DE_CLUTTERING_INTERNSHIP
You
know what matters when it comes to shadowing someone’s work, gaining experience
and improving one’s self? It is one’s
self. All that matters is the very self of the person.
It
was a fine day, started off well with the usual “get up, it’s time” call from
my mother and getting ready so hastily, going to a nearby barber to get my
beard trimmed, coming back and dropping myself into the perfect fit of my
college formals, hurrying myself to the parking lot and then realizing there is
no or less petrol in my vehicle and then giving myself a pat for motivation,
going to the petrol dispensary and getting the bike filled with some meagre
amount I had, putting on my helmet, I drive, cutting the air, smearing the
molecules of different life and non life gases, reaching the college perfectly
before time. First achievement unlocked.
LEARNING
1 – First things first. Make yourself ready for the D Day. Panic is the worst
enemy one can face, believe me.
I
was an active GD participant right from my childhood. Though I never knew the
subject in depth, I used to manage it with my speaking and if I never knew, I
could build something up from the discussions of others for I used to let
others start in this scenario and make it in such a way, that I speak something
and close the deal. But yes, I make my points strong, very strong. My
participants, some of the best amongst the batch were all making fun of me by
praising me saying “Duvvuri, give us chance in the discussion. Let us talk the
talk” or something like that. I would be audible to the best extent possible,
which will not allow the conductor to doze off and the points I make, I would
ensure no one speaks while I make it and put forward during the discussion.
LEARNING
2 – Update with current affairs. Start speaking only in English irrespective of
what anyone is saying. Start to flaunt if you are good at something. People
speak rut, just don’t give a, you know the word. Most importantly, get your
math right! Yes, quant is your first hurdle. Get it straight, you can nail the
rest of the part.
I
could make it, and I was asked to wait for the Personal Interview (PI). I
generally listen to music at this time to make myself peaceful. I had many
people asking me not to do so, for it was inconvenient for them to see a person
in a chill session listening to some soothing Dubstep singles. I hate to listen
to the discussions that go on after each person comes out of the PI, saying, oh
my god! I screwed it. I was called in, PI done, results announced, got through,
asked me and the other who made through to report to the office on some day by
9:00 AM.
LEARNING
3 – Listening to the talks I was talking about, would make you feel more lost
but not better. The pulse rate you already have, feeling as if your heart would
come out your gullet, is enough for you to face the interview. But, yes, do
listen to the kind of questions they are asking, might help you.
We
reported to the office some 20 minutes before. The office hours started already
for we could see some buzz all around. Interestingly, there were many ladies,
already reporting to their desks and to the fields. The boss comes in,
remembers then, that we were to join that day. Busy schedule, heck of a
pressure and many such things makes a man forgetful, not his mistake though. He
is a sweet 30 something young, energetic, zealous person with many achievements
in his name and his branch’s name. The work soon started and we were given
sales people, assigned to each of us. Oh! I forgot, we were four in number, all
of us put together. The first day happened and from nowhere comparisons start.
We started asking each other, how many did you do, how many did you and so on.
We lie, at some or the other point!!!!
LEARNING
4 – Forget comparing and contrasting. This is especially because it would lead
you to the no land. You will be out of your minds. Positive, official results
put out by the company are healthy. But, do not believe in your pal completely.
You can trust him/ her, but be conscious.
I
would not want to reveal everything here for I know you are already getting
vulnerable to your anger of reading a long article. So, let me jump to two of
my greatest experiences. Not cornering anyone, I am not even trying to prove a
fact here. Your pals will always try to fool you down, point you out and make
fun of you in front of your manager, if you are the silent one. There will be
days when your peers would do a job better by misrepresenting something. You
will be stopped, compelled to if you are working in groups, if you are the
‘come let’s go another mile’ type and the others are ‘stop, we have already
traveled a mile’ type.
LEARNING
5 – Believe me; it is for your own good. The management is not a sick, lame and
a dumb one to believe in all that. All that matters is how much you really are
working towards betterment, how much you are working towards the company’s
goal. How much you have learned and started to explore new boundaries and new
dimensions. You are being CCTV’ied everywhere. Someone is observing. Who knows;
possibilities are, the sales person who is helping you to misrepresent stuff is
the one actually set by the company to look at your ethical quotient.
Towards
the end, when the final date was given, I prepared a report, sent to them, them
here is the guide I was given, the BDM of the vertical I was working for, M
PESA and the area manager I spoke about before. Both of them, absolute indeed.
But in their busy schedule, we tend to forget that pressure they would be in
and start getting real crazy. We give nice and fresh thoughts about their work
style, as if we were the bosses there. They made me go around, in and out,
extended my work schedule because I was over smart and used Google forms for
the survey for which I was asked to do it again with physical questionnaires. I
even had to interact with the general stores, literally uneducated people. I
was blamed, scolded, made fun of, not received properly and on all, criticized
severely. But, only one thing my mind body and soul “You better do it the
better and the right way”.
LEARNING
6 – You are not the honcho to make things happen, like you want them. So, get ready
for some dirty work. If it is a good work, go ask for some dirty work. It will teach you a lot. Patience is the
sutra here. Be very patient and like Skipper of the penguins of Madagascar says
“Just smile and wave boys”, throw them a smile, it will quench their ego. At
the end of the day, you got to satisfy your boss’s ego too, but, in a better
fashioned way. Not cheesing him with the effortlessly delivered words.
So,
it all zeroes down to the following most important aspects one needs to, I
repeat, needs to have or at least build by the end of the internship.
- Patience
- Endurance
- Empathy
- Cold calling techniques
- Planning ahead
- Reporting
- Smart work when needed, but hard work – always
- Communicating
- Your promise – what would you do, tell them, they would love it.
1 Make
sure you will do the above point, if you are promising them.
The
above are the very few points out of all those things a human should have
towards being a better manager. So, this is not the final check list.
I
know, some of you might already be thinking, ah, who does this all, let’s go do
it our way, with that grin. Who’s losing if you do dark arts?
Be
strong, be crazy and create freedom and DO
All
the very best.