Corporate Lessons, and Beyond

This is my first ever blog post from my New Macbook Pro MC 700.

The fact that I bought it with little help from Dad says a lot about the transformation from College to Corporate; and the fact that it took me more than a month to find some time to sit down peacefully and write something, explains the other aspect of this transformation.

If you’ve reached this blog post with the help of my facebook status or tweet, you know I’ve been busy; if there has been another way, I’m telling you I’ve been busy; also, this ‘busy’ is an understatement.

After a good 8 months at office, I think I can now safely say that I’m working effectively, that is to say I have my own small contribution in the generation of revenue that this company earns. Maybe it is a meagre 0.01%, but I’m not jobless at job.

Lets get back to the transformation. It has not been easy, and it has not been what I thought it to be. The training during the first three months is but an extension of college. It has got nothing that feels like you belong to the employed world. You get paid for learning, and even that is not mandatory, you can always cheat and pass the qualifying tests. Nothing that feels ‘out of college and into the real world.’

The next five months have been what made me realize that I was out of the institution, finally. They brought out the differences so clearly that now I can look back and say, I’m learning on the job, and not just learning.

Let me know give you some pointers to be followed at the workplace.

  • The boss (can be any senior) is NOT a teacher / trainer
  • He expects you to spend all the nine hours at office working , no exceptions
  • Over-time is never your decision, even though it is always made to look like that
  • No excuses work. Either you work, or you don’t
  • Client is an alien species and should not be troubled unless absolutely necessary. However, if he is ‘on-site’ and sits in your office on the same floor as you, you can trouble him as much as you want. He is in your land and has to live by your rules. Moreover, he is here for work and it is your duty to provide him with some.
  • There is absolutely no place like ‘hawa mahal’ to spend some time at. However, there are ‘cafeterias’ where you can find some food that you will prefer not eating if provided with an option. Fried Rice + Manchurian and Chhole Bhathure are exceptions.
  • If there’s no South Indian in your training batch, and you’ve not made any friends out there, you should consider getting your name removed from the ‘Man is a social animal’ list.
  • When you have friends at the same company whose bosses are not one percent similar to yours, you’re labelled as the ghissu / chintu / id ka chand / 29th february of the group. Not that it changes things, but it does provide them with a reason to laugh when they do not have any work. You, ofcourse, cannot join in.
  • If you belong to the old school that says about work – “My work, my responsibility”, the point stated above will not matter much.
  • When you have a team that believes in Unity in Diversity, you know you’ve found new friends in colleagues.
  • You’e never judged by the amount of work you do; you’re judged by the amount of work everyone else does compared to you.
  • If your office is bloody two hours away from your home, you better have an iPod, or fill your phone up with all sorts of songs that you find.
  • Also, you should tell your family that they should keep your photograph and have a look at it once every day, lest they forget your face.
  • If you have a best friend that waits for you to send your career’s first ever product release so that you can go out and watch a movie with them, they deserve one whole weekday that you should take an off on.
  • If you have another best friend who is working as insanely as you, and does not live in the civilization, you ought to call them up and tell them that you’re planning to take a day off and go for the movie.
  • If you have a friend who is coming to your town and planning to stay at your place, tell them beforehand you will only be able to give them two hours of your time.
  • If you have a college friend at the same company whose voice is never lower than 120 decibels and their words are faster than their thinking process, and you happen to have lunch with them at the office cafeteria every single day, you know by now how to hide your face.
  • If you’re working and you do not even know what you’re working on, you ought not to be working.
The list is not generic, and somehow it makes it look like I’ve been having hilarious times at the office. Not that I’ve not had those moments, but just to let you know that there have also been days when I’ve spent almost 16 hours working, and have reported back to the office early next day.
On a serious note, the efforts put in and the responsibilities shared have not much to do with the numbers in the bank account. It is one’s basic nature. I am a workaholic and I like to take the onus of knowing what I’m doing, and I have no second thoughts about that. I’d rather let my work do the talking. Cliched it may sound, but that is exactly how it is. Its just that not everyone can understand or appreciate this nature. If they would, they’d know that I’m way ahead of them in terms of what I now know and can do.
Did I just snub some people off indirectly? Well, I always meant to. I never said I’m not mean 😀
2011
06/04
POSTED BY
CATEGORY
Chaos.
Work that is.
2 comments

Words…

On the threshold,
waiting for that one dream,
colorful, vibrant, full of life,
in contrast with this mere existence

It touches and vanishes,
leaving behind blurred images,
that untouched spectrum,
which lures with the beauty

Within reach, yet unreachable,
deceiving the groping fingers,
visible, yet out of vision,
playing with the eyes

The twisted path that leads to it,
the conniving maze,
the deep blue waters,
the misty haze

On the threshold,
waiting for that one dream,
colorful, vibrant, full of life,
in contrast with this mere existence

2010
11/01
POSTED BY
CATEGORY
Prose, not.
8 comments

Good was victorious. But justice?

A thought provoking discussion with @sandinmyfist and @Ipsita_Shome on twitter compelled me to write this Dussehra special post. There’s always the other side of truth, and here is what it is.

“Vijay Dashmi. The victory of good over evil. “

How many times has this one sentence been repeated? Innumerable. Every year, every person relates it with the festival, and inturn with the Ramayana.

Hindu mythology has always been at the forefront in preaching virtues such as benevolence, honesty, honor, truth and justice; and we devour the stories without questioning the essentials.

Raavana was evil and so were the Kauravas, hence punished.

But one thought here and there, and the blind faith starts shattering.

Whoever thought about the ladies back then, did a pretty nasty job.

Where was the justice for Sita? Urmila? Mandodari? Draupadi? Amba? Kunti? Where was the dignity and respect that attended the daughters and daughters-in-law of respectable royal families?

It is disheartening to realize that tales set in a patriarchal society, written by men, and for quite some time, read by men held the opposite sex in scant regard. Women were there to add glamor, or increase the reachability quotient. Though these thrived on the females’ sufferings, there was no respite for them.

P.S. The post is not intended to hurt any religious sentiments, or defame the stories mentioned above. Ramayana and Mahabharata are much revered texts and I respect them for what they are. This, however, is a personal post on the incidents I’m not comfortable with.

2010
10/18
POSTED BY
CATEGORY
Pensive-ness.
2 comments

Upside Down

Earth is round, none of the continents have a pre-defined shape, the oceans are technically not endless, the sky is blue and this is my new blog post.

A lame beginning.

The result of paranoia, or just plain boredom?

Actually, it is a combination of both.

There are times when life changes drastically, and till the time you can understand what is happening, you remain in awe of the situation.

Wondering what am I talking about? So am I!

How do I express something if I’m not sure what it exactly is?

Confusion, chaos and randomness are claiming their place at the top of the chart; and I’m going with the flow, just as suggested by almost everyone. The best part is I do not realize why am I doing whatever am I doing, because that is what makes the situation more interesting.

No, I’m not complaining / cribbing / ranting. I’m just surprised at the fast pace and the enormity of the transition.

And to top it all, I am actually enjoying life. I do things that I *have to do*, and I also do things that I *love to do*. Some people might ask whats the difference, some just know what I’m talking about. If you’re not in the second category, I’m not in a mood to explain.

The day whooshes past, night ends in a blur, and soon enough a new morning arrives. The upbeat momentum keeps me on my toes, and unlike so many others my age, I love the rush and thrill.

The moral of the post: Life does turn itself upside down, but only when you keep hanging, can you feel the wind brushing past.

P.S. I know the college series is pending and a lot of people might be disappointed after seeing this post on the blog. Sorry guys, just felt like writing something abstract.

The motivation came after somebody spread word about one of my previous posts That one thought . Needles to say, felt nice to see it being appreciated in a community so wide.

2010
10/01
POSTED BY
CATEGORY
Pensive-ness.
4 comments

College Memoirs Part III – ICE BVCOE & The Batch 2K10

As always, its been a while since I last wrote here, or rather, typed.

This post is specially dedicated to the ‘Department of Instrumentation and Control Engineering’ at Bharati Vidyapeeth’s College of Engineering, and the ‘Exclusive’ Batch of 2010.

Talking about the department, we’re proud of the exclusivity we have of being one of the only two colleges that are privileged enough to have provided this stream of engineering to its students. Yes, ICE exists only in Amity & BVCOE in IPU! A fact we’re reminded of when talking about performance – “Being on top in a batch of 120 in the university is no big deal!”, and a fact we’re asked to forget when talking about poor performance – “It shouldnt matter if the branch is only in two colleges; you ought to have been better!”

I C E – Three alphabets, which when combined together, lead to utter chaos in the BVCOE campus.

ICE? Useless!

ICE? Unmanageable!

ICE? Rude, irresponsible!

ICE? Dumb engineering students!

ICE? Troublesome!

Ah!

Such are the lavish praises bestowed upon us year-after-year, semester-after-semester, until we get used to them.

I C E – The only department to have one huge multi-purpose laboratory, and four staff-rooms!

I C E – The only department to have survived without an HOD for more than two years!

I C E – The only department to have declared the MAJOR PROJECT GUIDES 4 days before the External Viva!

I C E – The only department to call students on March 30, 2010 through a notice put up on April 10, 2010!

I C E – The only department to cast doubts on its students’ proven calibre!

I C E – The only department to have organized ‘GENESIS’!

I C E – The only department to have an ORIGINAL song dedicated to it!

I C E – The only department to have… well… forget it!

In a nutshell, Instrumentation & Control Engineering is fabulous…. ICE @ BVCOE, unfortunately, is not so much great 😐

No, I dont regret being a part of it; I just wish things could have been better.

Question – If ICE pissed me off so much, why am I still sort of patient and happy, after 4 years of continuous harassment?

Answer – Undoubtedly, ICE Batch 2K10!

I’ve been one of the few lucky ones to have had such an amazing class in college, and when I say ‘Class’, I mean the ‘Entire Class’, including even those with whom I haven’t had a chance to interact properly.

Since the day it has come into existence, ICE 2K10 has been looked upto by the  students of other departments, and looked down upon by their respective teachers; and its not just because of the presence of 20 females in the class. The jealous looks or stern scoldings, we’ve had it all; and yet, cared naught.

Be it Sourabh ‘Daddy’ Bajaj’s initiatives or Soumya’s tension filled way of working, DK’s infamous mood-swings or Karina’s dance moves, Rachna’s laughter or Garima’s arguments, Trevor’s pneumatics or Jayant’s robotics, Hash & Sid’s logics or Rana’s patient wait for the results, Bhatia’s absence or Varun’s gyan, Moksha’s marks or Seema’s attitude, Megha’s silence or Manisha’s glib talk, Govil’s MICA or Manish’s GATE, Rishika’s slow nature or Neha’s bindass attitude, Chayanika-Pramit’s li’l quarrels or Parul-Ritambhara-Jiby’s behenchara, Shalabh-Vavita’s dhoop-chhanv or Garg’s original projects, and many others with whom I might not have interacted much, but who’ve equally been instrumental in making our class as cool as it seems to be 🙂

And how can I forget the Prac Batch P1! Pramit’s devastating experiments, Sid’s scribbling on paper, Karina’s up-to-date files, Varun’s understanding of the experiment, Shalabh’s figuring out the working, random gossip, or simply my practically performing every experiment in every lab all 4 years 😛

And the vivas we’ve given together… NO Thank You to Shalabh for screwing them up for me half the time 😐

Another thing, this post will be incomplete without any mention of THE big event we all organized together.. Yup! You got it right! Its G-E-N-E-S-I-S, or Gen-Uh-Sis, as I like to call it 😛

Well now, THAT was something that made us roll up our sleeves and work as a team. Just to bring it to existence, we had to fight; and to retain the process, we had to fight; and to ‘organize’ it, we had to fight; and to talk and act sense, we had to fight; and fighting all the way, we did manage to pull it off, and decently too 🙂 I think in all the 8 semesters, it is this very festival that really brought us together as a class, as a team. No ego hassles, no hierarchy issues, everyone helping everyone, just so that we could make it happen together. And, needless to say, it was an altogether different experience in its own!

So many memories to cherish and so little words…

All I can say is that I’m much more than glad to be a part of such a wonderful group of people who have made my graduation memorable 🙂

Thank you ICE 2K10!

2010
05/05
POSTED BY
CATEGORY
Graduation that was.
People.
4 comments

College Memoirs Part II – The campus called BVCOE

I had hoped I’d be completing this series by mid of March; and here I am, putting up only the second post. Got lost in so many things that even though I wanted to write, I couldn’t. Anyways, I hope that now I’ll be regularly posting and finish up the College Memoirs, atleast before this college life ends.

Here comes the second take: The BVCOE Campus

Continue reading →

2010
03/19
POSTED BY
CATEGORY
Graduation that was.
8 comments

College Memoirs Part I – Happy? Sad? Confused!

A few years ago, I had used these lines in a Hindi Debate :

Main akela hi chala tha, janibe manzil magar,
Log saath aate gaye, karavaan ban gaya

From August 1, 2006 till date, the journey as a student belonging to the 2010 Batch of Instrumentation and Control Engineering, Bharati Vidyapeeth’s College of Engineering, has indeed been a memorable one.

With college comes independence; Free from stringent regulations of school life, our wings expand to their fullest and we soar high. (Though BVCOE is no less than a school :P) This new phase of life was highly exciting. New faces, new campus, new atmosphere, everything was just so fresh. Each day brought with it a sense of exhiliration, until, ofcourse, we realized that we were doomed. That first day is still fresh in my memory, as if it was just yesterday.

Looking back at the three years spent here, I feel a strange sense of exhiliration, coupled with relief, and a little regret. Now I realize that time has just flown away. I had intended to make the best of these 4 years; suddenly, they’re on the verge of finishing, and here I am, waiting for that something special to happen. Its a mixed feeling. At times, I’m happy for what I’ve accomplished so far; at others, I feel I could not do justice to so many things I had planned. And most of all, I cant believe that my college life is soon going to end.

All these days I have waited for my graduation to get over, and finally it IS getting over, I’m not sure if I do want it to end. Somehow, I dont remember how I coped up when school ended. Fourteen years of life devoted to a single insitution; and fourteen entrance exams, that made the transition smooth. But somehow, I dont think it’ll be that easy this time.

Why?

I wish I had an answer.

It seems like everyday when I prove that I’m a BVP student by displaying my ID to a guard, the  glass panes of A-Block labs shout at me, “Etch us in your brain, coz you wont be here this time the next year. We’ll miss you, and we know you will too.”

I guess I’ll pay heed to them for now; coz no matter how much confused I am, I’m going to leave them in a few months; and I want to remember this transition.

P.S. College has given me a lot more things to cherish than the ones stated above. Since it is difficult to mention everything in one post, I’ve planned to put this up in parts. This was Part I. How many parts more? I dont know. Depends on what I want to keep with me forever 🙂

2009
11/17
POSTED BY
CATEGORY
Graduation that was.
8 comments

That one thought…

Sometimes, in solitude, when you have nothing to do and your mind just wanders on its own, hidden thoughts creep up on the surface; thoughts buried in the subconscious, under slimy layers of the conscious, since when even you wouldn’t know; unfulfilled desires, whims and fancies, or even cherished moments that were long forgotten.

That is when stirring takes place, of your emotions, your perceptions, your beliefs, your soul, your whole being. If you remember an ugly phase, “Why did it happen?” If you find yourself blissful, “Oh man! I was so lucky! Such happiness I’ve never known!” All the introspection and retrospection transports you into another world, a world known to you, yet mysterious. And the beauty of the mystery is you cannot still fathom it. It leads you down a spiral path, twisting and turning just when you thought you had it straight. You delve deeper and deeper, trying to find a solution to the unending puzzle; yet, as always, it remains an enigma.

And then, contrary to your gradual falling in, you snap out of it, as suddenly as possible. How, or why, the reverie is broken, you do not know; but when it does, common sense takes over, the conscious once again prevails. The softness fades away, taking with it that one moment that you had just relived, and harsh reality blows into your face. Aah! How wonderful it would be to stay entranced by that memory, to keep reliving that one moment, to let the dream world linger on for a few more seconds. How soothing to keep distance from the present for a while, to let the past rise and shine. How beautiful to lose yourself in memories instead of the everyday conundrums. If only that was possible everytime you faced a hard truth, witnessed an ugly tiding, you would be relieved of the gloom. How strange, that even an unhappy memory when remembered becomes a sweet lesson, a minor passing. If only there were memories and dreams all around, life would not be so exacting, and some of the bitterness would be gone. But without sour grapes, would you ever realize the importance of sweet berries? I guess not. And that is the reason, day comes after night and black has white. If you would not live the present moment to its best, how would you create a beautiful memory, a pleasing thought.

2009
11/11
POSTED BY
CATEGORY
Abstraction.
6 comments

An Insight into Computerised Process Control

August 18, 2009, Tuesday, 09:15 AM, B – 103

What experiment are we going to perform in the lab today? When will we get to see the freshers? When can I boast of completing the entire Barron’s GRE word list? Will I score enough in my GRE? How will I fare in the final year?

These are some of the questions I have deliberately forced my mind to seek answers for, to prevent drowsiness from seeping in.

Welcome to the lecture of “Computerised Process Control”!

The Respected H O D, I C E, BVCOE, was very keen on teaching the ICE 2K10 batch before the session started. He is still keen on imparting all the knowledge he has ever gained, and it does not bother him at all that he teaches the basics of Analog Electronics, and, Linear Integrated Circuits, in the name of an ICE core subject. Apparently, he loves to drone on and on; and he loves OP-AMPs; and he loves to combine the two to deliver a highly insightful lecture.

It is definitely not the best way to start the day, I must say. The first lecture in the morning ought to energize us; and this is as ironic as it can get. Its hard enough to keep the eyes open and head upright, God forbid if I have to keep a tab on the lecture’s contents too. I might learn something about the basic circuitry of the “multi-used” Operatonal amplifiers, if I paid attention, and if his voice doesnt irritate me to death.

By the way, today we’re doing signal conditioning – filtration, using OP-AMPs ofcourse! I wonder if the end-sem CPC paper is going to ask us the schematics and configurations of the lovely Operational amplifiers.

I have serious doubts regarding our Hon’Ble HOD sir. Is he aware of the fact that he is the ICE HOD, and not an ECE Prof.? <– This is the topmost on my list, second being his deliberate consideration of misusing his authority to fail us in whatever aspect he can. Looks like he was brainwashed in his formative years against anything that was not electronics, or, irritating, or “of high standardization” as he says.

And now all of a sudden, he is smiling. Sorry. No clue about the reason whatsoever, nor does it bother anyone now. Its a regular practice for him to crack (murmur) a joke nobody notices, and smile at it for purely his own self-entertainment purposes.

And he’s also asking us to design a notch filter that could exactly block 50Hz (Uh.. Err.. looks like I have started to pay attention to him). Well anyways, he wants us to design the thing, and go about it really smug, displaying the supposedly original diagrams and circuits and logics to anyone within a radius of 0.1m. He has actually asked us to consider it as our minor project. No jumping at the easiness of the situation. He’ll just turn around and babble about something insignificant if we’re going to ask his permission for the same.

Thankfully, he has now skipped Sample & Hold Circuits; but.. uhh.. oh.. he’s now showing an interest in ADCs. Come on! Its already 09:55. dont you realize its time?

Ok.. Now that he has had a look at his watch (due to Vicky’s entrance for the next lecture.. we owe him that one), he’s planning to retreat. And, thankfully, because of my register, pen, brains and the ability to think and coordinate it with my hands to write, I’ve been able to successfully skip the major part of the torture, and utilise my intellectual energies elsewhere.

2009
09/05
POSTED BY
CATEGORY
Graduation that was.
People.
3 comments

Go Live!

“Paayaliya, paayaliya kahe ke piya ghar jaaun
Paayaliya, paayaliyaa…”

The soft melody rings in the ears, and though the beats dissolve with time, the euphony stays in the mind.
Whats better than to listen to the sounds of love in the dead of night. Complete silence, perfect harmony. This is the time when my brain is relaxed, body soothed, and thats why I prefer studying in the late hours every day. Last night, however, was different. Instead of concentrating on Barron’s, I was focussing on the irony this song represents.
Such a soulful number, from such a bold and harsh movie; and the lyrics are ironical too. Strangely, none of the leading ladies in the movie gets to go to their piya’s ghar. This is what life’s all about. Its predictable, surprising, boring, exciting, difficult, simple, all at the same time. With the conception of such idea, my thought process gained momentum, and before I could stop myself, I was penning down the jumbled words then echoing in my mind in a clean manner. Here’s what I wrote on Life last night :
————————————————————————————————-
An unfathomable mystery, an unsolved riddle, an unquenchable thirst, an endless search – Life is the only thing that has eluded man’s logical mind for centuries. It does not succumb to any reasoning the brain provides, nor does it works on the heart’s orders, thus, for once, calling it quits between the two decision makers.
Life has its own decisions and its own ways to implement them. This may point towards a unified supreme power, which undoubtedly, is looking over everyone, guiding everyone’s life. You may feel happy when you achieve your preset goal, but the knowledge that the aim was always meant to be fulfilled by you, escapes your notice. On the other hand, you may toil day and night for that one particular accolade, and suddenly life may spring up a bouncer at you, bowling you over.
Good – Bad, Beautiful – Ugly, Joy – Sorrow, Right – Wrong, Black – White, life does not know, nor does it care. It throws surprises at you, surprises that may be good or bad, beautiful or ugly, joyful or sad, right or wrong, black or white. It does not care if you are engulfed in gloom, or are enjoying radiant happiness. You are but a whit to it, something insignificant, something to be tried and tested, to be reused and recycled, to be judged and misjudged, to be convicted and acquitted, to be captured and thrown. It takes you through a roller – coaster ride, bumping you all the way up and down all the slides; and on the basis of your performance in the ride, it gauges you, decides upon right to live and determines the way you’ll live.
But does that mean that you should give in, succumb to its pressure and act as a defeatist?
NO, period.
Why?
Because that unified supreme power which gave life such control, bestowed upon you two of the most precious gifts in the universe – a thinking brain and a feeling heart.
Raise your head, stand up to the challenges, and defeat life, only then can YOU succeed. Make your heart feel, give voice to your conscience, make your brain think, put thoughts into actions. Dont worry if life confiscates your happiness, fight the gloom and flash a brilliant smile. No problem if you get thrown in a deeply dug pit, climb back up. Life’s kick shouldn’t scare you, rather it should make you stand on your feet again. Break the shackles life wants to arrest you into, instead extend your hands and tie it up. Dont go the way life takes you, take life the way YOU want to go. Remember, you are born to live, you are not living because you are born.
Go Live!
—————————————————————————————————
The post has been co-authored by Moksha Sharma, who helped convert a stream of erratic thoughts into a meaningful article.
2009
07/25
POSTED BY
CATEGORY
Abstraction.
5 comments
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