“I’m not even sure if we would recognize each other if we passed on the street—that’s how short the interaction was. But the experience took me out of my world and helped me connect with someone else.”
Are you the “make a new best friend with the person next to you in the grocery store line” kind of person? Or the “get in and get out” shopper? I’ve taken it a step further and am the “haven’t shopped in-store in two years because I use grocery delivery” kind of person. Instacart has my heart ❤️
But, once in a blue moon, there’s something that requires me to do a little shopping around and in this case, it was my work Halloween costume. I missed the Amazon delivery time and trust me, I tried to find fake mustaches for my Charlie Swan costume (the real ones will know) that someone would deliver to my house but came up empty.
So, on October 30th, I made my way to Spirit Halloween (absolute bust) and then over to Target to see what I could find. Long story short on the fake mustache: I did not find anything and I had to draw it on with eyebrow pencil makeup. But I did leave Target with my favorite drink and an unforgettable Build Then Bless experience.
On the Hunt for a Meaningful Interaction
Every month, the company I work for gives every employee $50 to spend on other people. I’ve used it for sick neighbors, to give someone an extra big tip, to send gifts to a coworker who’s having a hard time. Basically any good thing you can think of that will help someone else, you can use this money on! It’s pretty amazing. The $50 expires on the last day of every month and doesn’t roll over, which encourages us to use it consistently.
So, back to my search for a mustache. I came up empty and decided to give up, but as I dug through my wallet to buy my soda, I saw my Build Then Bless debit card and realized my $50 was going to expire the next day. Halloween was going to be busy so I knew I needed to use it right then and there. Seeing as I don’t put myself in the “strike up a conversation with people at the grocery store” category, I was going to buy some gift cards and slip them into baby formula and diaper boxes.
But as I went to grab the gift cards, I felt like I wanted to have a real, one-on-one conversation with someone. I knew it would push me out of my comfort zone to ask a complete stranger if I could pay for their groceries but it felt like the right thing to do.
Target probably thought I was casing the place as I walked through the aisles, trying to find the right people to talk to. I turned the corner and almost bumped into this young couple with the cutest little baby. I tried my best not to act like an MLM recruiter while asking if I could pay for whatever it was they were buying, and although they were a little confused, they met me at the checkout and we got in line together.
Then This Happened …
They explained that they were buying things for a Dia De Los Muertos party because his mom had passed away a year ago. That alone made me feel like it was the right decision to spend an extra few minutes looking for the right people but what happened next was unreal.
They scanned their last item and the total came to $49.95, just five cents less than the amount on my card. And sales tax DID NOT get added. I don’t know if it was a glitch or I just didn’t see the tax get added (and I forgot to grab the receipt), but I would bet a thousand dollars that no sales tax was added to that total.
Would it have been a big deal if it were over $50? No, I would’ve paid with my personal card and been reimbursed. But there was something about seeing that $49.95 that felt so unbelievable at the time. They said thank you and we said our goodbyes and honestly, I’m not even sure if we would recognize each other if we passed on the street—that’s how short the interaction was.
But the experience took me out of my world and helped me connect with someone else. And it’s amazing that my work facilitated that! When I joined the workforce, “give me the resources to brighten someone’s day” was not on my list of benefit must-haves. It is now, and should be on yours too. Check out Build Then Bless if you want, or want your employees, to have experiences like the one I’ve shared.
