Do you know how to break rules?

 

I recently conducted my business simulation activity Rivers and Lakes with a group of entrepreneurs. It is amazing to see how creative they are not only in solving problems, but also in supporting one another, and interestingly, also in breaking rules.

As part of this learning activity, I designed a rule which forbids participants from showing a piece of information to others. It is a trick I play on them. There are ways to share and obtain this information, circumventing the rules, and it is important to do so. Most groups I have conducted this activity with do not fully grasp this. This particular group of entrepreneurs passed this test with flying colours.

To achieve success:
(1) We follow rules
(2) We understand why the rules are the way they are
(3) We break rules
(4) We make rules
(5) And we do this all over again

"In business, it doesn't pay to be honest"

 

At one recent training event, one of the activities required participants to make as much money as possible, and it was done as a closed economy. Everyone received $500 toy money at the start of the game. It was a zero sum game. During the debrief, I came to a difficult situation. I asked the participants their biggest takeaway, and more than one said, "In business, it doesn't pay to be honest". If you were the trainer, what would you do? 

Indeed in this activity, those who are desperate enough can cheat. We did have people who broke rules without getting caught, and indeed they did well. This was what I said. 

"Business is about trust. By being dishonest, you can win in this activity today, but if you lose the trust of a friend today, how many future opportunities have you lost?" 

Those who conduct business unscrupulously may well win one deal, close one transaction. But they will need to keep hunting for the next victim. Those who conduct business with integrity will build a network of trust, and this network grows and compounds.