How I Got My First Job - Part III: The Call

So where were we? Last time we met, I was still without a job. Well that was soon going to change, in about eight days to be precise. So sit back (or you can stand, no issues) and enjoy this third & final part of the series.

6^th February’ 2016
A formal attire ironed out, cab booked, documents ready and I was all set for my next encounter. I spent the previous day in learning more about the agency, its work, but most importantly, I ran a recap of all the previous interviews in my mind. While my worries had taken a short nap after I felt great things were in store for me post my last rejection, they were far from over because at the back of my mind, I knew our college fest was next week, and with mid February approaching, we were closer to the end of the placement season than its beginning. A lot was going through my mind in that two and a half hour ride from our campus in Pune to the agency’s office in Mumbai. Interspersed with thoughts of what might/might not happen, I couldn’t help but notice that I had been on more road trips in these last few days than I had been in the past couple of months (that was also going to change shortly!). All I wanted though was that I should either come back with a good news or no news at all. So either tell me those three words, “You are selected” or the rather suspenseful four words – “We need more time”, but don’t share a shortlist with my name not in it. I wanted to enjoy my ride back to Pune if nothing else.  My family didn’t know I had an interview; some of my friends were out for a mini vacation and didn’t know either.

We reached the destination. A small office, with no employees inside! It was a Saturday, an off for them. So if I do get selected, at least I will have 5 working days only, nice. After waiting for some time in the conference room, the HR representative entered and told us that the PROCESS would begin shortly!

Why did I write PROCESS in capitals? Well, that’s because she said it would be a 3 stage procedure – a group discussion, an interview and an assignment and then the final call would be taken. PHEW! A part of me was always a little apprehensive about group discussions. I always felt that GDs, with their ten-minute duration  were not the perfect yardstick to judge a candidate’s potential, just like how a #7 batsman shouldn’t be analyzed for his performance if he comes out to bat in the 48^th over only. You don’t really see his full potential. But, if there was an obstacle, you had to jump over it, that’s how races are won, that’s how I was going to take it.

Before the GD we were given an overview of the agency by the CEO himself. My interactions with companies thus far had been with the HRs, the departmental heads and so forth. So the CEO himself taking time out for the placement process was pleasantly surprising and obviously ensured a more scrutinized interview process further.

We started off with the group discussion. I was the second one to start speaking. The discussion was quite civil, I say that because if you have been in that atmosphere, you will understand how people can get heated up in the process, and it doesn’t take long before it becomes one of those noisy debate panels on a news channel. As my friend later put it, perhaps we all had been through the rigours of the placement season that we wanted each one of us to have the best shot at the opportunity, so no sentence interruptions, no pointing fingers, no “chal be chal, kuch bhi mat bol” gestures. It was like you went to see an India v/s Pakistan match expecting fireworks but you see Virat Kohli smiling & chatting with Shahid Afridi, while the over is in progress! Personally, I was satisfied with what I spoke and how much I spoke. But then again, I was almost satisfied with my first interview, very much satisfied with my second interview and we all know how that turned out.

First obstacle out of the way, next we were all set for the personal interview – with the CEO & the agency’s L&A (Learning & Analytics) head. I was the second candidate to be called (as we later deduced, we were called in order of the sequence we spoke in our GD). It went for almost half an hour. I explained why I was here, where I sought to go, what were my skills, my strengths, my weaknesses. They explained the agency’s vision & culture. A few questions from my end followed and I came out with a positive feeling, but based on recent trends, I wasn’t riding too much on how I felt. The interview got over, it was evening, we were told that based on our interactions, an assignment would be shared with us which will have to be completed in 2-3 days. The same shall be evaluated and a final decision would be made. So they said the latter of the two dialogues I wanted to hear, at least I could go back now actually enjoying the 2-3 hour drive without any burden or let down.

The task was shared with me the next day and I had to submit it in 3 days. It pertained to how would I go about strategizing the India launch of a certain global entity on the digital front. Simultaneously, we had our annual college fest during those 3 days and I had to look after the sports events. I knew I wouldn’t get much time once the fest starts, so I spent the entire day & night working on the task so that the next day I could manage the events on the field without any worries. So technically, I had 2 days to myself. By 5:00 AM on the morning of the 3^rd day, I was done with my task. I went through it once, twice, thrice to spot as many shortcomings & mistakes I could. I was happy with the work I did. At that moment, that was all that mattered. I had a good GD, a nice interview and was satisfied with the work I had put in in the assignment in the given time frame. If it still doesn’t work out for me, then so be it. So I went to bed knowing that I would have to be up again in 3 hours and head on to the field. I didn’t mail them my task just as yet, I kept a small buffer for in case I got time after the event and wanted to make a few tweaks.

The day went off smoothly. After spending nearly 12 hours on the field, I came back to my room, went through the presentation I had made once again, showed it to my roommate to see if he, being a third person could understand everything I wanted to say.

And SEND. My work was done. I shut down my laptop and headed out again. I was involved in the fest the next day as well, like most of my college mates. We all had put in a lot of effort and also this was our last event on campus. People had already booked their tickets for home the very next day. We had a month long break before our exams would commence, in the last week of March. I still hadn’t booked my tickets for home yet, you know why.

The fest went off really well. On a personal level, I was now 6 shades darker, thanks to the oh so bright sun and me being on the ground for better part of the two-day extravaganza.

I was strolling on the campus with a friend. We had just seen off a friend who was going home. It was a pleasant evening and we sat outside the hostel. We saw suitcases coming out, the lane filled with cabs, courier services happily making money. Amidst all this, I got a call on my phone – unknown number. I was getting random calls from colleges for the past few days who wanted to participate in the sports tournaments, but now the fest was over, ab kaun ho sakta tha? Wrong number?

I answered the call and it was the L&A head of the agency I had just interviewed for. A few seconds into the conversation, he said “I’ve called to give you the good news. We really liked your assignment and you have been selected for the strategist profile.” If you are wondering how I felt at that point of time, imagine yourself standing atop a mountain and hearing the echo “YOU HAVE BEEN SELECTED..” “YOU HAVE BEEN SELECTED..” “YOU HAVE BEEN SELECTED..”

He told me the HR representative was going to call me shortly with the details. I said thank you, in fact I remember saying it more than once. What else are you supposed to say when they say you’re hired? I didn’t know, this was my first time!

I kept the phone down, looked at my friend and said “I got a job!” Coincidentally, this was the same friend who shared with me her undergrad experience and told me of my possible weaknesses. So it was nice to have her as the first person to share the news with. I got a call from the HR representative shortly, discussed the pay, the joining date and other details. What was even more satisfactory was that I got a job in the profile that I wanted, and I literally earned it after a quite a bit of struggle. The “something great in store for me” was finally here. The third umpire had finally ruled in my favour.

They had also informed the placement cell of the college about the same & I got a call from the student head of the cell who was understandably very happy and relieved. She was also beginning to get slightly worried with the opportunities slowly thinning and I could feel the honest happiness & sincerity in her congratulations. She asked me to change my Whatsapp status which had been driving her a little crazy – “Waiting for News to Cheer”.

The news spread, my friends congratulated me. Those that had left, called. I was now a six shade darker guy with a twelve shade smile on my face. After it all had sunk in a little, I called home. It was a weekday and I was waiting for both my parents to come home from work so that I could share the news with them simultaneously. I called mom and she said dad hadn’t come home yet. I told her I had an important research survey to do and wanted him to answer a few questions. “So tell him to call me ASAP once he’s back.” Meanwhile, I shared the news with my sister and she was elated as well. She had been my support system in my growing up years and this thing meant a great deal for her as well. Later I got a call from dad, asked him to put the phone on speaker. Continuing with my “survey” bluff, I started off by asking “Aas pass me kuch meetha pada hai?”

And so I broke the news to my parents. They were surprised, happy, elated and puzzled all at once since I hadn’t told them about this job opportunity earlier. They were a bit saddened by the fact that the job was going to be in Mumbai and not Delhi, but for that day, at that moment, that was nothing compared to the joy of seeing their son get his first job. “Ab to ghar aa jaa... naukri mil gayi ab toh”

I will be completing six months at my job in a couple of weeks and it has been a great experience so far. I have made mistakes, I have learned from them, I have tested myself, and I have done well. Also, I have moved on from a college I-Card to a business card. 

When I was asked what quote would I like to have on the back of my card, I thought of the 21 year old me, sitting comfortably in his home in Delhi, wanting to pursue a Masters in advertising at a University in Pune. I made the choice of stepping out of my comfort zone then, and I have come a long way since. What quote would I like to have? Only one thing came to mind.

So, that’s how I got my first job. 

Hope you had as good a time reading it as I had writing it. I am overwhelmed with the response I have received from you all. Thank you, really appreciate it. Will be back soon with another experience, another story.

Until then..
Take Care :)