[oorey]

Every inmate gets a half an hour meeting with the Warden every half year. I recalled that faithful day where I had my 7th session with the Warden. It started off just like any other conversation with him asking how was I coping prison life. 2 minutes into our conversation, I could sense there was something wrong with him. After all, I was a trained psychiatrist. I decided to pry into what was wrong. The trick to getting personal information was easy. You have to follow just two rules. Repeat what the other person said and wait for your opportunity.

Me: (conversation all in Thai) Sir, I’m doing just fine here and I would like to thank you for taking care of me over the last 3 years. I thought since I’m going to be here for another 15 years, I want to ask you how can I make life meaningful throughout this period
Warden: Ngoi, you can start thinking about what you want to do after you go out of prison and maybe learn some skills over here (usual standard answer)
Me: Thank you sir. I never thought of that I could learn some skills here.
Warden: Maybe you could start a teaching business in the future. Maybe teaching others how to manage their businesses or finances since you said you have managed a business before (again, very condescending. It’s 15 years later! Who the fuck knows what is going to happen)
Me: Thank you sir. Starting a business could be a could idea (see, always repeat)
Warden: Yes, many businesses these days are failing because the owners do not know how to manage them (maybe we are onto something)
Me: Sir, are you sure many businesses are failing?
Warden: Yes. My family runs a small printing business in Bangkok. Our accountant tells us we are growing and making money but the business always do not have enough cash. Our suppliers are always chasing us (Yes! Finally!)
Me: Not enough cash? That is a real problem. Can you tell me more?

The Warden was then a 42 year-old man. He was of average height perhaps 170cm, had a small belly but was largely a fit guy. He had a rather soft character for a prison warden and had come through the ranks through sheer hard work backed by good academic records. Many would describe him as a kind man who cares for his inmates. He had strong ambitions but generally lacked the brains and character to climb further. While he was relatively young, his peers would see the Warden position as a retirement job for him.

The Warden spent the next 45 minutes (and we clearly overran) describing to me the business and the issues they were facing. Basically, it was a pure working capital management issue. Work-in-progress inventory was too high and cash conversion cycle too long. As the warden continued his problem, he started to digress into more personal issues. He loves his job as a warden but at the same time has to look after the family business – which he wasn’t managing properly. Often his salary was used to cover business expenses. Gone were the holidays which he and his wife enjoyed as bonuses were used to pay salaries of his workers. The more he said, the more I repeated. The more I repeated, the more he said. Soon, it was more than 2 hours into our session. Rapport was now built and the next step was to create trust. Unlike women, men need solutions.

Me: Sir, I am going to offer you some humble suggestions and I think it will help you turn things around in less than 3 months. If it works, we can speak more.

So I went on for 15 mins in a step-by-step proposal. Nothing spectacular. Just plain old textbook solutions.

Warden: Ngoi, thank you for offering your suggestion. I will think about it (back to his warden self)
Me: Sir, please do not say that. Thank you for giving me an opportunity to offer my suggestions. Today has been a wonderful session.