Lunch (at blip.tv)

kellysutton:

We also watch Apple keynotes together. Photo by Annie Tsai.

Joel’s post on lunch culture at FogCreek is blowing up on Hacker News today. Many of the commenters on the story vehemently disagree with the idea that coworkers should be forced to eat lunch together.

One of the traditions at blip.tv has been lunchtime. Each day, we gather around a few computers and put in orders via Seamless Web (a site that makes ordering delivery a snap in NYC and elsewhere). We usually have about 4 or 5 big orders that go out and the food arrives generally around the same time. The company foots the bill.

Tomorrow morning, we’re moving to a new office up the street a few blocks. If you look at the floor plan, the founders have very specifically set aside space for lunching. We’ll be able to have our entire NYC staff eat at the same time if we’d like.

All of this is done because lunch is one of the more important things you do during the day, especially with coworkers. If you’re the type that prefers your “alone time”: get over yourself. Take a walk sometime else. Everyone at blip participates in lunch. New hires are welcomed to the fold quickly. Inside jokes are developed. We casually learn about what people are working on, their side projects or what they’re doing this weekend. It’s part of what makes blip blip. Our attrition rate is nonexistent.

As far as I can tell, all of my coworkers love working at blip. Lunch is a big part of it. Other companies should do the same. Sharing a meal with someone is one of the best ways to get to know them. It sounds like a majority of folks on HN work at pretty boring workplaces. Blip.tv will be hiring again soon.

THIS. I was just telling Teresa the other day how I feel like lunching together is part of what makes blip’s company culture so great. It helps to be friends with your co-workers and to know them as more than just… well, co-workers.