Day 2: Rejected or Not? You Decide.

I have successfully completed Day 2 of my Rejection Therapy.... I think?

My supervisor at work let me borrow a company tablet a couple of weeks ago to see how I like it. I had told him I was thinking of buying a tablet for myself but had never owned one, so he let me borrow one that had been procured for a specific project and was no longer being used. It was understood that this was a temporary arrangement and that I'd have to return the tablet ultimately. I did ask him if I'd be able to buy it from the company if I liked it, but the agreement was that it was not a gift. :-)

Today I told him I'd like to keep the tablet, maybe even take it on vacation with me so would he let me keep it for free, indefinitely? As in, it would be mine, a gift? He laughed and kind of hemmed and hawed and then said he couldn't make any procurement decisions but that he'd ask about the rules for if I wanted to actually purchase it from the company and let me know.

I knew in advance I couldn't just keep it as a gift, and his answer to me confirmed that, but he didn't flat-out say "No." Still, in the corporate world, "No" is often expressed as some longer explanation of the circumstances, followed by an inconclusive end to the conversation, so I feel that I did indeed get a No to my request that the tablet be a gift (although I still may be able to purchase it, possibly), it was just a thinly disguised "No."

What do you think? Does that count? I did make two other attempts at being rejected today, but both fell flat. Womp womp. One of them I can probably use for tomorrow however... more on that if it pans out!

Today's lesson: If you want to hear an out and out "NO!" then either leave corporate America out of it, ask for something truly outlandish to which there can be no possible answer but an unequivocal No, or carry a Universal Translator so that when the indirect response comes, you will hear the accurate translation, No. :-)