Designing Products For The Poor: The Unilever Way

If you have travelled to developing countries like Nepal, you will come across or see a series of colourful samples of sachets suspended in mini stores. If you haven't, these sachets are mini shampoos, mini detergents and mini stuffs that are cheaper and affordable for the majority of the population in Nepal.

In Nepal, according to Asian Development Bank, " 25.2% of the population lives below the national poverty line in 2010." Figures such as the above may vary according to the economic status of different countries.

For someone earning Rs. 100 per day, a bottle of shampoo that costs almost equal to his/her wage maybe be far from affordable but a sachet that costs Rs. 5-10 is definitely within his/her means.

Take an example from one of Unilever brands - Sunsilk. A bottle of sunsilk costs almost Rs. 100-150 whereas a sachet of sunsilk costs Rs. 5-10.

Growing up, my first encounter with this mini sachet was with, you guessed it right; it was with sunsilk sachets.

There may have been several think tanks involved in the profit and loss analysis before they decided to bring this product into the market. In doing so, they not only catered to the often ignored consumer groups but also made these basic necessities accessible to large masses of public.

I have no solid evidences to show that Unilever was the pioneer in this innovative and INCLUSIVE design but there are several written pieces that claim that Unilever was indeed behind offering these kind of products first in the market.

Companies can and should ensure that their services and products cater not only to the high-end or premium buyers but also the disadvantaged communities.

Designing products for the poor should hence, become a core of Corporate Social Responsibility for all companies. The bigger the company, the greater the responsilibity to ensure that everyone is included.

Unilever introduction of sachets proves that it is possible to serve these disadvantaged communities through innovative design while raking in profits at the same time. Although a preacher of non-violence, it is like killing two birds with a stone. Unilever experienced revenue gains but also enhanced its corporate image. Hence, someone like me wished to write about this.

Cheers for a successful post!

Gratitude 20: I am grateful that I have the preserverance to keep on moving.

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Killing your inner demons - The Ninja Style

How often do you talk to yourself? Yes, I mean with yourself. If you do, you are not mentally deluded. Researchers have found that talking with yourself increases one's well-being. On that note, self-talk can not always be beneficial. While you may find that talking with yourself to boost your confidence or to take that first step immensely positive; but often times you will also be your own victim of denial, bullying and negativitism.

Ever thought about taking a new step into your career or starting a new business but the voice says you are not capable of handling the risk and will ultimately fail. What about when you looked at yourself in the mirror and the voice told you that you are ugly and you should go and hide.

You are your own biggest critique and the bitter truth is that we can be pretty harsh on ourself for not fulfiling whatever is the status quo. Being aware of one's emotions and feelings is the first step in fighting against your inner battle. Become a ninja and join me in this epic battle to fight against these demons. Let's leave no stones unturned until every battle is won. Here, I have listed the top 6 weapons to win this battle. Would love to hear from you if there are other epic weapons.

1) Meditating

Meditation is a very powerful technique to overcome your inner negative emotions and energies transform them into positive ones. Like peak-hours traffic with constant flow of cars, our minds are filled with constant flow of thoughts. Meditation helps you to calm your mind and focus only on positive energies. Practice atleast 15 minutes a day to enjoy the benefits of meditation. The ideal time would be in the morning right before you begin your day. So, how do I start? There are plenty of resources available in the internet that will teach you the basics of meditation. Take the first step. Go on push yourself.

2)Running

Running is one form of exercise where you do not need any sort of special equipments and provides you plenty of benefits. All you need is a good pair of running shoes and you are ready for the battle. Running has been proven to reduce risks of several diseases, eliminate depressions and stimulate your hormones that improve your mood and well-being. Find an open space and put on those shoes and run for atleast 15 minutes a day.

3) Maintaining good relationships

Remember humans are social animals. So what does this imply? This implies that we need a social foundation in our life to live a meaningful and fulfilled life. Our family and friends can always be the social and moral support and guide us in times of our epic battle. But be sure to surround yourself with only people that exhibit positive aura. Another harsh truth is that often times your parents or your siblings or your close friends are the negative building blocks in yout battle. This is not to say they are your enemies but their negative aura prevents you from reaching your mindful and fulfiled self. Reach out to your favorites once in a while and update about them and about yourself and enjoy the benefits of connecting.

4) Writing a journal

Writing journal entries is one way to keep your emotions in check. There are times when it is difficult to identify your emotions and you are confused. Writing your thoughts as it flows helps you to recognise your inner desires and conflicts. Buy yourself any school notebooks or a fancy diary and prepare your pen to jot down your daily experience.

5) Listen to motivational speeches/talks

This is one of my favorite go-to weaponry for my battle. Whenever I feel down or I feel in need of motivation, I go to youtube and find myself a good motivation talk video. I mostly listen to Gary Vaynerchuck and I feel pumped after listening for a few minutes. Another local personality that I listen to once in a while is Peng Joon. You can always research and find motivational content videos that suits you.

6) Loving yourself

If you are reading this article, this means that you care about yourself. Yay for that. None of the above will work if you do not love yourself because you will not be willing to put in the effort to improve.  Love yourself; embrace yourself. You deserve the best in the world; nothing more, nothing less. Rock it!

Cheers for another successful post.

Karma

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How to know what's trending in social media?

This is my first infographic that I created and hopefully many more to come. I used piktochart to create this infographic and googled clip arts and logos that were used in this infographic.

Gratitude 20 : I am grateful that I have loving parents.

Cheers,
Karma

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The lunatic's paradise...

The lunatic is a day dreamer.
The lunatic is a wisher.
The lunatic is a procrastinator.
The lunatic is an avoider.
The lunatic is a dancer.

The RM 10 red clock atop the television ticks; warning that it is alive. It's 10.10pm. It's time to sleep.
Let's watch some tv before sleeping. Press,press that remote. Changing, changing channel.

Check time. It's 10.05 pm.

It is 10.05 pm!; time to wake up darling.

I am not confused, not as confused as you may think I am.

I forgot to mention. The lunatic is a deep thinker too. (smirk!)

I was born on 25th June,1993. Therefore, I will cease to exist on 25th June, 1993. I have exactly 24 years 130 days on this earth. I will return to where I came from.

Where did I come from? This atleast solves the chicken and the egg problem - What came first the chicken or the egg?

The only thing that is certain in life is your birth and your death.

What is uncertain remains uncertain whether the clock ticks forward or backward?

Should I be looking forward or backward for my life? What should I expect? Expect death.

The autumn becomes summer, summer becomes winter and my clothes get smaller and smaller.

My parents get younger and younger. How fortunate of me to witness this miracle? (Giggle!).

I have no longer butteflies for my crush. My awareness, my selfness is fading away.

My body is unable to fulfil my demands.

I am no longer me.

The lunatic's paradise is a paradise of appreciation, paradise of consciousness.

Cheers for another successful post!
Regards,
Karma

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Perseverance- The Story of Greatness

I listen to Gary Vaynerchuck once in a while. He is the owner of Vayner media and also produces amazing video contents that are educational and inspirational. These videos are easily available in youtube. His contents are filled with obscene words but it rings very hard inside me cause you can resonate with what he says very well. Watch one of his vidoes below:-

His story to success is what particularly interestes me. His family emigrated to USA when he was three years old. His father had a shop that sold wines. He eventually realized the power of digital marketing/media and tried his hands on youtube. Following is his youtube videos from his earlier years.

Views, likes and subscription are the ulitmate currencies in youtube. His earlier videos only had 88k views and 24k subscribers whereas his later videos has 1.4m views and 913k subscribers. Well, 88k views and 24k subscribers are definitely not something that are to be taken lightly but the sheer difference between the earlier and later videos clearly stands out.

It is quite easy to start something once you know what you want to do but the most challenging part is continuing the journey when the results are often very slow and takes a long time. There is a very popular common disease these days called "Instant Gratification" meaning that we expect results very early. This is the reason why if you look at the frequency with which I have published my posts, they clearly show that I also suffer from this disease. 

I posted my first blog post "Namaste". I was filled with excitement and burning passion then which ultimately died after cold reaction. I do not know if people are reading my blog but these days I feel renewed and re-energised wanting me to continue this hustle.

I wish to be a writer who is able to produce creative contents that adds value to people's lives. I hope someday while I continue to hustle and ultimately become a successful writer, I will look upon these blog posts and reflect on my journey and know where it all started.

My friend, tell me about your hustle. Is it on?

Gratitude 19: I am grateful that I got the job that I was looking for.

Have a good day,

Regards,

Karma

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Secret Superstar

I watched a bollywood (Indian) movie called "Secret Superstar" a few days back. The production house that produced the movie is one of my favorite bollywood actors, Amir Khan. His movies are phenomenal. He stars only in a few movies each year and each of his movies are always box-office hit. Although I do not like to watch movies but I do not mind going to cinema halls to watch his movies.

"Secret Superstar"is a movie about a teenage girl who is very talented in singing and has a dream of becoming a singer. Her journey to becoming a star is unfortunately shattered when her father gets a job in Riyadh and decides to get her married. While her father is very against her singing, her mother is very supportive. The film also showcases the brutality of domestic voilence. These scenes are protrayed by the girl's father and mother. The strength and determination of the girl gives her mother courage to stand up against her abusive father. At the end of the movie, the girl is finally able to achiever her dream of becoming a celebrity singer.

Are you a secret superstar?

Movies are movies and they are not reality. While watching the movie one may feel motivated but when they walk out of that cinema hall, the reality dwans upon them. They say,"Stop being foolish. You cannot do it." There are always thousands of excuses that will go through your mind as to why you are incapable. Sometimes I think our brain is wired to prevent us from going beyond our limit. Are we scared of the impossible or are we scared of achieving the impossible? Tame this mind of yours and tell it to "Shut up" cause you know your game and your game is to go for your "Secret Superstar".

So I will ask you again. Are you a secret superstar?

Gratitude 18: I am grateful for the food I eat.

P/s Here is the link to the trailer of the movie.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_yb8HORges

Cheers for another successful post!
Karma

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When was the last time you failed?

I am in Nepal after 1 long year of absence and will be here for 3 months. I wanted to do something meaningful within these 3 months and so I decided to volunteer as a teacher in an NGO in my community. 

I am currently teaching two kids who are very weak in their studies. These are kids from disadvantaged families and come from remote parts of Nepal where you will often find poor facilities as well as lackadaisical human resources.

While teaching I always encourage the kids to try and not worry about being wrong. I wonder how far is this notion tolerated in the current education system. It certainly doesn't only apply to the education system but also to our society. Do we punish others and also ourselves for any mistakes/failures?

When was the last time you made a mistake or failed? How did you deal with this?

The last time I failed was for an interview for a very coveted job position. It was something that I was desperately looking forward for. Unfortunately, I didn't clear the first stage. I was definitely sad for the first few hours after receiving the email about my failure. I thought I had delivered and presented myself very well in the interview and yet I didn't make the cut so I constantly asked myself questions about any improvements that I could make to increase my chance of success in my next interview. I used my this experience as a learning for my upcoming interview and was able to get an offer. It was exactly what I was looking for.

"Fall Seven Times, Stand Up Eight."

So I will ask you again. When was the last time you failed? 

Gratitude 17: I am grateful for the education that I have received.

P/s : Here is the link to the NGO that I am currently volunteering at
https://www.facebook.com/Manang-pre-school-free-for-disadvantage-children-1914771522128095/?hc_ref=ARRZQip0hoPF4gXgFw4ftdXmNXbkgeinkBcvldl0kVv3PfSWdlAWSJPZwQWYg-6g62Q&fref=nf

Cheers for another successful post!

Regards,
Karma

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Learn a new language if you want to change your life....

I often go to a supermarket called Giant that is very near to the vicinity where I stay. Because of economic development and geographic location, you will often find a huge influx of migrants from different parts of the world in Malaysia.

The supermarket that I often go to also has a lot of migrants working there. While I was queuing for my fruits to be wieghed, there was this particular gentleman infront of me. He was talking to the man weighing the fruits and vegetables of the customers and I overheard him saying, "If you want to change your life and have a better life, learn a new language." The man behind the scale just smirked.

Well, what are the chances that if he did learn a language, he would be able to change his situation? I believe that when you feel a need for a change from the inside and when your actions are aligned to change it, the world will align you to be able to achieve your dreams. My friend, that need of change needs to come from inside; always remember that. You can view thousands of motivational videos, listen to a lot of different social media coaches; but if you do not feel the need or are not desperate enough to achieve whatever you want or to change your situation, you will never get there.

This was a short post from me. Please expect more from me.

Cheers,
Karma

Gratitude 16: I am grateful that I am with my family after so long.

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The Next Door Neighbors

NEIGHBOR 1
I am in my kitchen preparing my dinner and lunch for tomorrow. Since I barely started working, I want to save money from my lunch expenses. The kid next door starts singing in a popular tune. I think he is not bad. After a while, I start to hum along of course to myself. These days I hardly hear him sing nor hear the blast of the pop songs from the next door. I wonder what's he been up to.

NEIGHBOR 2
It's new year. Happy new year 2017! While I was about to leave my room to celebrate the new year, my fren called me to say that there has been a change of plan. We will not be going to KLCC for the countdown but instead be spending the time at a fren's place and invited me to join them. Feeling dejected, I prepare to welcome new year with my fried nuggets and home made french fries. It's only 10 minutes to 12:00 am. I hear honks being honker-ed by an enthusiast. He doesn't plan to let anyone sleep. The clock has finally struck the new year card and the honker becomes even more enthusiastic. I feel tensed, warm and a slight chill. It's 2017 and I know I should make everyday count.

NEIGHBOR 3
It's 2pm. I can't fall asleep. My source of insomnia is from a couple arguing next doors or some floors above. They communicate in some foreign language which I cannot decipher. The argument gets more and more intense. I feel my heart pounding and I am a little terrified. Just like a switch, it cedes suddenly and I am slowly drifting to the lulaby land.

 Gratitude 15: I am thankful that I can have a fresh start with a healthy and peaceful mind and body.

Thanks for dropping by!

Leave a comment if you wanna hear more from me.

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