Friday, April 20, 2007
Small is not beautiful but worthwhile
When a lot of my almost forgotten relatives come home or call up, the only question they have for me is- So son, what do you do now?
On being told that I am doing a job now, their inquiry doesn't stop there. Even before I can complete my next breath, pop, comes the next question- Where? Never the one to hide details or lie, I spurt out the name.
Suddenly the enthusiasm on their faces turns into an expression of sympathy. If I had been asked this same question about three months back, that same face would have turned into a we-are-proud-of-you type manifestation. The truth is that two and half months back I quit my job at a very big firm for a job at a small company. The general perception when an engineering graduate does that, in these days of walk-in-and-get-a-job, is that he has lost his marbles.
In fact during the days leading up to the change-over, many of my near and dear ones and also the people who like to give free unsolicited advice, warned me against what they thought was a preposterous move. But I wasn't going to waiver. I had my reasons not to. My previous job was too uninteresting for me to spend any more time than what I had already done. I thought of it to be too detrimental to my career.
The other day mom asked me- So son, are you happy with your current job? I didn't want to give an answer without actually evaluating the situation. Am I really better off now? Am I really enjoying my present job? If the answer to even one of these questions was a 'no', than the decision to join here, in retrospect, won't be considered a wise one.
Luckily my introspection yielded a 'yes' on both the questions. I feel my decision to join was driven by certain estimations which I now feel, have proved to be nearly 90% correct. I enumerate them below-
1. When doing your first or second job, you are not expected to immediately master the field that you have got into. It is simply not possible. Also at that age very few are aware of field that they want to get into. Unlike large corporations, small organization help you to be a jack of a lot of trades and to then decide which one you want to master.
2. Working in a small firm also means that your good performances are easily brought to the notice of the top management, unlike the big companies where you are one among many and years would pass by before some of the top bosses observe your good work. Small company job also implies that you have a much larger share in the success of the company. So your actions and work speaks louder than what they would if you were one among the 50 thousand odd engineers at an Infosys or a TCS.
3. Small organizations help you deal with haphazardness and develop the processes needed to reign in order. This task though cumbersome, can teach you things that even a management degree can't. In an ICICI or a Wipro, you are put into a pre-existing system, with pre-set rules and you have to just repeatedly emulate them until you reach a stage, many years later, when you become a policy-maker. At a small enterprise you make the rules from day one.
4. For budding entrepreneurs there is no job better than the one at a fast growing SME- small medium enterprise. The things that you learn in little time about operations, marketing, sales, etc and which would have otherwise taken you ages to learn and master, at bigger companies, prove to be invaluable when you decide to start-up.
The above list is far from being complete and there could be many more pluses which I may discover later. Also it is not always necessary that the advantages of a small firm job will outweigh the advantages of a job at a larger firm. But after having experienced both of them, I can certainly lend my perspective to people struggling with which-job-to-take-up enigma.
On being told that I am doing a job now, their inquiry doesn't stop there. Even before I can complete my next breath, pop, comes the next question- Where? Never the one to hide details or lie, I spurt out the name.
Suddenly the enthusiasm on their faces turns into an expression of sympathy. If I had been asked this same question about three months back, that same face would have turned into a we-are-proud-of-you type manifestation. The truth is that two and half months back I quit my job at a very big firm for a job at a small company. The general perception when an engineering graduate does that, in these days of walk-in-and-get-a-job, is that he has lost his marbles.
In fact during the days leading up to the change-over, many of my near and dear ones and also the people who like to give free unsolicited advice, warned me against what they thought was a preposterous move. But I wasn't going to waiver. I had my reasons not to. My previous job was too uninteresting for me to spend any more time than what I had already done. I thought of it to be too detrimental to my career.
The other day mom asked me- So son, are you happy with your current job? I didn't want to give an answer without actually evaluating the situation. Am I really better off now? Am I really enjoying my present job? If the answer to even one of these questions was a 'no', than the decision to join here, in retrospect, won't be considered a wise one.
Luckily my introspection yielded a 'yes' on both the questions. I feel my decision to join was driven by certain estimations which I now feel, have proved to be nearly 90% correct. I enumerate them below-
1. When doing your first or second job, you are not expected to immediately master the field that you have got into. It is simply not possible. Also at that age very few are aware of field that they want to get into. Unlike large corporations, small organization help you to be a jack of a lot of trades and to then decide which one you want to master.
2. Working in a small firm also means that your good performances are easily brought to the notice of the top management, unlike the big companies where you are one among many and years would pass by before some of the top bosses observe your good work. Small company job also implies that you have a much larger share in the success of the company. So your actions and work speaks louder than what they would if you were one among the 50 thousand odd engineers at an Infosys or a TCS.
3. Small organizations help you deal with haphazardness and develop the processes needed to reign in order. This task though cumbersome, can teach you things that even a management degree can't. In an ICICI or a Wipro, you are put into a pre-existing system, with pre-set rules and you have to just repeatedly emulate them until you reach a stage, many years later, when you become a policy-maker. At a small enterprise you make the rules from day one.
4. For budding entrepreneurs there is no job better than the one at a fast growing SME- small medium enterprise. The things that you learn in little time about operations, marketing, sales, etc and which would have otherwise taken you ages to learn and master, at bigger companies, prove to be invaluable when you decide to start-up.
The above list is far from being complete and there could be many more pluses which I may discover later. Also it is not always necessary that the advantages of a small firm job will outweigh the advantages of a job at a larger firm. But after having experienced both of them, I can certainly lend my perspective to people struggling with which-job-to-take-up enigma.
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Work and study - not for me!
All over the world, students work, even as they study. India appears to be different.
Yes, by the time a student graduates he/ she would have worked 'somewhere'. But most would have done it as a short term thing. For 'experience', exposure to an industry or because a course requires it.
Working on a year round basis - along with studying - is not popular. Maximum agar ghar se baith kar thoda computer pe kaam hota ho, to theek hai. But flipping burgers/ serving coffee/ being a shopgirl - nah.
Of course, there are young people filling up these jobs. But they are from what we call 'lower middle class' backgrounds. They need the money, they have no choice.
The study-work linkage
The common excuse given by students is 'if we work, our studies will get affected. The fact is, most of use spend less than 2-3 weeks a year actually studying. At so many colleges, classes are held for barely 2-3 hours a day.
And yet.
It's almost like young people know yeh time dobara nahin aane wala. May as well chill out and enjoy now. Job to zindagi bhar karni hi hai.
So they'd rather sit at home... (not studying). Idly flipping through channels, scrapping strangers on orkut. Sleeping. Doing nothing.
I don't blame them - it's a valid choice. But I would like to point out that 21 or 22 years of this kind of life and then you enter work, a raw and idealistic person.
You look for work to be non-stop excitement.
A bit of prior exposure to doing just a 'job' - as opposed to a career could help take off those rose tinted glasses. There is nothing 'meaningful' about serving customers. Yet one has to do it - and preferably with a smile.
Such an experience may not add weight to one's CV in the literal sense. But it makes you a more humble, well rounded and grounded person. Which is especially important in the Indian context, where kids are often smothered by familial and parental love.
There is something to be said about the experience of working which involves plain and physical labour. As opposed to work which requires only intellectual input and mental energy. We are all for the latter, but the 'labour bit' - we'd rather leave it for the 'less educated'.
I don't expect this class divide to end anytime soon. But more undergraduates opening up to the idea of working - without being choosy about the work they do - is certainly a first step.
Yes, by the time a student graduates he/ she would have worked 'somewhere'. But most would have done it as a short term thing. For 'experience', exposure to an industry or because a course requires it.
Working on a year round basis - along with studying - is not popular. Maximum agar ghar se baith kar thoda computer pe kaam hota ho, to theek hai. But flipping burgers/ serving coffee/ being a shopgirl - nah.
Of course, there are young people filling up these jobs. But they are from what we call 'lower middle class' backgrounds. They need the money, they have no choice.
The study-work linkage
The common excuse given by students is 'if we work, our studies will get affected. The fact is, most of use spend less than 2-3 weeks a year actually studying. At so many colleges, classes are held for barely 2-3 hours a day.
And yet.
It's almost like young people know yeh time dobara nahin aane wala. May as well chill out and enjoy now. Job to zindagi bhar karni hi hai.
So they'd rather sit at home... (not studying). Idly flipping through channels, scrapping strangers on orkut. Sleeping. Doing nothing.
I don't blame them - it's a valid choice. But I would like to point out that 21 or 22 years of this kind of life and then you enter work, a raw and idealistic person.
You look for work to be non-stop excitement.
A bit of prior exposure to doing just a 'job' - as opposed to a career could help take off those rose tinted glasses. There is nothing 'meaningful' about serving customers. Yet one has to do it - and preferably with a smile.
Such an experience may not add weight to one's CV in the literal sense. But it makes you a more humble, well rounded and grounded person. Which is especially important in the Indian context, where kids are often smothered by familial and parental love.
There is something to be said about the experience of working which involves plain and physical labour. As opposed to work which requires only intellectual input and mental energy. We are all for the latter, but the 'labour bit' - we'd rather leave it for the 'less educated'.
I don't expect this class divide to end anytime soon. But more undergraduates opening up to the idea of working - without being choosy about the work they do - is certainly a first step.
Labels: summer job, work and study
Friday, April 6, 2007
Chhote chhote shehron se
... hum to jhola utha ke chale. Job dhoondne.
There is a steady trickle of young people leaving their small town homes. First, in search of education. And then, for jobs.
At the time of education, things are relatively simple. Many colleges provide a hostel facility - or there are hostel-like/ paying guest options. Students passing out almost 'hand down' such acco to incoming batches.
But what happens when you come to a city like Mumbai or Delhi, in search of a job? This can take time - a few weeks at the very least. In that case, many of you will end up staying with either a friend, or relative.
Now in India we have a long and established tradition of hospitality. Aapko rarely hi koi 'na' kahega.
However as the weeks wear by, your host may get anxious. They may get the feeling that you are expecting to stay with them - for the long term. And well, if that is what you have in mind you need to clarify - "Is it ok with you?"
Because it is one thing to be a 'guest' and another to become a part of the family. The difference between a tourist and a 'green card' holder!
Even if you are really close to the person you're staying with, it's your duty to bring up this topic and settle it. Because the host is usually uncomfortable doing so.
I would think that given the small size of homes, the busy schedules people have and/ or their need for privacy, a long-term arrangement is not a good idea for either side. Your freedom may be curbed, their way of life may get upset. So don't out stay your welcome - find alternate accomodation, or promise to as soon as you get a job.
There are any number of hostels/ PGs/ share-a-flat arrangements for folks like you. Visit once in a while, when you crave home food or just feel like hanging out with family. Or, in case of a real emergency.
Blood is thicker than water, but modern life has made us all a bit anaemic. You don't want to be seen as a leech!
There is a steady trickle of young people leaving their small town homes. First, in search of education. And then, for jobs.
At the time of education, things are relatively simple. Many colleges provide a hostel facility - or there are hostel-like/ paying guest options. Students passing out almost 'hand down' such acco to incoming batches.
But what happens when you come to a city like Mumbai or Delhi, in search of a job? This can take time - a few weeks at the very least. In that case, many of you will end up staying with either a friend, or relative.
Now in India we have a long and established tradition of hospitality. Aapko rarely hi koi 'na' kahega.
However as the weeks wear by, your host may get anxious. They may get the feeling that you are expecting to stay with them - for the long term. And well, if that is what you have in mind you need to clarify - "Is it ok with you?"
Because it is one thing to be a 'guest' and another to become a part of the family. The difference between a tourist and a 'green card' holder!
Even if you are really close to the person you're staying with, it's your duty to bring up this topic and settle it. Because the host is usually uncomfortable doing so.
I would think that given the small size of homes, the busy schedules people have and/ or their need for privacy, a long-term arrangement is not a good idea for either side. Your freedom may be curbed, their way of life may get upset. So don't out stay your welcome - find alternate accomodation, or promise to as soon as you get a job.
There are any number of hostels/ PGs/ share-a-flat arrangements for folks like you. Visit once in a while, when you crave home food or just feel like hanging out with family. Or, in case of a real emergency.
Blood is thicker than water, but modern life has made us all a bit anaemic. You don't want to be seen as a leech!
Monday, April 2, 2007
Which category do you belong to?
Neelkantan on interim thoughts writes a brilliant piece on the job v/s my passion conundrum that most people face.He believes that there are only three types of people in the world.
The first category comprises of people who don't enjoy their job but yet choose to do it because it earns them their livelihood. They pursue their passions outside their jobs or probably just give up on them completely.
The second category consists of people who genuinely love their job and are extremely passionate about it. Success at work gives them an immense sense of achievement.
People who go out of the way and quit their jobs to chase their passion belong to the third category. For them the mundane things at work are too much to bear and so they resign to convert their passions into work.
So which category do you belong to? You can read the complete post here.
The first category comprises of people who don't enjoy their job but yet choose to do it because it earns them their livelihood. They pursue their passions outside their jobs or probably just give up on them completely.
The second category consists of people who genuinely love their job and are extremely passionate about it. Success at work gives them an immense sense of achievement.
People who go out of the way and quit their jobs to chase their passion belong to the third category. For them the mundane things at work are too much to bear and so they resign to convert their passions into work.
So which category do you belong to? You can read the complete post here.
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