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Family Friday Newsletter - 2 min read by: Finley Robinson

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A Single Sentence from a Season Ahead

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High Leverage Lunch

If you had 45 minutes to sit across the lunch table with anyone today, who would you choose?

• A lunch date with your spouse?
• A quick catch-up with a best friend?
• A week recap with your business partner?
• A sit down with your mom or dad who lives far away?

I have no doubt any of those options would be great and meaningful.

I do want to offer an alternative option today for you. One that involves sticky floors and lots of noise but could be your highest-leverage lunch all week.

I use the word leverage on purpose. To have leverage means that you get outsized results from the effort you put forth.

Consider this... 45 minutes spent in your child's school lunchroom has an amazing amount of built-in leverage for you as a parent.

My wife and I decided that we were going to go all in on the cafeteria on Fridays when our kids were in elementary school. We'd make a sheet of bagel bites, grab some grapes, and show up with it in our basket.

I had the privilege of working a 1/2 day most Fridays when our kids were in elementary school and we made frequent visits to their school for lunch.

I recognize that not all parents can do this. If you can though, I believe if you show up semi-often, you'll understand why it's such a high-leverage use of your time.

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7 Reasons To Visit School Lunch

1. You get to meet their friends. In the early years of school, so many new friendships are formed. You will witness the variety of kids your kids interact with every day & can process it with them.
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2. You can be a joy-giver in a place of difficulty. Teachers are outnumbered and lunchtime is typically chaotic. Play a game of "Would You Rather?" at the table and watch the smiles show up.
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3. You develop empathy for their world. Admittedly, it's been a long time since you've been in school. Getting a first-hand account of their everyday life at school is good for your relationship.
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4. You can connect with teachers and spot needs. If you have the means, via your time or your resources, lunch is a gateway to discover more opportunities of need than you realize.
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5. You build long-term community relationships. Young kids have an amazing memory. When you frequent their lunch table, neighborhood kids will remember you well into high school.
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6. You get bonus time with your kids. Being able to spend 1-1 time at lunch or including their friends at a table, means you're able to have unique time and conversations with your kids.
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7. You make Fridays special. *It doesn't have to be Friday that you visit lunch, but if it is, you change the day's narrative instantly. It gives your kids something to look forward to at week's end.

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Frequent school lunch with your kids isn't for everyone. I remember though that an older dad suggested it to me when I was in your stage of family and I'm so thankful he did.

We tried it and eventually adopted it as a value and habit for our home. Yes it is awkward and you'll get plenty of strange looks, but the payoff is huge!

It became a tradition for us to eat lunch with our kids most Family Fridays and to this day I've never regretted it one time.

In fact, I may need to go buy my college kids lunch right now, for old-time's sake.

Finley

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