It was 2024, and we hit the jackpot—a week-long team-building gig in Jinja. Day one was a total breeze—the energy was high, and the clients were loving every minute of it. We were on cloud nine.
But then, the wheels started to come off the wagon.
By day two, the enthusiasm had vanished into thin air. Trying to get the staff to participate was like herding cats. Some were “stuck in meetings,” others were “nipping into town,” and some just plain didn’t care. To make matters worse, the big boss was a ghost. He was nowhere to be found.
My team was stuck between a rock and a hard place. Do we sit back, enjoy the hotel, and laugh all the way to the bank? Or do we stress ourselves out trying to fix a situation that seemed dead in the water? My gut told me we couldn’t just take the money and run. We had to deliver.
On the final day, the leader finally decided to show his face. After the session, I pulled him aside to give him a piece of my mind. But before I could even get started, he turned the tables on me.
“Sudesh,” he said, “you’re late. You should have told me this days ago, not when we’re packing our bags.”
He hit the nail on the head. I had a million excuses: he was busy until 9:00 PM, I was staying ten kilometers away, and he never checked his emails. But at the end of the day, excuses don’t pay the bills. It was a classic case of “shoulda, woulda, coulda.”
Instead of getting defensive or digging my heels in, I decided to swallow my pride. I apologized sincerely. To show I meant it, I promised to do follow-up sessions for free. I knew that in the world of business, a bad reputation spreads like wildfire, and I wasn’t about to let our name go up in flames.
It turns out, being honest and making amends was the best move we ever made. By stepping up to the plate and admitting our faults, we earned his respect. Since that “disaster” in Jinja, that same client has given us more business than ever before.
Don’t let the grass grow under your feet: If there’s a problem, shout it from the rooftops immediately.
