This morning I went to breakfast with two of the top C-level execs in my company.
"Don't tell (so-and-so-executive-peer) we invited you. He's been trying to get in on our breakfast club for years."
So I met the Big Dogs at 8 AM at a diner that opens early just for them. We chatted over burnt coffee and bacon. We were on a first-name-basis with the woman who ran the front of the house. Cookie brought in home grown tomatoes, which the Big Dogs ordered slices of for us by shouting to the back. I followed suit and ordered everything "smothered in butter". They said I passed the test.
I was new to the crowd and the only one with no business being invited to the meeting. I drank too much coffee and tried to keep my comments to a minimum. They freely discussed company politics and corporate travel high jinks in front of me. It was like dining with the mob! I felt so important!
