Coffee, coffee, coffee.
Yup, that about sums up all of our mornings.
Don’t deny it, we all know we need that extra espresso shot or that third cup of coffee before noon. We’re only human here people…and we need our coffee!
Coffee is like the cocktail of the morning. It’s something you look forward to, something that you can’t only have one of (unless you have killer self control) and something that is the perfect excuse to socialize over.
“I would love to meet and grab a cup of coffee”. The words that seem to be flooding my inbox and no, not guys looking to date me (I already got a great guy;)) but girls looking to network. And just like I can’t say no to that second cup of coffee, I can’t say no to that coffee date every day during my lunch break. I’m thinking next time I update my resume I’ll add “Professional Coffee Dater” under skills. Because coffee dating is no joke.
First, you get the courage to ask someone to grab coffee. Next you go back and forth a million times finding a date and time that works best for both of you. Finally, you pick the location and then mark it in your planner.
The day comes, you show up and then what?
Don’t panic, I got you covered. After many (I mean MANY) coffee dates being on both sides of the conversations, I have learned a few things that I found helpful and key to a successful coffee date.
1.Come Prepared. Call me old school, but create an agenda and bring a notebook to take notes. Write out your top 3-4 talking points that you want to discuss and leave room to take notes on each item as they come up. You’ll find that you are much more likely to remember things afterwards if you jotted down key components of the conversation.
2. Set Goals. The biggest thing I can suggest is setting goals before the conversation. Are you looking to just chat? Are you wanting to learn about possible positions at their company? Are you looking for them to help suggest companies to work for? Write down your main goals of the conversation and make sure to cover them organically in the conversation.
3. Put a time limit on it. I have a bad problem with getting carried away with conversations as I love hearing other people’s experiences and seeing their passion in what they do or want to do but we all have a million places we need to be or jobs that we snuck away from so it’s important to ask up front how much time the person has. If they say they have a meeting in an hour and have to leave in 30, set an alarm on your phone for them to make sure you don’t keep them over or check your watch periodically to make sure you’re on track with your conversation in a timely manner.
4. Send a follow-up. Always follow-up. Follow-up is key and where you will gain even more from your conversation as they may not have known the answer off the top of their head or may not have had the contact you were looking for on their phone so be sure to follow up and thank them for their time and ask any questions you had outstanding. I can’t tell you how many times people ask for recommendations of companies and while I can’t think of them off the top of my head, I have a running list on my computer that I send over when people follow up.
Are you a serial coffee dater? Anything you find successful?