Huh…! I apply for an MBA/ MS and the first question I should be prepared to face is “Son! You an IT guy. What prompted you to quit your job?” I try hard despite understanding that the odds are heavily loaded against me when trying to convince the world that there is a larger interest behind my pursuit of a higher degree. And the general opinion would be that I too must be yet another of those frustrated, lifeless desultory creatures who have either slogged in office 24*7 and were denied an overseas opportunity or those who sat on bench for a lifetime. I am craving for respect. I wonder if I might just as well loose my self esteem and identity in this wilderness.At college I used to wonder what must be happening inside those magnificent glass chambers, those imposing structures flanked by greenery all around. I was envious of those bright kids who made great careers in such a short span of time, of all those kids who traveled overseas on business trips. A business trip for me was real business then and that these whiz kids must be child prodigies. I dint realize how it happened until it actually did. Providence brought me too into one of those big IT Cos. And I never was the same again. A lot has changed. I realized so many inherent features in me. In fact, I should gleefully admit in all the modesty that I am a repertoire of everything. I, for the first time, realized the thrill of cribbing and complaining against anybody/ anything under the sky. I became more and more creative by the day. Now I can say with confidence that I have mastered the art of sarcasm and irony. I can very easily understand the leitmotifs of my boss whenever he opens his mouth. Among other things, I also mastered the art of deriving vicarious pleasure (Self-aggrandizement rather) from my fellow’s achievements. Perhaps that’s why we say- “Success has many fathers whereas failure is often an orphan”.
Another skill that I have developed over a period of time is the art of malingering – it took me some time to realize that I was good at this special skill. And of course, not to mention, I have understood and applied the infamous 80/20 principle at my work place with great success. The nature of work is really amazing. It invariably goes to those people who respect it and to those who feel that their contributions cannot be substituted for. Then of course, I stand as a symbol of socialization as demonstrated in those little get-togethers, the team parties and those occasional so called client- sponsored grand dinners. And not to mention, boy, my spoken English is just borrowed straight from the queen Elizabeth’s palace. I don’t bother to make full sentences anymore and I tend to be so very crisp, so very pithy that everything the listener would be caught unawares as soon as I finished speaking.
As I have mentioned above, I can write satirically on anybody and we have a case in point here. I have also embraced the Gandhian idea of civil disobedience and non violent protests at my work place, detesting every move of my boss by filling up my work place with a hazaar quotes about the rude-boss. Further, I have tried to show my disobedience by deliberately being unpunctual to work, inconsequential I know, but then I derived some pleasure out of these simple acts of defiance. Therefore, the bottom-line is that whether it is about celebrating every moment of IT or about celebrating work or applying thought, I always remain a square peg in a round hole.
Written By: Pavan Kumar Vemuri, Hyderabad
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