I am the first to admit a fascination with people, particularly those with a depth and breadth of intellectual curiosity. Important people tackling important issues.

In business, where accomplishing a particular goal is heavily reliant on establishing, building and leveraging peer-level trusting relationships that is a very helpful trait. A lot of my clients, prospects and business partners remark that I am a good listener with wonderful manners and a great conversationalist (“we could speak for hours”).

That is nice to hear but it doesn’t, in isolation, feed the family.

Here is the “kicker”: any business conversation must lead to a relevant destination to me, preferably fast and be immediately useful. That destination doesn’t need to be financial, although that is helpful but it must be in my self-interest. When I see people seeking to “pick my brain” on my business time, I point that out and offer them an alternative (paid advice). What I term “hitting the brakes”.

I see a great many people having coffees, breakfast, lunches and meetings, where there is no “brake” to speak of. That is fine for social conversations but there is a time and place for them, it is not in business hours.

When are you going to get anything done? Discipline, discipline, discipline.