Speaker 1: Good morning. This is Laura. Welcome to the New Corner Office,
Speaker 1: the podcast where we share strategies for thriving in the
Speaker 1: new world of work where their location and hours are
Speaker 1: more flexible than in the past. Today's tip is to
Speaker 1: never eat lunch alone, even if you're not physically in
Speaker 1: an office. Lunch time can and should be social time,
Speaker 1: regardless of the circumstances, and even if you have to
Speaker 1: get a little bit creative about making it work. You've
Speaker 1: almost certainly heard the phrase to never eat alone before.
Speaker 1: Keith Ferazi, for instance, used this phrase as the title
Speaker 1: of his book about Relationships and professional Success. We all
Speaker 1: know that networking is vital to our career growth, and
Speaker 1: we also know that relaxed interactions like lunch help build
Speaker 1: authentic relationships. What's new now is that many people are
Speaker 1: working remote for the first time, as the world engages
Speaker 1: in social distancing measures to slow the spread of COVID nineteen.
Speaker 1: If you work from home, even in normal times, it
Speaker 1: can be tempting to embrace your freedom and flexibility and
Speaker 1: to avoid scheduled commitments. If you're in charge of your
Speaker 1: own schedule, you may not want to stop for lunch
Speaker 1: until you're hungry, and there may be some wisdom in
Speaker 1: that which will discuss in other episodes. Or to be honest,
Speaker 1: maybe you're sitting there in sweatpants and don't feel like
Speaker 1: needing to shower by a certain time. Having lunch with
Speaker 1: a companion then seems to disrupt your efficiency, and perhaps
Speaker 1: it does, but that's true. If you're a workplace too,
Speaker 1: you may have to stop your work when you're in
Speaker 1: a state of flow to go to scheduled lunch date.
Speaker 1: So be it. What's gained in relationships will probably make
Speaker 1: up for what's lost in efficiency. For those of us
Speaker 1: who work at home, whether by choice or necessity, more
Speaker 1: intentionality is required for developing and maintaining relationships. Lunch dates
Speaker 1: can be a key part of fostering our professional relationships,
Speaker 1: since we don't cross paths with each other as much
Speaker 1: as inoffice workers do. When social distancing is over, it
Speaker 1: will be great to do these dates in person. Right now,
Speaker 1: virtual lunch dates are a great substitute. Here's how this works.
Speaker 1: Make yourself lunch and then log on to a video
Speaker 1: call for conversation with a professional colleague or friend. If
Speaker 1: you haven't done this before, you may be surprised at
Speaker 1: how much real connection can happen and how much you'll
Speaker 1: enjoy it. Yes, it's a little weird to eat on
Speaker 1: a video call, but you watch people eat when you're
Speaker 1: in a restaurant too, you'll figure out how to avoid
Speaker 1: doing anything uncouth. You can schedule these lunch dates or
Speaker 1: text one of your colleagues last minute to join you,
Speaker 1: just like you would in person. Lunch dates can happen
Speaker 1: with people in your house too. If you have a
Speaker 1: partner or kids who are home right now, you can
Speaker 1: have lunch with them. Not just grab and gost sandwiches
Speaker 1: that everybody eats in front of their own screens, but
Speaker 1: lunch on a plate at a table, talking with each other.
Speaker 1: Enjoy the opportunity to share a meal together in the
Speaker 1: middle of the day. Someday this will all be over
Speaker 1: and family lunches on a Tuesday will be a lot
Speaker 1: harder to pull off, So embrace it now. If you
Speaker 1: commit to never eating lunch alone, even if it means
Speaker 1: having virtual lunch dates, let me know how it goes.
Speaker 1: You can reach me at Laura at Laura Vanderkam dot com.
Speaker 1: In the meantime, this is Laura. Thanks for listening, and
Speaker 1: here's to succeeding in the New Corner Office. The New
Speaker 1: Corner Office is a production of iHeartRadio. For more podcasts,
Speaker 1: visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get
Speaker 1: your favorite shows.