Five things I learnt this Fall

a. There is much more to Service Design than just tools and frameworks. We’re in a world where we Servies are trying to devise an understanding of Service Design to the world and hence our contribution is really valuable.

b. The more you read, the more you want to read. Reading is addictive and it makes you hungry for more knowledge unless you’re just a useless idiot wanting to lay down all day watching Netflix.

c. It is important to share knowledge. Trust me, it’s the best feeling. Sharing what you know of and getting extra perspectives is always a plus point.

d. Never complain. There are things that will happen even though you might try your level best to stop them so don’t complain. Take the hurricane for instance.

e. Have fun in your projects and get the most of them. Ask and argue. Argue till you are convinced that it’s time to let go of the argument.

Hoping for another year filled with learnings and excitement. Stay healthy and stay happy. 

Happy Holidays!

Craving sees no time day or night

Post-lunch hunger war begins again, I am fighting with my gut and it is answering back. It’s angry again. I am praying inside, asking it to stop cursing me *Blep* (and it goes again). I cannot give anything to it; I just ate lunch- I am thinking. My thought process has changed. I am thinking deep and blurry, I realise that I want something super sweet - It’s funny that the craving increases as you think more about it. Hate it.
It’s a really hot day and a pain to head out - just to shut my gut up. I decided to rush out, in search of the sweet-god - something good enough to kill this craving. What do I have? - I look around places specially bakeries and cafes, everything looks so filling yet tempting. I am not a sweet-"loving" person plus I don’t want to spend on some ridiculously expensive “sweets” right after lunch.

Talking about experiences.
Spotted - Baked By Melissa - perfectly designed for such mini cravings at odd times of the day (Keep an ice-cream tub at hand for nights). From their ultra-mini cupcakes to the super cute macarons, the bakery is magical. They serve you with these tiny joys for as low as $1 just to strike off that sweet-tooth at moments like these. Apart from that, there are bigger versions too and party packs and gift packs and what not.

Don’t you just love the idea behind it?
Loved the concept, the store and the minis. Check out if it’s there in your city for a melt-in-mouth experience.

They look delicious, don't they?

Delivering Value through Service-based touch points

Rewind.

Giving a little sneaky peek into the past, remember when new products were booming in the market and experiences were a passion of the game changers? In the design world, change isn’t always gradual, it happens in an instant and we need to be prepared for it.

I leaped from designing products to meaningful service experiences just when I felt a void in my career choices. We no longer see innovations as unique, what’s rare here is to know whether we are designing these for the right audience, in the right way. With time, it is becoming more and more important to focus on these service-based touch points and innovations.

Having said that, we need to think laterally, we need to design for the gaps between these touch points. Mid July shenanigans - It’s a long sunny day, picture yourself standing in a long queue outside Chipotle (such a bummer, right?), what would you do while you wait to order? I already see you pulling out your phone and look through 9gag and Instagram posts (I never said you wouldn’t open FB, but let’s cut it out for now). Am I wrong when I say that these social media players have designed their offerings for such unintended gaps in the service touch points? What they offer is at your fingertips (literally!) and meant for such crisis situations.

What if, waiting in the queue was to get more interesting? Think about it. What if that very unproductive time became worth the wait (of course the food is worth the wait when you’re starving)? What if the product here is just a bundled offering to their holistic in-outlet service experience? The product is only as good as the service you back it with. Will we be willing to pay more for experiences vs what we pay for products? Worth a thought, they are offering you a service through these products as a medium and not vice-versa. This is exactly the change I am talking about. Wait for the time when you’d become so greedy for experiences, you’d reject unbundled product offerings because they will not be worth your time, money, maybe yes.

I can’t wait to see what lies ahead, while I try to visualize my future sitting on my thinking chair (JK, it’s a regular office chair).

Above: Long lines being a bummer. Mid July Shenanigans - Chipotle always makes you hungry!

I am a Designer. can I design experiences?

Sitting here, in my high-ceilinged agency office on a Tuesday Morning, sipping on some Lightly Roasted Green Mountain Coffee, I am still reminiscing the beautiful evening sky I saw last night from the Charles River, here in Boston, Massachusetts. Celebrations were planned for the July 4th. The sky lit up so gracefully, I wouldn’t have experienced it if I had decided to pass the day rolling in bed, just trying to live up to the definition of a holiday (my body still pained from the weekend’s hike in Vermont!)

I feel like I am on a permanent vacation with my thoughts. We both love being with each other, butt-stuck, almost always! Each day it wakes me up, pushing me to see something I have never seen before, never experienced before. I wonder why I never managed time to put my thoughts together - must have been the time-crunch (Thanks to SCAD!). But I must say, these 10 months in the US have been fab!

New cities, new people and new experiences have all transformed me, for the better. It made me realize that I crave for experiences! It’s the one thing that motivates me to start my day early. Be it an unplanned extended conversations with a stranger on the T-line, watching the skyline from a secret rooftop or playing with a peanut-sized turtle, every tiny encounter has been an experience for me, some things I probably just dreamt of, believed in and eventually achieved them. Those experiences, however small they might be, have made a remarkable impact on me. This constant back and forth thinking, overflowing thought processes and constant experience encounters are making me wonder, can I truly design experiences? True, I am working hard to be a Service Designer, but it all boils down to one thing, can you design experiences without experiencing a plenty yourself? Only time may tell, or wait, maybe more experiences will.

Let’s unleash those experiences together! So tell me, when was the last time you were Awed?

Oh and say Hi to Fenn!