3 Ways to Have an Effective Lunch Meeting

I always look forward to a good lunch meeting, but it can be tricky to get it right because there are so many distractions. If the purpose of the meeting is to talk business you may have to plan ahead. There’s nothing worse than getting to the best part of your pitch when suddenly the waiter interrupts to take your order. Or when the food takes to long and makes you late to work.

The best way to ensure a successful lunch meeting is to put in a little planning beforehand. Here are some of my top tips.

Choose the location wisely – When I meet with my mastermind group for meals we have got them down to an exact science! When booking a place to meet we always ensure that we meet at a restaurant where you can go up and get your food and then sit down. This saves you getting distracted looking at the menu and dealing with the waiter. Plus once you’ve got your food you can sit down and get started quickly on whatever topics you’ve got on the agenda.

Always have a purpose – A lunch meeting gives you the chance to get out of the office, so you might be tempted to say yes to a meeting before you’ve thought it through. Sure, sometimes it’s fun when you have so much to catch up on that you don’t actually talk about work, but meetings without an agenda can really drag. Just make sure the meeting has a definite goal before agreeing to do it – even if the goal is to have fun! Or if a meeting seems a bit too open ended don’t be afraid to ask for specifics.

Order before you go – If you need to have a super quick meeting there are now a handful of apps that allow you to order your meal and pay for it, in advance — saving time:

Allset – If you’re based in the San Francisco or New York City area you can use the app to book, order and pay at a restaurant before you arrive.

Paypal – The Paypal mobile app has recently launched a feature allowing you to order ahead at restaurants and pay with your paypal account. This app mainly works in conjunction with chain restaurants.

Rush Order – Order your food through this app and you can have it delivered or dine in.  

How do you make your lunch meetings more effective?