simple bag of prawns — and a lesson in common sense
A simple bag of prawns — and a lesson in common sense.
After work yesterday, I stopped by one of the big supermarkets.
There was a tray of fresh prawns — $36 a kilo, with a big sign saying 50% off the ticketed price.
A clear-out special.
Perfect, I thought. I’ll grab a kilo.
But when I checked the sticker on the bag, it showed $20 a kilo.
Since when is $20 half of $36?
Back I went to the counter.
The young guy smiled and said, “That’s what the machine gives me.”
I asked, “Do you know how much half of $36 is?”
He shrugged. “They’ll work it out at the checkout.”
Really? How can they, when the tag already says $20?
Then his manager wandered over, scratching his head.
Both stared at the numbers like they were code from another planet.
Finally, the duty manager arrived — calm, clear, switched on.
She looked, nodded, and said, “We’ll honour the price.”
The young bloke said, “I can’t go any lower.”
She replied, “Then do a manual override.”
And he did — reluctantly. $17 a kilo.
It wasn’t about prawns anymore. It was about principle.
Three people, three levels of management,
and not one wanted to question the machine.
When common sense gets replaced by process,
and people stop thinking for themselves…
who’s really in charge — the human or the system?
— Rodney Wilson 🦐
Food for thought — not just prawns.
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Recent Comments
8
Thanks for this. We find this more and more in our daily lives. People are getting to the point of simply not being able to think for themselves, nor beyond what the screen/machine is saying - funny, yet not.
Just to push it a little further - isn't 50% of $36? $18? lol. You got an even better bargain @ $17.
Good for you for standing by your principles, despite being pushed back by two levels of 'assistance'.
Cheers
Cherie 😊
Dishonesty is becoming common practice...
And people just take it.
Great you stood on your principles
💪🏼
That’s such a sharp little story, Rodney. Simple, but it hits deep. It’s crazy how often we see this kind of blind faith in “the system,” even when the math doesn’t add up right in front of us. You didn’t just buy prawns, you bought proof that critical thinking is slowly being outsourced to machines.
It reminds me how important it is to stay awake and to question, double-check, and trust our own reasoning. Systems should serve people, not the other way around. Common sense still matters, even in a world of scanners and scripts.
John
Hello Rodney,
I have run into a similar situation with supermarket pricing. At the register it gets more difficult have the sells price honored. The price checker comes back with the unfair/wrong price on the item.
I am beginning to think workers are trained not to think beyond the machine. 😗
Only a manager can change the price from the machine. Interesting!
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Great lesson. What are Prawns? what country or state do you live in? 🥰😇😊
Australia
They are not called "shrimps" downunder anymore Rodney?????