The Diary Game | 20-01-2026 | You Are One Step Ahead of Your Competitors If You Can Do This
Whenever I have a design job, I try to start quite early. That's because designing can be unpredictable. You'd have the inspiration one minute and the next minute you are wondering why you didn't actually choose a less brain tasking career like painting or truck driving. To avoid disappointing my clients, I often start work at least an hour or two after receiving it.
This morning, I had to commence a job I got yesterday night. Since I couldn't work that night, I shifted it to morning.
As early as 5 AM, I was staring at a blank canvas, wondering which design element should go where. For 30 minutes, it was all about shifting and resizing shapes. But soon, everything started to make sense and I could see a light at the end of the tunnel.
My roomie couldn't make breakfast that morning—early morning lectures and all. So, I made a mental note to prepare anything edible for us before meeting the seamstress who makes my clothes.
We were scheduled to meet this afternoon to get the clothes I intended to add to my wardrobe. While waiting for her message, I decided to buy some items from a grocery store — what we call provision shop over here.
The lady in question would not even look up when I listed out the things I wished to buy. Her attention was so fixed on her phone that I excused it — maybe she has something super important that's taking up her attention at that moment.
What should have lasted for 30 seconds turned into a two-minute wait. To make matters worse, she used a not-so-pleasant tone when I requested that she changed an item given to me to something better.
I felt frustrated and upset. If there were any other stores around, nothing would have kept me for that long.
But this is why I'm writing about this experience:
I understand that dealing with a client can be difficult, but you can made it a duty to be nice to every client as an entrepreneur or service provider. This would give you an edge over several businesses sprouting around the corners.
This was the very first quality that drew me to my current hairstylist even before she made my first braids.
In a world where many people mostly care about a one-off sale, having the exceptional customer service can set you apart from your competitors. As a staunch supporter and advocate for soft skills, I've come to realise that products and designs can be copied, but the way you treat a customer and make them feel remains hard to replace.
It determines whether they'd become loyal customers, recommend you to others or run away. I still feel hurt when I think about that experience though.
Thank you for the support.
Wishing you a fruitful week ahead.