Let’s swap stories!

CHENNAI:  Every great relationship begins with two strangers getting to know each other. They become friends, travel companions, business partners, and more when they connect. SWAP Socials with a Purpose, an event for people who enjoy reflecting on their values, feelings, and thoughts aimed to foster friendship while the participants had fun and learned more about themselves in the process. The event was organised by city-based event management company, Butter Biscuit. Before the event began, the participants’ phones were collected by the organisers so that they give their undivided attention. 

The event was split into three segments. The first segment taught us about the six flavours of emotions sweet, sour, salty, bitter, pungent, and astringent. “Sweet denotes a happy memory, sour denotes the moments we don’t regret choosing, salty states our preferences of needs over wants, bitter stands for the truth in your life, and pungent stands for your uniqueness. Astringent, is where you add or skip to share your emotions,” explained Ramalingam Natarajan, the host for the day. 

The participants had to form groups of three to five and share their experiences. And in every round, the members had to be different. This segment worked on sensing and testifying to one’s emotional balance with strangers and how one felt about oneself after lowering one’s guards and engaging in conversations. It significantly assisted in increasing one’s consciousness and letting go of feelings of loneliness.

In the second segment, the participants were split into three groups of eight to ten members each. Every group had to debate with the other teams on the unique selling propositions in their lives — of experiences that they felt were unique to them. “You can say I tried on almost 14 dresses before picking up the one I purchased. This is not something every individual does and that’s our USP,” added Ram. Based on the uniqueness of the topic, the teams were given points. This was to motivate them to engage more and demonstrate their enthusiasm for teamwork.

The last segment was about the affirmation services rendered, focussing on the fact that actions speak louder than words. Receiving a thoughtful gift or quality time might help some individuals feel loved more deeply. Giving the other person your complete attention, using kind words, and touching them were major themes. “Patting a guy on his shoulder can be understood as showing love. On the other hand, it can also be an act of service. Not all see the world in the same aspect. Every action changes with every view and every mind,” explained Ram.

All the members wrote their opinions of the many incidents in their lives. Then, each team took turns to look at other groups’ opinions and realised how unique everyone is and why we should be appreciative of ourselves. The overall intent of the event was accomplished as participants expressed what they felt without having second thoughts about themselves or worrying about judgements. “With the growth of online social networking, we don’t tend to spend quality time with our loved ones nor relay our emotions to others and we wanted to break that,” said Ram.

For upcoming events, check out Butter Biscuit on Instagram