Why You Should Stop Holding Lunchtime Meetings

Why You Should Stop Holding Lunchtime Meetings

Have you ever attended or hosted a lunchtime work meeting? 

Are you wondering if you should even hold a lunchtime meeting in the first place?

Lunchtime meetings often start off with good intentions.

You know, you round up a bunch of people, order some food and sit in a conference room, or go out to a restaurant to hash out the details of an upcoming project.

In theory, this sounds like a fantastic idea.

You’ll have lunch and you’ll get your work done…all at the same time!

While you think you may be saving time by multitasking, you may actually be doing more harm than good.

In this post, you’ll find a few key reasons as to why you might want to let those lunchtime meetings become a thing of the past.

Eating while working is messy.

Sticky hands and fingers, piles of crumbs, spilled beverages…these are just a few hazards of mixing mealtimes with meetings.

Besides the obvious inconveniences of gummed up keyboards, smudged tablet screens, and pieces of food getting into papers and files, you’ll also have to deal with the spread of germs.

As if that weren’t enough, dealing with food means you’ll have to spend a good amount of time cleaning tables and surfaces when you’re finished.

Think about it for a moment: do you want to spend your time cleaning up other people’s messes or cleaning food residue from your papers and electronic devices? Wouldn’t it be easier to focus on one thing at a time?

You need to eat. 

When it’s time for lunch, or any meal for that matter, you should be able to eat freely and unhindered.

You shouldn’t have to sit around, waiting for food to be delivered.

You shouldn’t be forced to talk serious business when your blood sugar is low.

And you shouldn’t have to worry about having a conversation when a piece of food is stuck between your teeth.

Lunch meetings bring out the worst of these mealtime trials and tribulations, wouldn’t you agree?

You need a break.

Quick question: what else do you do at lunch besides eat? Why, take a break from your work, of course!

This point is so important, it’s worth repeating: lunchtime is a time for you to take a break from your work.

While you may think a lunchtime meeting in a conference room or restaurant is a break from your work, I’ve got some bad news for you: you are still working.

If you don’t take a break during lunchtime, just when are you going to take a decent break? Are you going to take an hour-long coffee break or leave work an hour early? Probably not.

Remember, lunchtime is a break from work. It is not meant to be an extension of your workday.  

How about you? Do you hold lunchtime meetings or not? Why or why not? Join the conversation and leave a comment below!

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About the Author

Rashelle

Rashelle Isip is a New York City-based productivity consultant who helps successful entrepreneurs and business owners manage their time and energy so they can reduce stress, work less, and make more money in their businesses. She has been featured in Fast Company, Forbes, NBC News, The Washington Post, NPR, and The Atlantic. Get her free guide, 5 Unexpected Things You Need to Organize a Work Notebook, by clicking here.

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