Coffee Chats (with tea for me please)
I have always been a tea person, and you know what goes really well with tea? A tea partner, someone to keep you company or someone to have a good conversation with. That is exactly what a coffee chat is…but a professional conversation.
A coffee chat is a great way to network, having those conversations with your co-workers, someone you follow on linked in, or even a mentor. A coffee chat starts with an invitation, you can send the person you wish to have a coffee chat with an email, a linked-in message, or even ask someone at work. When sending the invitation you want to be clear about what you want to learn or discuss, you want to set a time frame generally 15 to 30 minutes is enough to spark a good conversation. During that time get to know the person on a personal and professional level, and take away what you want from the conversation.
I had my first coffee chat the other day and it was amazing. I had a really good time, I focused more on getting to know them personally. That approach worked for me because I love to dive into a deep conversation, work was mentioned once or twice but the main focus was to know them as a person. What did I take away from the coffee chat? I really enjoyed the company, I felt comfortable talking to them, I learned a lot, and I worked on my communication skills. Next time I have a coffee chat with them I will feel more comfortable and get to know more about them professionally!
I mentioned some of the benefits of coffee chats above but I want to make them clear. Coffee chats are so much fun but are also a great resource and something you should be doing regularly. Why?
Because coffee chats allow you to network yourself and put yourself out there so people know you. Whenever you need something you can reach out to your network to support you, and if you have had a coffee chat with them then you will feel comfortable reaching out for help. Working on your communication skills, talking to someone, and holding a conversation for 15–30 minutes isn't just a great way to feel comfortable with the person but also with yourself, the more you have those conversations you will be confident and comfortable with your communication skills. Creating friendships, when you hold these coffee chats your creating a new possible friendship or mentor to support you not only in your career but also in life. Having coffee chats allows you to increase your knowledge in different skills and areas at your work, by increasing your knowledge you don't only increase your opportunities you also let everyone know that you are curious and are willing to learn. Which can come in handy when a new opportunity shows up!
Here are some of my tips for Coffee chats and how to get the most out of them:
- Come prepared with a topic you want to talk about: Some recommend having questions ready on hand. I personally don't like having questions ready because the coffee chat might feel like an interview. Instead, if you know the topic you want to talk about the conversation can flow on that topic, and questions come up during the conversation. It feels more natural and comfortable.
- Be present: Turn off your phone and remove all distractions, removing all distractions and being present shows that you care about the conversation. Also, you don't want to be interrupted when you are in the flow of the conversation. If you are in the middle of a conversation and you receive a phone call or a notification on your laptop it can kill the conversation…which leads to awkward staredowns.
- Be yourself: When you engage in these coffee chats you want to go in being yourself, at the end of the day these conversations are to get to know the people around you. You shouldn't go into a coffee chat expecting to gain brownie points, it’s to have a genuine conversation. So be unapologetically yourself!
Thank you for taking the time to read about my experience and learn more about coffee chats. Let me know in the comments what beverage you bring into your coffee chats, are you a tea person or a coffee person?
