The Fresher Syndrome
*************Disclaimer: After/While reading this post you might feel sick, bored and other allied feelings. But I am least bothered. This is my space and I am going to pen my Brownian thoughts here.
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The seed for this post was sowed by two of my close friends. One living hundred miles apart with whom I communicate via email and another who sits just across my cubicle. I shall explain each one of the incidents one by one. First my friend who currently works in eastern part o f India mailed me saying he is all fine but has been frustrated from last night. Now, how can one be fine and frustrated at the same time? Lemme explain... “I am frustrated” part is a signal for me to interfere into his train of thoughts with a red flag and change its track. “I am fine” part is for my train of thoughts to remain intact. Got it?! When asked about his reason for frustration, here is what he said "Yesterday, an acquaintance of mine called me up. She works here in ***. She said that she wanted to meet me. We spent an hour together talking around and then when I was about to leave she said “I have got through **** B school.” I said why were u this late to say this, we met an hour ago and u should have said it right then. She replied “I wanted u to have something to think when u start walking back to ur flat." Don’t know exactly why da, but I feel that life is not moving ahead. Nothing positive is happening in the professional front."
Let me explain a little more about his woes. He hails from a small town, finished his B.Tech from a reputed college. He has a younger sister studying in college. He works (he joined as a fresher from college) in Kolkatta for a *** IT, MNC. His family is in an economic trough and he is the elder son. First problem starts here, "Should he pursue MBA or Should he support his family?" The company he is working for has a great name but pays peanuts. His visa is stuck and is not moving anywhere which annuls the possibility of onsite. To add to this there is the recession. To add some more he has no liking for the job and feels his heart lies in people management. So here is the second question, "Should he do a career switch or should he stick around till an onsite with the company?" His friend's (who I refer to as "MBA gal") remarks were like adding fuel to the already existing fire (With all due respect to her positive intentions). I believe most of the freshers have this feeling. This feeling of indecision and the stagnation that results from this indecisiveness. Though the circumstances are different, the basic problem and dilemma is the same. Especially when we see other people moving up, moving on, this feeling makes us more uneasy.
So, I got his signal and ran with the red flag. I ran as fast as I could so that I could to save his positive attitude and confidence. I knew that he will come out of it and its just matter of time he did that. Once you pull him out, any human for that matter, he will limp back. After all we are built to survive, by nature. So my main aim was for him to realise that it is a tough situation and he has been doing his best. The rest will be Magic! I mailed him all philosophical things, hoping it made some sense to him. The thing about philosophy is that little will you expect from it until you follow it in your life and see success. I firmly believe in it and go with it. This is what I told him (I believe this is true for every one of us. I believe hard work always pays. All that we need is a little patience and self confidence):
"Da! when you handle an experiment, how do you solve it? You have a look at the variables. Then you see how many are controllable and how many are not. Then you try to vary the controllable variables and try to get the result (All College students know how to manipulate to get the results... I knew that!). right? Life is the same. Every decision you take is an outcome of the experiment. Every decision that you make comes with a consequence attached to it. In this experiment of MBA you have lot many variables to adjust and combat than any of us do. In that case you are doing a tough experiment. You are taking a tough decision. So I would like to think that if it were so easy an experiment as mine or as the MBA girl's, by now you would have got through something. No wonder that it is moving slowly than how you expect it to.
Consider yourself free of every other worry that you have and preparing full swing for the exams. I am dead sure that it will be a cake walk for you. Sachin said after his century (in the one against England in Chennai recently): "I don't know exactly what I think about. I was just telling myself that I was going to watch the ball as closely as possible and keep my mind free. If your mind is free, then the rest will happen. If your mind is preoccupied, the bat flow is not going to happen. I just kept my mind free and reacted to whatever was coming at me."
So when attempting such a tough experiment, with so many worries around it tends to take time. You need to be patient. Take a path and stick to it. I know there are many factors. So take your time to choose the path. This is what we did for IES (We thought if he gets through IES he will have govt managerial job. But his heart was simply not there). we decided, based on the outcome, that the decision was not that good. But after that we never chose a path. As of now I think we are travelling without knowing the destination with limited petrol. So fix the destination. Then work towards it. Sis marriage, aunty and uncle's health, money for them... everything is there. You can not run from them. At the same time you can not just sit there and watch it. You need to take a decision. The best possible one based on what choices are available. Then you implement the decision and then you come to know if your decision was good. That is how it is in life, just like in experiment. That is how it is in corporate world or for that matter anywhere you see. No man can claim that a particular decision is the best. You only know when the outcome is seen. So dude... Get up and Get going."
The second incident shall be dealt with in the next post! Another sequel (he he he)!
***************
The seed for this post was sowed by two of my close friends. One living hundred miles apart with whom I communicate via email and another who sits just across my cubicle. I shall explain each one of the incidents one by one. First my friend who currently works in eastern part o f India mailed me saying he is all fine but has been frustrated from last night. Now, how can one be fine and frustrated at the same time? Lemme explain... “I am frustrated” part is a signal for me to interfere into his train of thoughts with a red flag and change its track. “I am fine” part is for my train of thoughts to remain intact. Got it?! When asked about his reason for frustration, here is what he said "Yesterday, an acquaintance of mine called me up. She works here in ***. She said that she wanted to meet me. We spent an hour together talking around and then when I was about to leave she said “I have got through **** B school.” I said why were u this late to say this, we met an hour ago and u should have said it right then. She replied “I wanted u to have something to think when u start walking back to ur flat." Don’t know exactly why da, but I feel that life is not moving ahead. Nothing positive is happening in the professional front."
Let me explain a little more about his woes. He hails from a small town, finished his B.Tech from a reputed college. He has a younger sister studying in college. He works (he joined as a fresher from college) in Kolkatta for a *** IT, MNC. His family is in an economic trough and he is the elder son. First problem starts here, "Should he pursue MBA or Should he support his family?" The company he is working for has a great name but pays peanuts. His visa is stuck and is not moving anywhere which annuls the possibility of onsite. To add to this there is the recession. To add some more he has no liking for the job and feels his heart lies in people management. So here is the second question, "Should he do a career switch or should he stick around till an onsite with the company?" His friend's (who I refer to as "MBA gal") remarks were like adding fuel to the already existing fire (With all due respect to her positive intentions). I believe most of the freshers have this feeling. This feeling of indecision and the stagnation that results from this indecisiveness. Though the circumstances are different, the basic problem and dilemma is the same. Especially when we see other people moving up, moving on, this feeling makes us more uneasy.
So, I got his signal and ran with the red flag. I ran as fast as I could so that I could to save his positive attitude and confidence. I knew that he will come out of it and its just matter of time he did that. Once you pull him out, any human for that matter, he will limp back. After all we are built to survive, by nature. So my main aim was for him to realise that it is a tough situation and he has been doing his best. The rest will be Magic! I mailed him all philosophical things, hoping it made some sense to him. The thing about philosophy is that little will you expect from it until you follow it in your life and see success. I firmly believe in it and go with it. This is what I told him (I believe this is true for every one of us. I believe hard work always pays. All that we need is a little patience and self confidence):
"Da! when you handle an experiment, how do you solve it? You have a look at the variables. Then you see how many are controllable and how many are not. Then you try to vary the controllable variables and try to get the result (All College students know how to manipulate to get the results... I knew that!). right? Life is the same. Every decision you take is an outcome of the experiment. Every decision that you make comes with a consequence attached to it. In this experiment of MBA you have lot many variables to adjust and combat than any of us do. In that case you are doing a tough experiment. You are taking a tough decision. So I would like to think that if it were so easy an experiment as mine or as the MBA girl's, by now you would have got through something. No wonder that it is moving slowly than how you expect it to.
Consider yourself free of every other worry that you have and preparing full swing for the exams. I am dead sure that it will be a cake walk for you. Sachin said after his century (in the one against England in Chennai recently): "I don't know exactly what I think about. I was just telling myself that I was going to watch the ball as closely as possible and keep my mind free. If your mind is free, then the rest will happen. If your mind is preoccupied, the bat flow is not going to happen. I just kept my mind free and reacted to whatever was coming at me."
So when attempting such a tough experiment, with so many worries around it tends to take time. You need to be patient. Take a path and stick to it. I know there are many factors. So take your time to choose the path. This is what we did for IES (We thought if he gets through IES he will have govt managerial job. But his heart was simply not there). we decided, based on the outcome, that the decision was not that good. But after that we never chose a path. As of now I think we are travelling without knowing the destination with limited petrol. So fix the destination. Then work towards it. Sis marriage, aunty and uncle's health, money for them... everything is there. You can not run from them. At the same time you can not just sit there and watch it. You need to take a decision. The best possible one based on what choices are available. Then you implement the decision and then you come to know if your decision was good. That is how it is in life, just like in experiment. That is how it is in corporate world or for that matter anywhere you see. No man can claim that a particular decision is the best. You only know when the outcome is seen. So dude... Get up and Get going."
The second incident shall be dealt with in the next post! Another sequel (he he he)!
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