Nassim Taleb in Anti-fragile talks about the importance of optionality. In an increasingly volatile and uncertain world, you always want to have options.

That’s why an entrepreneur should always order a take-away coffee, even for sit-down meetings. Other than the consistent taste of coffee out of a cardboard cup, a take-away gives you options.

What happens if you feel like walking and talking?

What happens if there’s a fire alarm?

What happens if you want to escape your meeting by pretending to go to the toilet whilst in fact exiting the building and running for the hills?

If you use a regular coffee mug, you’re trapped. Faced with a choice of abandoning your coffee or any alternative, most sane people will go with the former.

Take-away coffee gives you options.

Entrepreneurs need options.