2nd Anniversary
Since morning, i wanted to jump up and down while singing “Hakuna Matata” and probably this is why I also ended up falling down on staircase at office
On my way back to home, the reason behind my happiness just popped up in my mind (yes i was happy all day without realizing the reason, why do we always need a REASON for everything neway?
) and tun taraannnn…it feels wonderful to know it’s the 2nd Anniversary today!

and no no no I’m not going to keep my mouth shut this time like I did last time. The reason being simple, i don’t want people coming to me and/or calling me to ask who’s that lucky person in my life, whom ‘am committed to and argg a few even went on to say “hope u get engaged soon”..Arrggg arrggg…people I’m a free birdie who would love to lead the life of singleton for as long as she can and end up being a philanthropist…a friend just told me a few days ago what is it exactly called to be what I want to be
and ahem ahem as always I DIGRESS!! So, the good news is, it my 2nd JoBoVERSIRAY today!!
Yesh, I have been working as a full-time resource for exact 2 years now Alhamdulilah and despite the ups and downs, the good and not so good career choices, the hinderances in accepting a dream job offer despite it being almost there for me, I’m HAPPY, I’m SATISFIED and love being at the place I’m now a days! I believe this is all that matters at the end of the day, PEACE of MIND and not to forget a steady income
I’m glad to have worked at places, where I have not just learned a lot technically but from business and management perspectives as well. I have had and still have TLs and Managers who are a role model and tell u what….my management style is very much inspired by theirs i.e. “No Sahib culture”!
Now, before I start boasting again, I better write down a list that I feel might help other young professionals to learn something from my experience. During these two years, I have been on both sides of the table. Stop thinking about dining table, tennis table and all other such sort of tables. Be professional, I’m talking abt the Interview Table!
I have got a chance to not just take a lottt in fact A LOT of interviews but give a few as well so, the list below which btw is in no particular order includes interview table experiences as well.
1. Be flexible but don’t be let anyone walk over you.
2. Never be too rigid, exceptions can always be there in whatever you do, keep room for them.
3. Be courteous and be accessible. Be nice to ppl, help them, support them when they need it and you will very often end up getting the favor back when u need it the most.
4. One thing that one of my teachers told me and that has helped me a lot: Make friends and not foes.
5. Develop patience and tolerance (in case u don’t already have much of it). Working with say 50 people is like working with 50 minds. Each mind has it own likes/dislikes, preferences, principles etc etc and they may no necessarily be in agreement with what is inside ur upper chamber.
6. Be honest and be sincere to your profession. As I always say in urdu, “Mujhe apni kamai halal karni hoti hai” and that always requires one’s sincere efforts in everything he/she does. Trust me if u do, u’ll always get the due rewards too.
7. Keep a balance between work and home life. Both require ur quality time so avoid late sittings. U can complete all ur assigned tasks in lesser time if u stay away from personal IM chats, facebooking and random browsing during work hours.
8. The previous point doesn’t mean “all work and no play”, play to freshen up but don’t let that disturb ur schedule.
9. Dress immaculately, dressing well will give u a new energy and make u feel active…don’t take my word for it, try it out urself!
10. When u r going to take an interview PLEASE don’t forget to clip ur nails. The sight of dirt filled nails of one of the guys I got a chance to interview still haunts ![]()
11. As they always say, prepare before taking an interview but I would say prepare before giving an interview as well. Smart people seldom like to work for a dumb *** who hasn’t even given their CV a single look.
12. Be confident but don’t be over-confident, don’t try to be-little the interviewer/supervisor/customer with ur attitude.
13. Learn the tricks of negotiating salary else u’ll curse urself later.
14. Develop a team spirit when working in a team and come out of “I” mode - read “7 Habits of highly effective people” and see what WIN-WIN means.
15. Research well before joining any organization. Gather info about the kind of work they do and the environment they have. I’m sure you’d never want to develop games when u don’t even like playing games. So, understanding the domain an organization works in IS important.
16. Be like a sponge and absorb whatever comes ur way when u start ur career and LATER too i.e. always be ready to learn new things.
17. If you plan to support your family then make sure u join a stable organization which ensures timely disbursement of salaries. No, u can’t expect any of ur interviewers to tell u that you won’t be paid on time or the company can shut down anytime, but u can always get insiders from the existing employees.
18. Start-ups offer exciting opportunities, an opportunity to quickly climb the corporate ladder getting nice titles but titles don’t matter much. It is the work that matters the MOST. So, if u plan to join any start up, first figure out what are the ideas they are working on and join only if u think u are passionate about working on those ideas else it’s better for both you and them to stay away.
19. One of the identifiers of a good organization is its management.Always try to gather info about the management before joining any company. If the management is experienced and has a good rapport, the chances of ur job experience being a good learning experience go up automatically.
20. A senior colleague once recommended, keep the ego outside the room you are working in with say 2 more people or perhaps even more and I say, in addition to that, keep the work-stress outside the place you live in with two or more people i.e. keep ego outside when u step in office and keep work stress outside when u step in home. Life will be beautiful!
..and pheww…it’s quite late now, i better go and hit the sack while u my reader listen to this
Image Credit: Susan’s blog



