A lot of deals have been made over a great meal. Here’s seven ways to master the business lunch.
Just last week I had a great client passing through and he invited me and several members of my office to lunch. It got me thinking about what makes for a successful business lunch. So I decided to pen down these simple rules to act as a guideline.
1. Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, and Coffee
From the onset, recognize that the business “lunch” is no longer confined to our mid-day meal. The term was coined years ago when business was conducted in more of a nine-to-five atmosphere when business people would do deals over power lunches. In today’s world, however, we are 24/7. When’s the last time you had an eight-hour day? So the traditional lunch has merged into any meal or break, from an early morning breakfast to a mid-afternoon coffee.
2. Agenda and Objectives
Often when we introduce food into the equation people forget about the purpose of a meeting. Irrespective of the presence of food one must always remember one simple truth about the business lunch: it is just like any other meeting. So when you attend a business lunch you should have an agenda for what you want to discuss and defined goals for what you want to achieve.
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