The first task in my first corporate job? 

Packing gift boxes! Yes you read that right but it gave a lifelong lesson.

There were four of us, newly hired – excited, motivated, and honestly over the moon because it was the first corporate job for all of us.

The first task? We were allotted the responsibility of distributing gifts to readers for the circulation scheme.
Being new (and eager to delight readers), we took permission to wrap every single gift. (Wrapping paper was cheap, unlike today) so we went all in.

The most common prize was a hand blender, and we packed around 200 boxes in one go. The room filled up with neatly wrapped parcels; we stood for hours, wrapping and grinning.

Then readers started arriving. Many tore open the box right there (when we saw it for the first time, we were shocked and sad), asked for a power socket, checked the blender, and left. Others took the boxes home – but a few returned within days because the product didn’t work.

One day, a frail 70-year-old man walked in – worn chappals, dusty clothes. He’d come from far away just to exchange a gift. It hit me hard.
All our beautiful wrapping was pointless if the product didn’t work. We were polishing the outside but missing the functionality, in turn, ruining the experience for the brand.

We stopped wrapping and started testing. We separated faulty pieces so no one had to travel back again.

That was my first real lesson in consumer insight and it didn’t come from some fancy training, it was pure observation. If you can understand your customer’s pain point, act on it, solve it, then you will create a delightful experience for them.

Observation is a superpower and trust me it isn’t limited to any one function. If you can observe, think, solve, and then execute – trust me, you’ll go far in life.