An Odd Location Where I Learned a TON About Business
When I was building my business, I would often spend all my free time reading and learning about business and entrepreneurship. Any and all information that I could soak up like a sponge I would. I would watch YouTube videos of successful entrepreneurs, read books about successful businessmen and their journey, and even listened to podcast interviews where very successful people were interviewed. Then by dumb luck, I found what could be one of the best locations to find and speak to real-life success stories—I learned about business at the cigar lounge.
Watching Money Go Up in Smoke… Literally
As odd as it may sound, smoking a cigar is in essence like lighting a $5 bill to upwards of a $20 bill (maybe even more) on fire. Now just sit back, relax, and watch that money go up in smoke. Those who are cigar enthusiasts know the blends and make-up of a cigar—to them, it’s not watching money burn, it’s enjoyment of the flavor, aroma, and atmosphere. For beginners, many think all cigars taste and smell the same. But this article isn’t about you or me sitting back with a cigar and dram trying to relax and unwind. This article is about grabbing your favorite stick and learning something. That’s exactly what I’ve been doing.
It all started when I had some business meetings at Cigars International in Hamburg, PA. I would stay after my meetings to get some work done and began speaking with other patrons. Many of them were executives, salesmen, entrepreneurs, and the like. They would tell me about their business and ask about mine. We would trade success stories as well as our failures and how we overcame them. Never in a million years did I think a cigar lounge would be such a great source of information. I learned so much from the people I interacted with over the months in the lounge than I did reading a book. What’s even better is I got to ask questions and received answers rather than reading a book that left me with unanswered questions and confusion.
The Atmosphere for Business
When you think about the atmosphere of a cigar lounge, it is generally made up of men dressed in business attire, some of them sitting with their laptops open while others sit and converse with others. Sure, you have some men and women in there who are in normal street clothes there just relaxing, but when you look at the majority of those who frequent the lounge, many look to be business professionals.
A good percentage of the patrons at a cigar lounge are friendly and will talk to you about anything—sports, life, business, family, the weather, whatever. On occasion, you will find some pompous a-hole who sits there with his nose up in the air like he’s better than everyone, but most of the people there are the complete opposite and are down to earth.
What Do I Recommend You Do?
If you aren’t into cigars, well, you might be on the outside looking in and hitting up the cigar lounge might not be for you. If you’ve never had a cigar and are open to trying one, I highly recommend it. The health risks are just about non-existent because you aren’t inhaling along with the only thing burning in a cigar is the tobacco leaf, unlike cigarettes which contain a whole bunch of chemicals and other junk that are unhealthy. Research has shown that you can smoke two cigars every day with virtually zero health risks associated with doing so.
There is one downside of the cigar lounge, though. The probability that you’re going to leave the lounge smelling like smoke is as close to 100% as possible. If the weather is nice outside and you are able to enjoy the weather, you might leave without smelling like smoke (or at least minimize the smell). So, be aware that if you have somewhere to go after the lounge where you don’t want to smell like a cigar, you’re going to either want to bring a change of clothes, avoid the lounge that day, or go home and shower/change.
But more importantly, when you are at the cigar lounge, walk around and talk to the people there. Learn their story and what they do. Ask questions. Explain who you are, what you do, and if you’re starting up your business ask them if you can pick their brain a little. Don’t ask too personal of questions that would make the other person feel uncomfortable—after all, you’re trying to get some free advice. Take the opportunity to figure out how people got past certain milestones or roadblocks. If you find you’re spending a lot of time with an individual and they are giving you extremely helpful information and insights, ask them if you can buy them a drink or their next stick (cigar). A gesture like that will go a long way even if they decline.
Last, but not least, exchange business cards and thank them for their time and that you hope to see him or her again at the lounge. Tell them that if you can ever pass business along to them that you will certainly do so and mention to them that if they ever run into someone who could use your services or products to please keep you in mind.
Enjoy the experience in the lounge. Don’t just go there to relax, think of it as a way to network as well. There are people just like you there who want to mingle and learn. Don’t be afraid to be on the giving end of the spectrum as well if someone wants to pick your brain—after all, that’s what you have been doing by using the strategies found in this article. Enjoy the lounge, enjoy the cigars and spirits if you partake, and enjoy the company you are surrounded by. Don’t be a hermit, get out there and mingle.
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