A new Beginning

2009 approaches... 2008 has been very happening for me one way or the other... and I hope 2009 is just as awesome as 2008....

I wish all of u a happy new year and a rocking new year eve :)

A change in perspective

     About 2 months back, my company announced that it planned to lay off 10% of its workforce. Although this news was expected, it still was an official stamp on all the rumors already whispered in the office corridors. Now a new speculation started... who will be let go? My nightly prayers had a plea to God to make sure I wasn't in THE LIST!!! But I never understood the situation even then, I was too busy looking at it from a personal point of view. I knew I would get another job but didn't want to face the embarrassment of being laid-off. Also I haven't got a project since I joined the company 6 months back, so I hadn't got a chance to showcase my capabilities to my managers and the small opportunities that had been given, I had wasted by saying that "Why waste my brains on this!!!", which now I realised was the worst possible attitude to take.

   Then the D-day arrived. I was travelling back from hometown to Bangalore and my flight was delayed so I was late to work. When I reached office I saw that my colleagues seat was empty but his bag was there. A little time later he came with our manager and waved goodbye to me in a very sad manner and went away with our manager again. That is when I started getting an inkling of what was happening. 

    A little while later I sent out a mail to all my friends and colleagues in office and 2 ids bounced, I was shocked and reality sunk in, they had been laid off. One of those friends was in my project and was the most hard working person in our team. A little while later he came by to formally say goodbye and we went with him to see him off. I know that his lay off is a loss to the company but this won't lessen his pain at being laid off.

   After this experience, my perspective changed, I was no longer embarrassed about being laid off, I was embarrassed about being retained when someone more deserving was let go. At that point I decided that no matter how small or meaningless the work, I'll do it to the best of my ability. Before that day, If I was given an assurance that we won't lay you off, but some other employee or you can take a pay cut and no one will be laid off, I think I might have chosen the first option but now after witnessing the process first hand, no matter what the incentive, I will chose the second option.

   This experience also made respect my previous company more. The company is famous for having thousands of people on bench but not firing anyone. Before I would mock this policy as an inefficient way of running things but now I understand the policy and have a new respect for the concept of socialism.

Reality shows...Promoting regionalism????

   Reality shows... I don't know any Indian who doesn't hear about them.....or hasn't seen at least one... I am addicted to roadies and have followed Indian Idol and Nach Baliye in their first seasons. The one thing that contestants and judges cribbed about was that people only voted for contestants from their region. Maybe this is true... I don't really know the statistics. Anyway, this led to all the anchors, participants and judges pleading the audience to be impartial while voting and to vote only the deserving participants. 

All this is fine, but yesterday, My mom was watching a singing reality show I noticed that the channel was displaying the name of the singer, his district/town and his state. If the channels real want to have a fair vote, I would think they wouldn't display such information on national TV. To me the pleas for a fair vote by channels just seem hypocritical now... not that I had much belief in "realness" of reality TV before.