Today was a challenge.
We have an auditor in the office for a couple of days this week, and that’s a special occasion for us. See, I work in an office that’s on the site of a steel mill and security is incredibly, stupidly tight. Let me put it this way: a few weeks ago I forgot my drive-in pass and despite the fact that I’ve been going in and out of this mill site for over 10 years, I wasn’t allowed in. So, when we get visitors (especially ones we’re trying to win over), we go all out. Which means: FREE FOOD!
Now, I’ve always been all over that. Gotta take advantage of food I don’t have to prepare that’s brought directly to me, right? And today Olive Garden food was being catered in! Sure, it’s not the best Italian food out there, but – again – FREE.
Of course, these days free ain’t what it used to be. Meaning, free = giant nutritional trap door = no happy green check mark at the end of the day. I know this for a fact: I can’t be trusted with unlimited food in front of me — I’ll eat and eat and eat. You’d find me face first in a big basket of breadsticks, if you know what I mean.
I needed a good strategy to get through the day. Do I trust myself to partake but not over-eat? Do I bring my own lunch to eat while everyone else has Olive Garden? Do I quit my job?
I ended up bringing my lunch, figuring that at worst, it would sit in the fridge for another day. Honestly, though, I wasn’t looking forward to sitting around a table with other people chowing down on more exciting food. And then it struck me: I would eat early! I found someone else in the office who was also avoiding the whole Olive Garden thing and ate about 30 minutes before the good stuff arrived. Brilliant! By the time the smell of garlic was wafting towards my desk, I was already 80% full.
Go, me!
So, the lesson for the day? Always try to have a game plan. Or at the very least, recognize challenges before they come up and hit you over the head with a breadstick.
Awesome game plan!