Business Games Part 4: Rockstar
February 7, 2007 | Filed Under Fun, business games | 2 Comments
- No mom!
Do you want to be a rockstar?
Practice, write songs, tour, have your mother and grandma offer you class A drugs. Oh yes, this game really lets you explore the reality of life in the pop business. Rockstar was created by Wizard Games of Scotland and released in 1989. It gives you the opportunity to try to make it in the rock and roll business.
More screenshots from the game
It is not a game you choose for its graphics.
If you use too much hard drugs you risk an overdose. Luckily, you can always go to rehab. But, do you have time for a 5 week rehab when your new record is out and your management require you to go on a tour?
Oops!
A few hints and tips for the game
* The game provides sound through the PC speaker. It can become very distracting after a while. Use F9 to turn sound off.
* As an aspiring artist your main source of income is to do gigs and tours.
* Do not tour at bigger venues than you can fill. You can actually lose money by touring when nobody shows up.
* It is not necessary to accept the first recording contract offer. It can pay off to wait for a better offer.
* Creativity and happiness are vital to produce that hit record. Creativity is correlated with drug use.. just do not overdo it!
The business games series
In this post I continued what I started. Writing about great business games I have played the last 10-15 years.
Download
Download Rockstar demo version
3 reasons why customer reps who complain about their customers are crap
July 17, 2006 | Filed Under customer service, Fun, delayed gratification | 10 Comments
I got inspired by these 5 reasons about why “The customer is always right” is wrong. I have thought about 3 reasons why customer service representatives who complain about their customers are crap.
1. You have failed to acknowledge your place in the system
Your job is to help the customer. Not to go around and think about how superior you are to them or that “if I just worked a little harder, I would not be there.” The customer is the boss, and he loves it when you are happy to understand and serve him.
2. The customer IS right
Customers would not bother to wait 50 minutes in a telephone to speak to you if they doubted they had a valid request or complaint.
3. If you can not fullfil a request, do not be a jerk, explain!
Most customers are in fact quite sophisticated and intelligent. They know you have a boss, they know you are part of a big big greedy company. I would much rather have you say:
“Unfortunelately, because of the new regulations from the top management, I am not allowed to decide if you can get your money back for the stupid bike with three wheels. I am only paid $6 an hour and even though I am a sensible and intelligent person, they would not delegate such responsibility to me. Please let me refer you to my supervisor. Can you hold on please?”
Than:
“Sorry, can’t do it. Just can’t do it. Gotta talk to my boss to do that.”
In the first example, anger and frustrations are transferred from you to the stupid company. You team up with your customer. In the second example you are just being a jerk.
Interesting blog posts about “The customer is always right”
Some common sense from Seth Godin
How hard is it to cancel AOL - The now famous customer service experience.
Excellent customer service experience delivered by American Apparel North America (but not the UK division, they do not even answer e-mails. Will blog about that another time.)
Funny look on life as a customer representative: “The customer is usually wrong”
10 pop songs about money
July 17, 2006 | Filed Under money, Fun | 1 Comment
Downloading money songs from AllofMP3 at the moment. Inspiration from Guardian’s “Readers tip us about the best songs about money.” The 10 songs listed in the article are:
1 How to Be a Millionaire ABC
2 Money (That’s What I Want) Flying Lizards
3 Funky Dollar Bill Funkadelic
4 Money Money Horace Andy
5 Bills, Bills, Bills Destiny’s Child
6 Rent Pet Shop Boys
7 You Never Give Me Your Money The Beatles
8 Free Money Patti Smith
9 Brother, Can You Spare a Dime? Bing Crosby
10 Be Thankful For What You Got William DeVaughn
Here is a challenge for the blogosphere: Can you give me a tips of a song about money where the lyrics are actually talking about the good sides of capitalism? Sadly, most popular songs about money are from those “make love, not money” type of artists.
When football became bullfighting
July 9, 2006 | Filed Under Fun | 2 Comments
Can some lipreaders please enlighten me on what did Materazzi told Zidane to provoke this?
Keep the customer satisfied?
July 6, 2006 | Filed Under Fun | 1 Comment
“Secret” acronyms written on hospital charts by doctors:
PAFO - Pissed(Drunk) And Fell Over
FLK - Funny Looking Kid
FAS - Fat and Stupid
NFH - Normal For Here
TUBE - Totally Uneccessary Breast Examination
TF BUNDY - Totally Fucked. But Unfortunelately Not Dead Yet.
Original source: “The Sick Jokes Doctors Use at Your Expense.” Article published in Daily Mail, 20th December 1997.
Have you heard any other politically uncorrect acronyms used by professionals?