The Ideal Business Meeting

October 23, 2009 in lessons learned
Tags: ideas, management

The Waverley, home of the Slow Helen's Steak

I’ve been working with Kelly Karius for the last six weeks on a series of projects, and the trip to Melville, SK is nearly at an end. So we met a couple nights ago at the Waverley here, and she urged me to have the steak, renowned throughout these parts.

The steak was sublime. Literally, the best I’ve ever had. (Admittedly, I haven’t been to Akron’s Diamond Grille yet. Maybe I’ll have a basis for comparison once I have. And the sooner the better.) But that’s not what this post is about.

During the six weeks I’ve been here, we’ve had business meetings nearly every day. This was the best one of the lot. I’m here to tell you what made it so good.

• The casual atmosphere. I understand the need some entrepreneurs have to control a meeting environment: they want to avoid distractions. And I also tend to be a bit distractible myself. But I don’t need environmental control, and if I find the environment too controlled (e.g. private room, the best china, folded cloth napkins in the glasses, etc.) I get a bit nervous. Which leads to…
• All parties relaxed. Kelly and I know each other pretty well, but it’s still about the business. In that case, we can – and sometimes do – argue about business strategy. To move forward in a healthy way, all parties involved have to be willing to not fear the arguments, but instead look for the win-win whenever one appears. If we’re relaxed, we’ve got a better chance. Which leads to…
• The right refreshments. Most writers will tell you to stay away from alcohol at business meetings. It’s not my place to argue with most writers, but I’ll tell you this: if alcohol must be avoided, then all parties are not relaxed, and some parties cannot trust themselves. You can still have good business meetings, even successful ones, where that’s the case. But they won’t be ideal. Oh, no. The best meetings will be where you feel free to have a Molson Canadian (if you’re here) or a nice Modelo (if you’re in Trenton), for instance, and you get down to the business after that. And that leads to…
• I trust myself. I know I won’t do anything stupid, even if I drink. I know I won’t say anything off the top of my head at all, much less as a knee-jerk reaction. I know I will let go of my natural tendency to think myself always right, and will instead seek the solutions that work best for everybody. I know I’ll treat everyone at that table with respect, recognizing that we’re all in it for the same reasons, and that if we all win, I win. And that leads to…
• Recognition of the best answers. We’ll sit at that table and eat delicious steak, and develop answers from tiny seeds, rather than dismissing them out of hand. If an idea is bad, we will instead use it as a springboard to a better one. And we keep doing it. Until the good gets better and the better best. Which leads to…
• Everybody leaves happy. I won’t say that has anything to do with the Waverley’s bathroom decor, though that did give me a laugh. LOL It’s mostly about all of us thinking the time didn’t go to waste in any way.