"The Woman Who Doesn't Drink Coffee" is a realistic novel about the cultural changes in the modern workplace. The story begins in 2016. The protagonist Lin Youyou - a recent graduate who is seeking a "not bitter" job due to caffeine allergy - joins the start-up company Qichuang Technology. Her initial simple personal appeal unexpectedly gave birth to and led a workplace movement called "No Bitter Culture".
The work spans nearly two decades and details how Lin Youyou grew from an employee pursuing personal comfort to a cultural advocate who promotes changes in organizations and even industries. She and her team gradually developed the concept of "work can not be hard" from specific practices such as flexible schedules and pet-friendliness into a complete ecosystem including system design, cross-generational collaboration, and digital ethics, and ultimately influenced thousands of companies around the world through the open source community.
The core of the novel is not only the growth history of a person, but also the evolution history of a set of ideas: it explores the balance between personal well-being and organizational efficiency, the implementation of idealism in business reality, and how a value changes from being unique to a new generation's "taken for granted". Through the vivid stories of Lin Youyou and many supporting characters, the work deeply reflects on the meaning, dignity and possibility of work, and ultimately points to a warm belief: good work does not need to be based on suffering, and a sober life does not need to be maintained by stimulants. This is a story about how a small persistence triggers widespread repercussions and ultimately changes the face of the world.
Intention: To be awake, but not to be supported by hardship.