Irrational Responses to Rational Questions
As Quokka is really beginning to scale we are making adjustments to our processes to make them more scalable. With this, one of the changes we are instituting is requesting our vendors pay in either check or electronic payment, rather than in cash. Seems rational, right?
Well, not everyone believes that.
This past week I was down in Southern California, chatting with one of our smaller vendors, a little corner store, explaining to the owner how our business is making changes and requesting our customers pay by either check or electronic payment instead of cash.
As soon as I said this, he aggressively said “Get out of my store.”
Not understanding why this elicited such a swift and harsh response, I explained how handling cash creates some confusion when trying to track who owes us money.
Once again, he responded ‘I don’t care, get out of my store”
We eventually mutually agreed that he can pay by cash this time. Safe to say we are never going back there again
It was almost comical how irrational this was. Here was this grown man, screaming and cussing at me at the top of his lungs, telling me to leave his store, because I asked him if he would be able to pay check in the future.
Yes, an independent business has every right to make their own decision, I am not arguing that. But, the way in which this situation was handled blew my mind.
It felt like I was arguing with an infant.
After this “altercation” I sat in my car and thought about what on Earth just happened.
Was he having a bad day?
Was he out of checks?
Was there something in my teeth?
Was I crazy?
I could not think of a single reason that explains what just happened.
But, after hours of pondering it all made sense.
Humans act irrationally.