Can you really run a successful and growing business from a coffee shop? There is no right or wrong answer to this question but I can tell you that as much time as I spend in coffee shops it’s not where I run my business. Coffee shops are where I get the vast majority of my work done. And by work I don’t mean all those busy body tasks we all have to complete each day to keep the Earth turning.
How this coffee shop CEO thing really works…
I start early almost every day at my desk or that of the hotel room I’m staying in at the moment. I scan the overnight email for anything urgent and delete or archive all the rest. I grab my notebook and look at yesterday’s to-do list. The items I didn’t complete either become high priorities on today’s list or – get this – never get completed. It’s always interesting to me how many “important” and “critical” tasks just go away or take care of themselves.
Then, the “stuff” starts. Calls and emails to customers and contractors to keep projects on task. Conference calls to manage projects, plan future speaking engagements and to prospect for future partner businesses. If I’m traveling there are then customers to visit or conferences to attend. Somehow, the “stuff” eats up the vast majority of each day.
Enter, the coffee shop. At some point in the mass of confusion that is basically responding and reacting to others – I take a break and find a coffee shop. I silence the ringer on my phone and often don’t even connect to the free wi-fi for much of my visit. On average I will spend about two hours working on strategic thinking and content creation. The strategic thinking might focus around a future multi-media marketing campaign. The content creation might be writing the email and print copy for that campaign. To me this is the real work I do. It’s work because it’s the unique me I bring to the equation.
Why the coffee shop?
Well, I like coffee (or green tea with three Splenda please). There’s normally a comfy chair I can sit in and put my feet up with the MacBook balanced on my lap. Instead of sitting at a desk with multiple project and demands spread out I can focus on a single task. This is when I create the content and ideas that drive my various business interests.
Interesting people all around. I’m a people person and there is no getting around that. When I work from home I work alone. When I’m on the road I am almost always traveling solo. I spend a significant number of my waking weekday hours alone. The coffee shop breaks provide a connection to humanity. I’m a regular at a few and even take short breaks for real face to face conversations. It’s interesting when you ask someone with no vested interest in your business to read your email newsletter. The content always improves after listening to my coffee shop colleagues input. (I critique their websites and content in return of course.)
So, it’s less about being a coffee shop CEO and more about finding a place to work in peaceful ear bud isolation while surrounded by humanity.
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