An Interview with Superman

After a long hiatus i am back in blogworld.. Some background info about this story. This is the true story about my interview in Software Earnings (SEI) Charlotte one year back. I gave this story printed and laminated as a gift to Superman. Thought will share the story with the world.

A long long time ago, in a place far far away called Dallas there lived an Indian kid. No no not what you are thinking, not native Indians in America, a kid from the land "India" which Mr. Columbus was searching when he stumbled upon US of A. This kid had to come to Charlotte in search of a job. This is that story and the unexpected encounter he had with Superman.

Kid comes down to Charlotte on the eve of interview with Software Earnings. Ms.Jessica from his contracting firm calls him and gives him an overview of how his day is going to be the next day. And she adds "Ohhh, you need to wear a Suit". "Wot!!!!, I don’t have a suit with me. I don’t wear suits.""Well, you need to. SEI interview will be very professional. You NEED to find a suit and wear it for tomorrow's interview.""What the hell, where am I interviewing.." the kid said to himself. "I am not sure if I want to be in an office where I am wearing suit everyday. At least I have come here, let me give it a shot."So instead of preparing for C++ questions, he ventures out into Charlotte shops in search of a suit. He finds one and goes to interview next day all dressed up.

First round was with Mr.CTO, who explained to the kid what SE is all about and how SE is making the world a better place to live for everyone. Dressed uncomfortably and having understood nothing about a product called ETS; the kid goes to round 2 where he meets his future team lead. At around 7 feet tall with a huge pony tail there he was. The kid could see S in diamond clearly. Wearing his trade mark Superman T Shirt, the kid met him for the first time. His under cover name was Zman... Zickerman... or simply Zeke.

But for the Indian kid, he was Superman ever since.......

PS : The real superman and real indian kid in SEI

Life in a box : Funda Ek : Planning & Prioritization

Disclaimer : All characters in "Life in a box" are fictional. But any resemblance to actual places, incidents, situations, persons may be intentional :-).

"I hate my work", Vini said while throwing her purse at the sofa. "Such a bad day, i didn't get a chance to take a break for even 5 minutes today. I am telling you, they are killing us."

I smiled. Its fun to imagine the role reversal that has happened in our life. My new box is cool and Vini's really hectic. I come back everyday at five, make tea for both of us and relax in front of TV watching "Everybody loves Raymond" while she struggles to come back by seven and prepare dinner for us. Atleast that is the story since i left my old box... where we never stopped working for them.

"You know what happened today", She started her day's story by sipping the tea. This is the daily routine now and i love it. Three months of life apart was really horrible. Nobody to talk once at home and she wants to give me up to date news, everyday as soon as it happens.

"I am being swamped at work. My plate is always full. There is always so much to do and worst there is no shortage of new work. I hate it, how you used to manage da, I am sick of it. I think i will quit."

I smiled. I can sense a session of fundas by Aneeshji coming up. The very ones which have helped me live my life peacefully, at least to an extend, in my old box. But let me better be sure that she needs it before i start lecturing it on her. She after all is not just another men-tee, she is my wife. The difference i have learned the hard way. None of the other men-tee's shout back when i go overboard with my fundas.

"Today i was in three production issues. And i am given more work. If i go to my manager saying i am loaded, he will say plan and prioritize. All the work doesn't have to be done now itself. Arrey, after all i have to do all the work right? I am tired, you tell me how should i handle that. How should i say NO to work? I don't want to work like this. Will i get a job in your company, I also want to relax like you do."

Well, is she meaning i have no work? Grrrrrrrrrrr... In my words i have "less" work. How less, well, i don't need to tell you folks. We are not discussing about me remember. She is in for a session today, i don't think, i can avoid it today. Vini, this is your lucky (or unlucky!!!) day. I am gonna open the doors to one of the most important lessons to survive in the box, especially when there is no shortage of work. Funda Number Ek (one) : Planning & Prioritizing.

"Vini, relax di, the situation is nothing bad, what he told is right. You just need to plan and prioritize properly. You should be able to get control of the situation which you are in."

"Oh, you also criticize me. Its all my fault right. Not that people giving us work are wrong, its all our fault." I told you right, wife is different from a regular men-tee, i am yet to fully learn that. I get carried away all the time. But sorry dear, you are gonna get the full session, i have already started. May be a lighter language might help, my brain told me.

"No i am not saying that dear, look at me. When you go to your manager, forget him, suppose i am the lead, if you come to me saying you are loaded with work, you can't take up something i have assigned you, i will ask you one question. -- WHY? "

"I know, he does the same. I just can't take it up ok. Why i should be killed with work or what? Don't smile as if i don't know anything."

"Don't get emotional da, there is no need or use for that in our profession. If you know the question WHY will be asked, don't get upset. Just have the answer to it with you. Have the data to back up WHY you can't do. Very important to bring data to the table while discussing anything. Without data, its just argument. You provide the same arguments with DATA to back it, you can see how much more of an impact it has."

"But how can i show that i can't take this work. All the other work are in different phases. I can never prove i can or cannot do this work. It is not so simple as you say."

"Well, before we close ourself saying we cannot take this work, lets analyse for a moment what are the work you have and whether you can take this work or not."

"Anhaaaaaaaa, now u r going to convince me to do it, rather than supporting me."

Did i mention about the wife factor yet??? "Not like that dear, hear me first. Have you heard about Stephen R. Covey and his book The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People."

"Nope". "In that book he describes a habit called Put First Things First. In that he describes a framework in concentrating on the long term important goals instead of doing things which appear to be urgent but are really less important. He explains it using a 2x2 matrix - using a cartesian co-ordinate system with urgent non-urgent in one axis and important non-important in another. Learn this dear, this is your holy bible for Time Management."
"QI - we don't have a choice. It has to be done. QII is the part i love. Here the tasks are not urgent yet, but they are slowing on the path to move to QI. Finishing them before reaching QI is the challenge and the trick. The success of our planning depends on it. QIII - not important not urgent. We shouldn't be doing this one unless 2 conditions - No other work :-) or you feel it is gonna be QIV pretty soon. QIV - the more no of tasks there ,the higher the level of failure in your planning. Never let a task migrate from QIII to QIV. Never be forced to do less important stuff just because it is urgent, when ideally you should spend that time focussing on long term important tasks in QII."

"This stuff looks interesting, but you didn't tell me how it will help in reducing my work. I need a magic for that. DATA as you say to back my decision to say NO."

"Patience my dear Vinikutty, Every day morning, you fill this matrix with your tasks. Ideally it should have more in QII and QIII and less in QI and QIV. Attack the tasks so that you will reach a position where your goals are long term. When every new work comes, religiously put it in this matrix. When you new task comes, you will be in a position to say, what impact it will have when you accept it. Whether it will cause some tasks to move from QII to QI or QIII to QIV or whether it will affect any QI or QIV tasks which would be deadly. That my lady love is the DATA you are looking for."

Finally i could see a small reflection of smile in her face. I could sense that she has suppressed her wife feelings to throw it at my face because she can and has accepted it as a good learning to implement it in her work.

I think this is the right time to say it, i have been waiting to say this from the time she came, let me say it before it is too late. "Honey, i am hungry :-) Can you make dinner now." Yeah fundas are over and husband aneesh is back. I watch her with a smile as she rolls her eyes in "oh my god, this guy!!!!!" expression and walks to the kitchen. I switched on the TV and Sanjaya Malakar was singing his guts out. Back to the normal life, outside the box........!!!!!!!!!

Life in a box: A normal day....

Disclaimer : All characters in "Life in a box" are fictional. But any resemblance to actual places, incidents, situations, persons may be intentional :-).

"I am going to quit the company today. This is pure torture, mentally and physically. I can’t take this anymore. I am going to quit today itself".

I smiled to myself. It was my friend Tedy cribbing in the next cubicle. This is a bad day for him at work. His manager was keeping him on his toes for on an impossible delivery. What’s new, I thought to myself, we do have the motto - "We never stop working for you".

This was the beginning of a normal day in my life in the box - my own cubicle.

.................................

I turned to my monitor - 150 new mails in the inbox. Why are people sending so many mails? Why am in all the junk mailing lists? I sorted the mails and deleted about 125 of those mails without even reading. These are no way related to me or my assignments. Still I get them, everyday, every hour. Why can’t people just the send the mails to the concerned persons alone.
"I am going mad", Tedy is yelling.
Junk mails or not, my day is much better, at least the start, I smiled again. Let me get back to work.

I have got a design meeting from 10.30 to 2 for a new initiative. Well not new, it’s been going on for 4 months. We are still in the high level architecture design stage. It should be over by another 15 days. Then all the teams have 1 month to complete the initiative. The decision is from Executive Director, so all directors and managers agreed. People like me or Tedy will slog forever to deliver this. Man I hate this. Why is this happening? May be I should also quit.
"My servers are crashing; if others can give me 2 hours without interruption i can solve it. But No, they are escalating to my director. What help will it do if Director comes and yell at me. Will he solve the problem? I still need some 2 hours to find and fix the issue. I hate this..!! I am quitting for sure".
I smiled again, yes surely a much better day for me.

I looked back at my inbox. Well there is a mail from Jim. He used to work with us in the same project. He quit 2 weeks ago.
"Hi Aneesh,
Life is going good here in NY. Joined the new project, work is cool. Come at 8, go at 5. No tension, no pressure and certainly no mental torture like we had in Dallas. And pay is much better. Really man, you should try other options. Don’t stay in that stupid environment.
Regards,
Jim."
Tempting!! Really tempting!! I have been working here for 4 years now. Can I survive in any other environment where people do normal working hours with normal deadlines, normal budgets. I am in doubt. May be I should show Tedy this email.
"I am looking into it Raghu. I will fix this immediately."
I heard Tedy talking in the phone to the director. No. Bad idea to show him this mail now. May be later.

.................................

"How was the meeting? Why are you looking so frustrated?"
Vini asked while serving the lunch. I stay 5 minutes drive away from my box. That’s the only relief of my job.
"Horrible, they are still thinking about which systems should be impacted. Its just 1 month away from deadline and these morons are still discussing. My team will be killed in delivering this. I hate this."
Vini smiled. She is the one person who hears all the after effects of the day in the box.
"Relax, Aneesh... don’t let these things affect you this much. Let’s have lunch and discuss something else".
"Yeah, that’s good idea. Anyway my day is much better. Tedy is getting killed in office. "

.................................

"Let’s go for a coffee man. I need my caffeine to stay awake.".
Anoop was standing behind with the coffee mug. Team coffee was the only enjoyment we had here in the box. Anoop, Bini, Zameel and me walked to the coffee machine.
"Tedy, are you joining us?"
"Go ahead man, I can’t move from this chair till this issue is resolved. And Anoop please let everyone know that I am quitting from tomorrow ok? I cannot take this anymore"
"Take it easy man; here let me get a coffee for you".
"What’s up with that guy? He is yelling at phone whole day today!!" Bini excalimed.
"Poor guy, some critical issue on the delivery he made yesterday. It was an impossible deadline to begin with, but you know Tedy, he did it. But some issues and people are killing him for that."
"Anyway how was the Florida trip, Zameel?"
"It was cool man, Florida beaches are so beautiful. I will upload the photos soon. You should go there sometime"
"Yeah, i have to..."
As soon as I get out of this crazy place, I thought to myself while we were walking back.

.................................

"Yahooooooooooooooooooooo........"
Tedy was dancing in excitement. Did we come to the wrong cube? This was not the Tedy we saw when we went for coffee.
"I solved it... It was such a simple issue. Two lines of code change. Everything is fixed now. I got the appreciation from my director for this man. This is great. I love my job here. Best company to work for... Do we get such challenges else where? I live for these kinds of moments in life."
We all smiled, Tedy was back - where he belongs - the place where people like us "Never stop working".

.................................

"How was your day, Aneesh" Vini asked...
I smiled and said "A Normal Day Vini... Just another normal day".