I had a great impromptu lunch today with a couple of guys I used to work with. It was great seeing them and it had been about 2 months see the last time I saw them. Upon parting ways they said “Be sure to not forget us, and hit us up for lunch!” I’ve seen others do the same in the past.
Of all the breakfast/coffee/lunch/drinks meetings I’ve had with people, I think less than 5% have been initiated by others. The reasons are many, people are busy, people forgot how long it has been, people don’t think much of others outside their “world”.
I’m not a well connected guy, so I’m not having lunches with leaders of companies (for the most part). But I really enjoy meeting with these folk. They read things differently than I do. They see things differently than I do. Getting to sit down with them helps me grow and think differently than I normally would.
The onus is on ourselves to do this. I’m glad those guys reached out, the gross majority of the time people don’t.
Go schedule lunch or coffee with a few people. Enrich your life, and theirs, for the better.