For me, the real punch in the face was the personal presentation standards. If we hadn’t shaved or ironed our shirts, we’d be sent home to fix it, then return to work with our tail between our legs, ready to grovel to whichever manager had called us out.

Think about the best hotel you’ve stayed in, the best restaurant you’ve visited or even the best event you’ve attended.

You probably don’t remember the exact lighting level, the temperature of the room or the volume of the music. What you remember is how the place made you feel.

When somebody asks me about a great restaurant, hotel, gym or wellness space, I rarely start by talking about the product itself. I don't immediately jump to the food, the room or the equipment. Instead, I find myself talking about how easy it was to deal with them, how welcomed I felt when I arrived, or how everything seemed to flow naturally from one step to the next.

The more I've thought about it, the more I've realised that customers rarely experience products in isolation.

They experience journeys.