All paid jobs degrade the mind but we blame the boss
When Aristotle spoke the golden words to those who were listening, little did he know that one fine day will come when almost all the people on this godsaken planet would use this sentence once in their lifetime at some point or the other. Most of the people in the world are in job and most of the people in the job hate the job they are doing.
"I hate my job," has become a synonym for how are you in a corporate world. Everyone uses this phrase at some point of time in their life and all for the wrong reasons.
I can totally understand a sewage cleaner uttering the words, 'I hate my job' or a puppy killer at local dog pound uttering the line is also acceptable. But how can someone who earns a lot, gets an appraisal of more than 12% (Countries GDP growth is 10%) and has not left a job for a long time utter these words?
"Why don't you leave this job?" I ask to noone in particular.
"One day I will and then these people will understand." when they do leave, no one understands. Instead there is one less stomach to feed at the office party. And they do leave but never change their job, they will simply take a new one at the competitors getting an increase of only 20K in their salary. Rest remains the same.
When we initiated a incubation center in the company, he grabbed me over coffee table.
"So what is this incubation center you were talking about?"
"If you have an idea, you can submit it in the incubation center. If the idea is really marketable, the center will provide you monetary and human resources to work on that idea." I explained, "You own the rights to the project with the company."
"But if I have an Idea why will I give it to you?" he asked, "If I have an idea I will take it and build a company out of it. I will leave this job and work on it."
"You do know that the company won't pay you any salary once you leave this job?" I asked, just food for thought, "And you will need money, resources and time to build on it. Make it marketable and then make it large?"
He looked at me straight. I could see he had not thought of all this.
"So do you have any idea?" I concluded simply.
"Not yet." he announced, "but even if I have I won't tell you. "
An office is filled with many different types of people. Some are people, others are people who do not think some are people. Some believe that the whole world is plotting against them. Others people that the whole world is plotting for them. She thought something otherwise.
"What is your performance rating?" she asked all of the sudden during the lunch time.
"Excuse me?" this is polite way of saying, none of your business.
"What is your performance rating?" she stressed again, not taking any hint, "I have received 2nd bucket. I want to know which bucket you have received?"
"Why?" another polite way of saying, mind your own business.
"Cmon, don't be like that. Tell me know, I want to know. I have worked hard the whole year, even given in extra hours by working late at night. I know you leave office at six, so I want to know how much rating you have got?"
"How can you compare someone who works slow and someone who works very fast?" I shot back. This was a rude way to shut her up. I succeeded.
There is a 80-20 rule in any office space. 80% of work is done by 20% of the office staff and since killing the remaining 80% is illegal, they are assigned with the remaining 20% of the task which they screw up 80% of the time.
Spoke one such 20% to me the other day, "You know what they should do?" he asked, "Send me onsite, give me a big pay package and let me settle in USA. I have heard you do not have to work there?"
I was busy working on something when his words alarmed me, "Didn't you have some work to do?"
"Yes but I am not in the mood." he concluded. As they say, God Save America if he lands there.
Then there are few who love to take credit for your job well done. One such person happened to become my manager (yes mistakes happen by companies). His habit was, he would take a code for review before deployment and add comment under his name over my code. What he didn't know that I knew his thing and didn't really care. But one fine day, I decided to purposely add a big exception in the code. It won't come directly in the open but would definitely come up in testing. Since his name was on top, it would be assigned back to him, leaving him no choice but to keep a straight face and pass on the code to me. Oh the fun.
After all paid jobs absorb and degrade the mind, but what if you have fun along the way?
"I hate my job," has become a synonym for how are you in a corporate world. Everyone uses this phrase at some point of time in their life and all for the wrong reasons.
I can totally understand a sewage cleaner uttering the words, 'I hate my job' or a puppy killer at local dog pound uttering the line is also acceptable. But how can someone who earns a lot, gets an appraisal of more than 12% (Countries GDP growth is 10%) and has not left a job for a long time utter these words?
"Why don't you leave this job?" I ask to noone in particular.
"One day I will and then these people will understand." when they do leave, no one understands. Instead there is one less stomach to feed at the office party. And they do leave but never change their job, they will simply take a new one at the competitors getting an increase of only 20K in their salary. Rest remains the same.
When we initiated a incubation center in the company, he grabbed me over coffee table.
"So what is this incubation center you were talking about?"
"If you have an idea, you can submit it in the incubation center. If the idea is really marketable, the center will provide you monetary and human resources to work on that idea." I explained, "You own the rights to the project with the company."
"But if I have an Idea why will I give it to you?" he asked, "If I have an idea I will take it and build a company out of it. I will leave this job and work on it."
"You do know that the company won't pay you any salary once you leave this job?" I asked, just food for thought, "And you will need money, resources and time to build on it. Make it marketable and then make it large?"
He looked at me straight. I could see he had not thought of all this.
"So do you have any idea?" I concluded simply.
"Not yet." he announced, "but even if I have I won't tell you. "
An office is filled with many different types of people. Some are people, others are people who do not think some are people. Some believe that the whole world is plotting against them. Others people that the whole world is plotting for them. She thought something otherwise.
"What is your performance rating?" she asked all of the sudden during the lunch time.
"Excuse me?" this is polite way of saying, none of your business.
"What is your performance rating?" she stressed again, not taking any hint, "I have received 2nd bucket. I want to know which bucket you have received?"
"Why?" another polite way of saying, mind your own business.
"Cmon, don't be like that. Tell me know, I want to know. I have worked hard the whole year, even given in extra hours by working late at night. I know you leave office at six, so I want to know how much rating you have got?"
"How can you compare someone who works slow and someone who works very fast?" I shot back. This was a rude way to shut her up. I succeeded.
There is a 80-20 rule in any office space. 80% of work is done by 20% of the office staff and since killing the remaining 80% is illegal, they are assigned with the remaining 20% of the task which they screw up 80% of the time.
Spoke one such 20% to me the other day, "You know what they should do?" he asked, "Send me onsite, give me a big pay package and let me settle in USA. I have heard you do not have to work there?"
I was busy working on something when his words alarmed me, "Didn't you have some work to do?"
"Yes but I am not in the mood." he concluded. As they say, God Save America if he lands there.
Then there are few who love to take credit for your job well done. One such person happened to become my manager (yes mistakes happen by companies). His habit was, he would take a code for review before deployment and add comment under his name over my code. What he didn't know that I knew his thing and didn't really care. But one fine day, I decided to purposely add a big exception in the code. It won't come directly in the open but would definitely come up in testing. Since his name was on top, it would be assigned back to him, leaving him no choice but to keep a straight face and pass on the code to me. Oh the fun.
After all paid jobs absorb and degrade the mind, but what if you have fun along the way?
Dude, u right man.. esp the 80:20 rule of offices .. so true man :)
ReplyDeleteNice read, Raavan :)
Interesting. Guess I have to agree with you. So unfortunately not scope for an argument.
ReplyDelete