He had a backpack, some roasted coffee beans, and a whole lot of people telling him it wasn’t a good idea.
Especially his parents.
They wanted him to be a doctor. Stable job. Predictable future. Something they could be proud of.
But Luke couldn’t let the idea go.
He was curious.
Why did some coffee taste amazing, while other cups were just… bad?
That curiosity turned into obsession. And that obsession turned intoaction.
He gave himself five years - just 5% of his life - to see what could happen if he went all in on something he cared about.
At first, it looked like a terrible decision.
❌ His parents didn’t understand ❌ Customers weren’t buying ❌ He was getting rejected 20+ times a day
There were plenty of nights he questioned whether he was just being naive.
But he kept going anyway.
He worked for free to learn the barista side.
He studied the craft of roasting.
He started handing out beans door to door with nothing but a phone number on the bag.
Slowly, it started to work.
The moment it all clicked?
He was sitting on the couch next to his dad, watching basketball, when a few orders came in through his website.
Just like that - $300 in coffee sales.
He looked at his dad and said:
“How long would you have to work to make that?”
His dad didn’t say much.
But that moment changed everything.
What Luke figured out is something a lot of us need to hear:
• You can always go back to a job • But you don’t always get the chance to build something of your own • If you’re going to risk anything, why not risk 5% of your life to find out what’s possible?
Now, Luke runs multiple coffee shops in Sydney.
His shops run without him.
His team creates consistency and joy for every customer who walks in the door.
And his coffee? It’s great.
But it’s never really been about the coffee.
It’s about giving people something good to start their day with. Something to look forward to. A moment of encouragement.
And it all started with a tiny bet on himself.
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If you’re in the middle of your own 5% season right now - the stretch where no one really gets it, and nothing seems to be working - we hope Luke’s story reminds you why it’s worth it to keep going.
More of his journey is coming soon on the blog, on YouTube, and in future episodes.
But this is the part we didn’t want you to miss.
You don’t need a full plan. You don’t need outside validation. You just need to be willing to try.
