Power Play: Make time for coffee

Power Players always make time to get people away from the office for a terrific cup of coffee.

Away from the office is relaxed. And it allows people to let their guards down. Tell the truth and play being themselves rather than some version of who they think they should be.

Power Players do the coffee thing as often as they can. They rarely set an agenda, preferring to see where the conversation goes.

Always, always, always make time for coffee. Take your guest out, get them a skim latte double shot with whipped cream and an extra shot on top (or whatever fancy crap they like), sit back and let them spill.

It comes down to this: you’re not the one who does the talking. They are. Power Players use these coffee catch-ups to listen. That’s it. Listen to whatever is going on in the person’s head and whatever they feel they need to vent.

Power Players make time for it and when things get busy they don’t nix it from their schedule.