fandomhigh | Entries tagged with business classes

teashopconman.livejournal.com

It was the last day of class and Hatter had absolutely no exam planned. None. Nothing. What could he possibly quiz these kids when they probably wouldn't recall it five minutes from now and would do better to experience the ins and outs of doing business while actually doing business.

"I've got no exam for you," he told them, shrugging. "I guess that means you all are oh so lucky. My final parting words are to remember that you're never too big to be fired, don't steal money unless you know you're not going to get caught -- "

He wasn't a very good man, okay?

" -- and always have a good hook. For today's class, I've brought you here to the computer lab with one purpose. Choose one of the business games here and get going. Remember what you've learned and see how well you do. Get to it. Shoo."

He waved them off and then sat down himself.

teashopconman.livejournal.com

Today's class wasn't being held in a classroom. It wasn't even being held in the school. Today's class was being held in Cafe Fina where Hatter had set the students up at a table.

"Easy day, today," he explained, standing up and grinning. "You're going to watch how I run my business."

He spread his arms wide to indicate his kingdom. "I want you to keep an eye on the staff, on me, on the salesmanship tactics that you see, the decor of the place and how it affects customers, and anything else we've learned."

He clapped his hands once. "Don't be afraid to tell me what you think either! I won't be too mad if you criticize me. I'll only give you detention." Pause. "Kidding! Enjoy!"

Current Mood: amused

teashopconman.livejournal.com

"It's almost the end of our time together," Hatter said once his small class filed in. "Almost but not quite. Did any of you go and observe businesses last week? Anything you'd like to share?"

He gave the students an opportunity to share before moving on.

"Now, moving onto one of our final lessons," he said, sighing oh so sadly. "When running a business, there'll come times when you have to might come to the end of the line. Perhaps what you were selling became a fashionably faded fad or you just didn't sell enough or your rent went up or any variety of ideas. Now, you've got to close your shop down but you want to do with dignity. You don't want to burn bridges and totally kill your chances at getting back into the game later on."

He pushed his hat back a bit. "Closing down a business means letting go of employees, selling your remaining stock, terminating various places that provide you with inventory and still trying to look good while doing so. Do you take an aggressive stance and just do all that with a rock steady hand? Do you do it softly and chance looking weak and timid? Do you do it humorously? Maybe throw a party and make it a big joke?"

He nodded to the students. "How would you close a business down?"

teashopconman.livejournal.com

Hatter was feeling a mite lazy. He'd barely done anything lately but he was still feeling lazy.

"I'm not really up to giving you all a huge, long lesson," he said, yawning and leaning back in his chair. "So, I'm going to send you out into the world of the island's business. Please visit a business on the island and find one thing you think they're doing right and one thing you think you're doing wrong. Don't be afraid to tell the business owner that either! You might be helping them!"

Or you might annoy them but did Hatter care about that? Nope.

Current Mood: groggy

teashopconman.livejournal.com

When Hatter looked out the window and couldn't see ANYTHING but fog, he knew that class just wasn't going to happen. Not now, not in an hour, not in six hours. So, time to follow along the line of canceled classes.

I CAN BARELY SEE OUTSIDE.
IF YOU'RE OUT IN THIS, YOU'RE A BRAVE IDIOT. I MEAN THAT AFFECTIONATELY.
SEE YOU NEXT WEEK.

And the door was locked.

begmetwice.livejournal.com

"Hello, darlings." Yes, their teacher today was a bit different from their usual -- for starters, she was not wearing any kind of a hat. For another, Hatter would absolutely not be able to pull off her shade of lipstick. (Though Irene would pay good money to see him try.) And for a third, this teacher was still a little wary of the Danger Shop after some things she had been told last week (be as reassuring as you want, Kitty, she was still scared) and thus class was meeting in a regular classroom today, replete with a whiteboard and just oodles and oodles of art supplies on a table at the front. "Don't worry, you're still in the right place -- Hatter was kind enough to lend me his class today."

Or they had swapped and she'd spent Tuesday lying on her couch and thinking about how much she wanted to buy her old cellie back from Mr. Gaunt. Either way.

"For those of you who I don't know already -- and hi, Ezra, he didn't say I'd get to keep you this week -- " if he was here omg not modding " -- my name's Irene Adler, and ordinarily, I teach the personal style class on Tuesdays. But I also own and manage Dite's Decadent Delights in town, and prior to that, I ran my own private business out of my home. And while Dite's is rather -- self-explanatory, and perhaps doesn't need any advertising, my former business did. And so I'm here to talk to you all about branding today."

"So, branding," Irene explained, taking a seat on an empty desk and demurely crossing her legs, "simply means to create a brand -- something recognizable that people will associate with your business. Many businesses have trademark colors, or wording, and often logos," she gestured to a handout she was circulating, "that people will naturally associate with the business without a word ever need be scrawled upon it or uttered. In my case, I had a website, an app, and a name I worked under that were all fairly synonymous -- my clients knew what they were getting when they stumbled across any of my products."

"So today, darling friends, your assignment is to create your brand. I understand that you've named your businesses, and delineated what sort of product you're selling -- create yourself a logo with what I've got here," she gestured grandly to the ~~highly moddable~~ art supplies, "and think about how people will recognize your brand. Will you create a website? An app? A call-in number? Or will you stick with print media -- flyers, adverts, the like? How will you make your presence known?"

teashopconman.livejournal.com

Had anyone ever seen Hatter in a mood like he was in today? Probably not so enjoy it. After yesterday's theft, he was angry and outraged and full of pissy energy.

"So," he said, starting immediately, "today we're going to learn about one of the crappiest things about running a business. Crime. Yes children, when you're the boss of a business, you're going to have to deal with things like theft, embezzlement, robbery, shoplifting, and many other things that will ruin your day."

Just like his day had been ruined!

"Now, the trick is dealing with that. You could install security cameras or hire security guards or you could just go with the honesty system and be so surprised when that screw you over in the end."

Ugh. Hatter made a disgusted noise.

"So, what do you do when your business is the victim of a senseless, horrible crime? Do you go vigilante? Do you go to the police? Do you do nothing? What?"

Maybe he needed some suggestions.

Current Mood: irritated

teashopconman.livejournal.com

Today's class was in a regular ole run of the mill classroom. There was a television at the front of the room so maybe that would herald what was going to be happening.

"I don't do these too often but today, you're gonna watch a movie!" He got the television started so the students could watch the movie of the day.

"Enjoy!"

Current Mood: content

teashopconman.livejournal.com

"Well, at least it's warmer today, right?" Hatter proclaimed as the students came into the Danger Shop. "While you might be suffering from other...things, we can all be nice and warm, can't we?"

Hopefully.

"Anyway, I'm not going to make this too hard a class for today," he told them. "We talked a little about staffing the other week and hiring those that are qualified but won't break the bank by being too qualified. Now, we're going to talk about firing people."

Dun dun dun.

"Yes, it's a fact of life, sometimes you have to let an employee go. Whether it be because of a poor performance, a bad fit for the job, or a myriad of other things, you, as a boss, will have to terminate employment. It can be difficult because you are dealing with another human being but you have to think of your business first and foremost. If you keep this employee, your business will suffer. Even if it's just minor at first, it will suffer in the long run so cutting the cord now is what is needed."

Hatter pushed a few buttons and got the simulation started.

"Today, you are all playing the role of the boss and you're going to fire someone. Be strong, don't cry and be confident in your business. Ready? Go."

Current Mood: awake

teashopconman.livejournal.com

Yeah, there was absolutely no way Hatter was going to teach anything when it was snowing like crazy and there was no power. If he wasn't comfortable, he knew the kids couldn't be either. Combine that with this horrible restless itch that he'd woken up, it just wasn't going to be a good day to try and be a responsible educator.

So, when (and if) the students made it in, they'd find themselves in the Danger Shop. The generator was kicking and the students would find themselves in the middle of a heated restaurant.

"It's too cold and to...other things to really work today," he told them, hands tucked into his pockets while he rocked back and forth on his heels. "Get something warm to drink, enjoy the false heat and then go do whatever you wanna do. While you're there, check out how the business is run. Look at the advertising, the decor, the staff, and the menu. See what you can pick up!"

And go!

Current Mood: cold

teashopconman.livejournal.com

It was back to the Danger Shop for class today. Hatter was at the front, as usual, looking relaxed. Once everyone had filed in, he started.

"Today, you're going to get to play boss!" he said excitedly. "Now, don't let all that power go to your head or anything. It's only temporary. Today, you're going to hire staff! When you start a business, you might be able to scrap by with one or two employees besides yourself but you'll need to grow eventually. And you'll need to be smart about hiring too. At first, you'll want to go with someone who's probably inexperienced as you'll be able to pay them less then you would someone with a lot of experience. You can move up to those types of employees."

He got the simulation started. It was a simple office environment where the students would get to chat with potential employees.

"But, you also want to be careful about hiring less experienced people because they might be a bad fit for business. They might be lazy or have criminal records or a plethora of other things. It's up to you to try and discern these things during their interview. That's what you'll be doing today. You'll be talking to prospective employees from all walks of life. You have to hire at least one of them and hope for the best! Get to work!"

And then he set the students off to their task.

Current Mood: excited

teashopconman.livejournal.com

The class was back in the Danger Shop today and Hatter was tossing his hat up into the air and letting it land on his head every so often. Anything to keep amused.

"Hello!" he boomed once everyone had filed in. "Welcome back! So, we've talked about naming and business ideas, we've talked about customer service and today, we're going to be talking about interior decoration! If you have a business, any business, you have to make your business look inviting. You can have the best idea, be the nicest person but if someone walks into your building and it's rotting and stinky and gross, they're going to walk right out. Ambiance is important. You want your decoration to match the type of business you're running but you don't want to drive anyone away."

Hatter started up the sim while you kept talking.

"For instance, if you're running a bar, you're not going to have immaculate table clothes, fine china, and goblets laying out. For an elegant dining experience, you're not going to use paper plates and plastic utensils. If you're selling clothing, you're not going to put sporting equipment all over the place. You just have to make sure you match the business idea and that you're not turning people away with your decor. It's important to keep an eye on these things. So today, you're going to design an interior for your business. Whatever business idea you have, you want to make sure you have things like wall coverings, painting, flowers, potted plants, furniture, electronics, the works. It can be garish and gaudy or sparse and utilitarian but it has to make people want to come in and stay and do business with you."

With the lecture done, he gestured to the sim. "I've set up small, two room buildings for each you. Go wild."

teashopconman.livejournal.com

Today's class was in the Danger Shop, a place that Hatter had never been but had already fallen in love with. Technology was amazing! Having this sort of thing in Wonderland would be dangerous but so, so helpful! He'd already been amusing himself with various simulations while he waited for the students to file in.

"Hello," Hatter greeted, tipping his hat at the small class. "And we're back in class once again. I enjoyed reading your various ideas about businesses and business names. Today, we're going to be getting a little more into the process of running a business. Today, you're going to deal with customers!"

The sim came to life to look very similar to Cafe Fina. It was packed with people and was loud and noisy and busy.

"Being a business owner means knowing the needs of your customers and choosing when to bend to them and when to stand strong and stick to your guns. When you're just starting out, you'll have to be make yourself visible so the customers come to trust you and know you. Once you get bigger, you can delegate duties to supervisors and managers but, at the start, it's all you. You have to show exceptional customer service skills and you have to build connections and network so they tell their friends and their friends tell their friends so your business can grow."

He grinned and gestured to the sim. "Enjoy your customers!"

Current Mood: awake

teashopconman.livejournal.com

It was time, once again, for class! Hatter was not on top of his desk this time but he did have a few giant whiteboards out around the classroom. They were a small class so he figured they'd be able to move around easily.

"Hello!" he greeted, giving them all a nod. "And welcome back to class! Today, we're going to do something light and something easy. When you start a business, it usually begins because you have an idea. Most people don't buy space, hire staff, start advertising without an idea that's driving them. So today, we're going to come up with an idea."

He gestured to the whiteboards. "These whiteboards are for two things. One, the idea of your business. Whether it be food, clothes, electronics, whatever. And the second whiteboard is for the name of your business. Can't really get anything going without a name, can you? So, I want each of you to come up to the whiteboards, write your idea and then come up with a name for your idea. Make it a good name too because a terrible name can automatically doom your business."

With that, he set the students off and leaned back to watch.

Current Mood: contemplative

teashopconman.livejournal.com

It was Hatter's first time inside the school building. It was really rather big, wasn't it? Having school inside a castle was a rather novel idea. It made things look distinguished and high brow from the outside. And, on the inside, they let someone like him teach.

Smashing.

He found his classroom easy enough and spent a few moments twirling the inferior chair before he just hopped up on the desk. Yep, that's where he was going to stand. Call it a compensation thing. Or not.

"Good, you're all here," he said once his class had filed in and taken their seats. He tipped his hat to each of them. "I'm Hatter and you've arrived in Business Sense 101. If you're here, you either have some entrepreneurial blood running through your veins or you just really like me. I can't say I find fault with either."

He grinned widely.

"In this class, we're going to explore how to start a business, how to run a business, how to staff a business, and how to make sure your business is profitable. But, it's the first day and who wants to do all that on day one? I think I just want to hear who you are and what you think is the most important part of a business. Tell me loudly. You won't get far in life or in business if you're meek and shy. We're not having that in class. In fact, I want you up on your desks when you introduce yourselves. It's mandatory."

With that, he waved a hand at the class and waited patiently.

Current Mood: chipper

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