Rejection Day #10: Take A Canvas Off the Wall

This rejection challenge was likely my most favorite one. I got some press from rejection day #2 which was have a hula hoop contest with a stranger. Thanks to Malcolm for saying yes! So, I started getting calls from local news outlets. One of them was a favorite radio station, G105. I went into their studio to simply do a radio interview about Malcolm and Target. They dared me to do a challenge right there in their office. 

I had seen a really fun canvas of Taylor Swift hanging in the lobby. I asked who I'd need to ask in order to take the canvas home. They had me ask the lady who orders the canvas and she wasn't sure. So she sent me over to ask the heads of G105. He seemed a bit caught off guard by all of us bombarding into his office space. But I asked, and he said YES! I carried a 3 foot long canvas of Taylor Swift singing during an I Heart Radio fest, which is now proudly displayed on my wall at home!

Rejection Day 9: Be a Starbucks Greeter

Scottie and I went up to the counter to order and decided that would be the best time to ask if I could be a greeter outside the door and welcome people to Starbucks. She told us that it was absolutely 100% okay to do so. I suppose as long as I wasn't getting in anyone's way, it would just be a polite, kind thing to do in the south. I was a bit surprised that she didn't ask a supervisor prior to giving us the okay.

We asked for a photo later on, and explained what we were up to. I told her I was surprised that she gave me a yes. She explained that she was trying to make the customer happy, since Starbucks is about outstanding customer service.

Rejection Day #8: Tour Chickfila's Kitchen

This rejection challenge was a bit spur of the moment. Scottie and I were stopping by for a meal and then we decided that we would ask if we could get an impromptu tour of the kitchen. We both knew that you can usually get one if you sign up in advance. But, we figured no harm in asking if they'd let us have one on the spot.

I had spoken to a lady earlier while we were sitting in the cafe, so I figured she'd be a good person to ask. She was super sweet and went off to speak to a supervisor. We got told no, but they said we could schedule one for the future.

Again, it wasn't a terrible no. They were simply just following their protocol, which makes sense.

Rejection Day #7: Tour a Hotel

This rejection challenge was a bit easier than we had expected. I was thinking that it would be harder to get a tour of a hotel than it ended up being. We simply went into the front desk and asked if we could get a tour. She went back and got a sweet lady who asked what were we working for. I told her about an event I'm planning in the fall, which required me to think really quick on my feet.

Overall, it felt way too easy and enjoyable to be part of the rejection challenge. But it showed me that you truly don't know unless you ask someone.

Rejection Day 6: Slide Down Fire Pole at Station

This rejection challenge was one of my favorites. I have a few friends who are firefighters so I have an idea of the layout of a fire station. I got really nervous before we went into the station but the doors were wide open so they could see me being super awkward.

Scottie and I went into to a firefighter named Chase who told us that he was new and would need to ask approval before we tried to go down the pole. He came back and told us that we couldn't do it due to liability reasons. But he offered to let us climb up the pole and then slide down. To avoid more embarrassment, we passed on that. But I asked if I could sit in the truck, and they said yes. So we got to explore the firetruck and chat with the firefighters some which was fun!

Rejection Day #5: Speak Over the Intercom

I feel off the bandwagon of sharing each day, so I'm sharing them all now!

I had always thought it would be fun to speak over an intercom. My mom lost me once at a pool and they called my name a whole lot over the intercom, which was both delightful and embarrassing. In her defense, it was a big man-make lake and it's easy to lose anyone there.

Scottie and I headed to Wal-Mart to see if they'd let us know get on the the intercom. At first, I thought maybe it was a language barrier because she wasn't fully understanding me. At one point she told me that I could potentially speak over the intercom in the dressing room area. We went over to that direction, but the woman running that area looked stressed out, so we opted not to. 

Overall, it wasn't a crushing no. And if we had worked harder at it, we could of potentially turned it into a yes.

Rejection Day 4: Decorate a Cookie Cake in The Store

I used to love baking as a child, so I wanted to be sure to include something related to sweet treats in my rejection challenge. Scottie and I headed to Harris Teeter to see if they would let me decorate my own cookie cake. When located the cookie cakes and then attempted to find someone that we could ask the question to.

I originally asked the girl in the bakery and she directed me over the cake designer, Kelly. If you watch the video you can see her and I go back and forth. I ask her if I can ice the cake myself, in which, she tells me that I need to buy the icing. So I tell her, I'd happily do that. I think we may of had a small breakdown of communication over what happened next! She puts the green icing into a box, and hands me a cake decorating bag. There isn't really a place in Harris Teeter where we could then use the icing bag and decorate the cookie cake ourselves. 
 

I would consider this a half no, half yes, since we didn't fully complete the mission at hand. But, we also didn't get a flat out no. Scottie and I came home and decorated the cake ourselves and called it a win!

Rejection Day 3

Be a Sign Spinner:

This rejection wasn't fully planned. Scottie and I were driving around looking to find a fire station (which you will see in a later rejection). We drove past a buy spinning a sign for a nearby apartment looking to rent out more rooms. We pulled over and decided that we would ask if he'd like me spin the sign.
 

We introduced ourselves to him and he told us that his name was Adam. He explains that he isn't legally allowed to train people, but he'd show me how to spin the sign! He just asked that we didn't record me spinning the sign so we cut that out of the recording. He was pretty good at spinning and says he works 6 hours shifts so it's a massive workout for his arms. He also told us that it doesn't use ties on his boards which makes it a more difficult level of spinning and when the wind hits, the board often flies in his face.

Since you didn't get to watch me spin the sign, I'll give you the 411 on it. I was really bad it! He had to show me a few times how to properly place my hands. It's a really hard job, so be sure to smile and wave when you drive past someone sign spinning as I bet it'd make their day!

I was surprised that this actually wasn't a rejection and glad that we pulled over to attempt this one!

Rejection Day 2

Rejection #2: Have A Hula Hoop Contest at Target
 

I was definitely a 5/5 on the nervous scale about doing this rejection challenge. Truthfully, I had wanted to buy the hula hoops and then be using them outside. I had figured that'd be an easier entry point to ask someone to have a hula hoop contest with me. But the whole point of doing a rejection challenge is not to make things easier, but rather to push through the hard and awkward. 

When we got to target, we went straight to finding the hula hoops, which proved harder than we thought it would be! I even debated using the call system to have someone help us, and then ask them to the hula hoop contest. But then again, that's the easier way out. 

Scottie and I circled the store a few times looking for the ideal person or employee to ask. She finally called me out all on the stalling I was doing after our fourth trip around the store. There were two different kinds of hula hoops, so I finally got up the courage to ask an employee named Malcolm, the difference between the two. I'm fairly positive that he thought I was messing with him as he told me they were simply different brands and colors.

Then I asked if he'd have a hula hoop contest with me, to which he said sure. We did a few rounds of hula hooping. He then got called to help restock something, but told us we'd be back. We waited around for about 5 minutes and then had a second round of the hula hoop contests. I thanked him for participating in my craziness and being so willing! He told me that he had such a blast, and that he would have a smile on his face for the rest of the day!
 

I'm really grateful that Target employees someone like Malcolm. He went above and beyond in customer service, and proved that you can have fun at work. There needs to be more Malcolms in the world!

Rejection Day 1:

I decided that for the first rejection challenge that I would see if someone would let me make my own smoothie. It felt a bit crazy and I was really nervous. I actually made sweet Scottie (who is onboard to film the whole thing) walk around with me outside before I got the nerve up to do it.

I had never been to smoothie King so it gave me a bit of time before having to make the ask. Although, I made it very clear up front that I had a random request. After I selected my smoothie choice, I basically blurted out that I wanted to make the smoothie. Karen, who was running the cash register, started to explain about health violations and why she couldn't let me. She truly felt bad that she had to reject me. I explained the challenge to her, and she was so sweet about the whole thing. 

At the end, she was super curious about the whole process, and wanted me to come back in and let her know how things went.
 

Overall, it was not a terrible rejection and I learned some laws about health code violations!