Some of us tend to think our work will speak for itself. That if we put in enough sweat equity, our leadership will notice and give us even greater work challenges.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
One of the most humbling lessons in one’s career is seeing colleagues get promoted further and faster, all while putting in fewer hours and less effort, and *sigh* sometimes with less results.
What is their secret? No, not everyone is the president’s nephew, the vice president’s daughter or a shareholder’s neighbour.
These colleagues have simply learned how to showcase the value of their work better and at the right levels.
They know how to sell themselves and their achievements.
They have built larger and more diverse networks.
After all, opportunities come through people. The more people you know that will think of you when a novel opportunity arises, the better.
Now what does all of this have to do with working through lunch?
I must confess, I myself am guilty of eating lunch in front of my laptop at work for an excessive number of years.
And when I wrote a Linked in post a couple of years ago about a particular time period in my career when not only did I work through lunch, but had every hour of my day in the office double and triple booked, I was surprised at how many of my then colleagues, suppliers, team members rightfully identified the years I was referring to and commented with various observations from seeing me live through that.
What does this mean?
People noticed. Not the extra work output it generated. But the toll it took. How frazzled I seemed at times. How I was constantly running from meeting to meeting and building to building without pause. An endless stream of daily meetings, weeklies, reporting, decision meetings, design reviews. Rinse and repeat.
This was not the polished, poised, in control leader my leadership was looking to promote.
A leader with no time to reflect or strategize. No time for big picture thinking, career planning or laying out the groundwork for next steps. Not even the basics of building credibility with key stakeholders, showcasing mine and my team’s work and establishing relationships that could lead to that next career steppingstone.
Lunchtime offers the perfect opportunity to meet with others in your organization.
It offers a dedicated window where others are also naturally taking a break to eat.
And a great mental reset, leaving you reenergized for the day ahead, if only from the walk to and from the cafeteria.
If you have no plans, you may run into people you haven’t seen in some time just by leaving your desk.
Diversifying your network is key.
Giving yourself the mental clarity to thrive is also.
The next big thing is out there for you, just take your eyes off your laptop.