Walk and Talk

Walking and talking are my bread and butter. Anyone who worked with me in my early days at Target knows I enjoy productive conversations while in motion. Whether that’s with my boss, a team member, or a peer, it helps me think.

Scheduled sitting meetings have their place and time, but they leave our bodies in a stale state without the blood flowing. I always found it weird that people talking informally at work often schedule a time and sit across from each other in a dreary meeting room. Being outside or in motion is so much more natural and enjoyable. For any manager or leader looking to connect or improve their relationship and results, do more walk-and-talks.

At Target, they were natural. You would literally walk in and around the store.

At Harbor Freight Tools’ Headquarters, they were very unnatural based on the building type and work culture. But we did them, especially for my less-experienced team members. We’d stroll around the building or walk up to the gas station to get a bottle of water.

At Winc Wines, it was similar. I can’t count the number of times I’d walked with my director to Whole Foods. It was a fifteen-minute walk each way with fresh air and a positive setting.

At Goat Group, If I were in the warehouse, we’d walk to the grocery store. If I were at headquarters, we’d walk to Starbucks or even inside. It wasn’t a huge building, but you knew if you saw Kjiel twice walking around, you could expect to see him a dozen more times.

The destination doesn’t matter. Walking and allowing the other person to talk without having to stare you in the face helps the other person naturally open up and stop worrying about being perfect in their communication.

One takeaway:

Walk and talk to people. A meeting room isn’t always the ideal place to meet.