Week 5
During our last class, we played the Rejection Therapy game. Our team went out and first discussed which places would have the capability to trade with us (we targeted stores that were family owned or non-franchises, since we assumed the people working there would have the authority to make trades with their merchandise). We had contemplated about putting flowers in the plastic box to give more value to the box; however, we saw that another group had already done that, so we changed our strategy to expanding our resources at a career fair on campus. We gained free admission ($15 per ticket x 5!) into the career fair after explaining our purpose to the coordinators. We walked around the career fair and explained to the company representatives our game and gained a plethora of water bottles, flash drives, flashlights, et cetera.
Using these new resources we gained, we went around to small businesses to make our trades. We first explained the game and asked if the employee had anything in the store they can get rid of and we can trade them something from the bag of goods we gained from the career fair. Almost all of the employees that we approached were amused by this game and decided to help us out, while gaining something that they would want from the bag. We were able to trade a $15 decorative snake from a Tibetan gift shop and a $35 blanket from a modern thrift store. Below is a picture displaying all the items we gained from trades.
Not only were we able to bond during this team activity, we learned a few lessons on business sense as well. We learned that being straightforward and open about your "business" allows others to respond similarly and prevented others from thinking we may have any suspicious behavior by not explaining the game we were playing. Moreover, it was important to strategize before heading out to complete the mission of the game. We did not approach large chain stores, because we did not want to hurt the employees if they were to give away something from the store that they were not authorized to do so. We also learned that their must be some losses to receive gains - some trades we made was not exactly better than the previous item, but it did lead to an even more valuable item in a future trade. We also learned to by ethical business players as well - we told each of the employees that we would understand if they cannot give away any merchandise if their boss was not present. We also traded fairly and again, we were open about our trades and did not pressure anyone or any businesses to trade something they did not offer. While this may be necessary outside of the game (suggesting items or ideas from the other party to go up for trade), we must also consider whether it is within ethical means. For example, I disagreed with the group that traded a dentist gift card with a pepper spray from a student that was walking home. It is true that the student did agree on the trade, but it was an item she may have needed walking home alone.
Using these new resources we gained, we went around to small businesses to make our trades. We first explained the game and asked if the employee had anything in the store they can get rid of and we can trade them something from the bag of goods we gained from the career fair. Almost all of the employees that we approached were amused by this game and decided to help us out, while gaining something that they would want from the bag. We were able to trade a $15 decorative snake from a Tibetan gift shop and a $35 blanket from a modern thrift store. Below is a picture displaying all the items we gained from trades.
Not only were we able to bond during this team activity, we learned a few lessons on business sense as well. We learned that being straightforward and open about your "business" allows others to respond similarly and prevented others from thinking we may have any suspicious behavior by not explaining the game we were playing. Moreover, it was important to strategize before heading out to complete the mission of the game. We did not approach large chain stores, because we did not want to hurt the employees if they were to give away something from the store that they were not authorized to do so. We also learned that their must be some losses to receive gains - some trades we made was not exactly better than the previous item, but it did lead to an even more valuable item in a future trade. We also learned to by ethical business players as well - we told each of the employees that we would understand if they cannot give away any merchandise if their boss was not present. We also traded fairly and again, we were open about our trades and did not pressure anyone or any businesses to trade something they did not offer. While this may be necessary outside of the game (suggesting items or ideas from the other party to go up for trade), we must also consider whether it is within ethical means. For example, I disagreed with the group that traded a dentist gift card with a pepper spray from a student that was walking home. It is true that the student did agree on the trade, but it was an item she may have needed walking home alone.
Great reflection Janette!
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