. They were never very conducive to my creative side of writing. Typing was tedious, and you had to pray that you would finish without errors or key malfunctions. Fast forward to the digital age. It opened up a whole new world for writers. I recall sitting in front of my home computer in awe of a program called ‘Word’. The possibilities of this new technology were endless. Make a mistake, backspace, and zap – it was gone. If I didn’t like the placement of a sentence, I just had to copy and paste it elsewhere. The art of writing today is no longer engulfed
with frustration, so I gave up digital art, propelling me to create with words instead. Writing has become an obsession, a passion, and a pursuit of knowledge. To be a writer, you must read, research, and, of course, write. Eventually, creating, designing, and writing for many websites became intriguing. During this time, I took online psychology classes. The education was fascinating, and I was putting a lot of thought into writing, but it needed more luster. Then six years ago, I took writing seriously. Copywriting became a journey of learning. It was interesting to understand what this newfound career meant. The first time I heard of copywriting, I conjured up visions of law, which is an entirely different word. My next thought was the ugly word of selling. But top copywriters don’t sell, although it may appear that way. In reality, you need to get past the concept of selling. Yes, the purpose is to make sales of products, services, or ideas, but this is best achieved through storytelling because people remember stories. Copywriting is about filling a need. And to me, that was a foreign idea to grasp in the beginning. The Power of Persuasion When I was 11 or 12, a representative from the Fuller Brush company visited my mom. She was never a pushover for salespeople, and she rarely spent a dime on any item she deemed unnecessary.
The first words he spoke were, “I know you don’t want to buy anything.” He then proceeded to tell her of the shampoo he used and how his hair shone in the sunlight. I was amused at his ‘no sales’ approach. Of course, she was not in the market for his shampoo, but she eventually bought a bottle of vanilla extract. After that, he dropped by a few times a year, and sometimes she parted with a few more bucks. The fine art of persuasion. Things could have turned out very differently if he had used pressure instead of persuasion. Pressuring her may have resulted in the door being slammed in his face, but he knew his audience and chose the correct method to make a sale. My copywriting training taught me that knowing your audience is key. A sale was virtually impossible if there was no benefit to a potential customer. If your customers get bullied into buying your product, they may suffer from buyer’s remorse. Thus, that is not an ethical way to sell. Throughout Our Lives, We Sell There is an immense wealth of information in copywriting, and we can learn many lessons from it. For example, you prepare your resume to get that dream job, listing down all your qualifications and skills in the hopes of grabbing the attention of the recruiters and impressing them. However, being the most qualified candidate doesn’t guarantee you will get the job. On the other hand, if you can persuade a
About the author: Mary Stephenson is a freelance writer and AWAI-verified copywriter. She is also the co-creator, web designer, and web editor for a non-profit organization.
future employer that you will benefit their team, you could be their next employee. The key is to prove your value, even if the requirements far outweigh your skills. This comes full circle back to the art of persuasion. It pertains to everything in life – from family, friends, jobs, store clerks, or any casual meetings with people we meet for the first time. Copywriting classes have taught me that writing, like life, is about giving and helping. It is a form of art. I never expected to get that from the simple task of tapping on a keyboard, but it opened a parallel world of writing and living.