Mixing business with pleasure
There are several of my in-laws that I really enjoy hanging out with. My brother-in-law Will, for example, has a Harley. I have a Harley. We like to ride together. He’s a nice guy and would give the shirt off his back to help another family member. But by day, he is a self-employed IT specialist. He has several clients that pay him handsomely to take care of the details of the computer and Internet needs.
And because he is self-employed, he is always networking; trying to line up more clients. So there have been times when we’ve gone riding together and ended up meeting with potential clients. After a few minutes of listening to them talk about such things as dedicated server hosting, colocation services, and managed hosting solutions I usually wander off and try to find myself a place to grab a drink and take a short nap. I’m beginning to think that I should pack a bedroll and a good book onto the back of my bike! I don’t mind mixing a little bit of business with pleasure, but these are topics above and beyond my own needs and interests. But, it pays him a good salary, so I’m all for it!