How a simple post in the #random channel on Slack says a lot about the Mappedin culture and our people.
We’re back again with our latest Theoretical; this one is much more out of the blue. On the ‘#random’ channel in our company Slack (one of the many channels we have, although this one covers anything and everything you could think of!), someone posted a question a family member had thought up and posed to them.
“You find yourself confined to one room for a year. If you survive the year, you’ll get $1,000,000. The food is terrible, you eat gruel for every meal. Your room only contains a cot, a toilet, and a sink. You get 60 minutes outside each day, and there is no light from 6pm to 8am. You have $150.00 to spend on treats and upgrades for your experience. How do you spend your money?”
Such a simple question, although the answer was entirely the opposite.
The amenities we could choose from ranged from interior decorations (posters, a rug, a better blanket, and even a window) to entertainment (DVDs, a tv that could only be used to play video games, said video game consoles, a laptop, or wifi) and everything in between (unlimited Legos, art supplies, one meal of your choice per day, books, or additional outdoor minutes).
The chaos came when people started to try to determine the parameters of how far they could go with this. “Can I team up with a coworker? Then we have $300 to spend" came quickly, followed by questions of “Can I use my existing bank accounts?", “Can I earn extra money?”, and “Can I use my existing video game library?”. Varying answers started flying thick and fast from people who prioritized comfort over entertainment, and a (surprising) number who valued not being bored above all else.
Not only did the questions showcase many different types of thought processes at Mappedin, but each answer told us a lot about each personality. Although it was just a small post thrown on Slack for some thought provoking conversation on a Friday afternoon, it turned into a microcosm of how every person at the company approaches problem-solving and innovation.
Culture is a huge part of everything we do at Mappedin, even down to Friday afternoon “What would you do?” questions on Slack.
