Business Meetings Over Coffee
31st May 2018
At LiquidLine, we believe coffee can improve many situations, and business meetings are certainly one of them. Here are a few reasons we prefer to have difficult conversations, make important decisions or get excited about an upcoming project with a mug of our favourite hot drink in hand.
Optimum Performance
The current demands of the contemporary workplace, alongside keeping on top of day-to-day personal admin tasks, attempting to maintain a social life and/or caring for our families means that a large percentage of today’s workforce have come to terms with getting less sleep than we would like to. The result of this is that many are often tired from the moment they arrive in the office and need a pick-me-up before they can face their to-do list. Thankfully coffee fits the bill here, and drinking a few cups throughout the day is often what we need to maintain concentration.
Meetings are held for a reason; usually to discuss a project or an issue within the team, so being fully engaged is essential. A cup of coffee can provide the energy we need to be on top of our game and perform the best we can. This means we’ll be able to contribute effectively to the discussion and will be focused enough to follow up on action points following the meeting.
Relax
Being on top form for a business meeting requires that individuals are relaxed enough to think and act calmly throughout the meeting. As a rule, most people fail to act wisely, think straight and make good, well-informed decisions whilst panicking, so maintaining a certain level of serenity is beneficial to producing the best possible outcome from the meeting.
Particularly if the atmosphere is notably tense or hostile, creating a more relaxed environment can be a great advantage. This will allow for conversation to happen more naturally. If there’s an issue to be resolved, this can be talked through in a calm and detailed manner, providing the participants are feeling comfortable enough to do so. If you’re making plans or discussing a project, doing so as you sip at a hot cup of coffee can set a laid-back tone which allows you to think through everything logically and in a great level of detail.
Show Hospitality
Business is all about relationships; whether you’re establishing one, maintaining one or ending one, the way in which those conversations are handled is crucial. Showing hospitality can be a great way to welcome a new recruit to the company, establish a relationship with a new or potential client, have a review meeting with an employee or round-off a relationship with a colleague who is leaving. Hospitality does not have to be lavish; demonstrating it can actually be incredibly straight forward. A small gesture such as making a cup of coffee using your office coffee machine or taking the other person (or people) to a local coffee shop for a meeting can have a remarkable impact on the content and outcome of the meeting.
Coffee in the workplace is beneficial for a great many reasons, and there’s no need to leave your mug on the desk- take it into the meeting room with you to make it as comfortable and effective as it can be!