Living literally on the other side of the globe from where I grew up tends to disconnect one from those awkward high school re-unions where folks exclaim how well they are holding up after 30 years then secretly sigh about the extra weight, wrinkles but do thank gawd the pimply days are long gone!
So while I haven’t made it to even one high school re-union I did manage to get to an ex-company gathering.
Yup – we’re suckers for punishment. Not only did we work long hours together faithfully for years, we CHOOSE to hang out one evening a year.
It seems to be a bit of a tradition in India to get together with certain groups from a certain time in a company history. In our case, it was during what was the ‘start-up’ phase under the guidance of a particular CEO.
It is always good fun and, predictably, I’m the only ‘firangi‘ who has stuck around long enough to be invited back again and again.
Conversations took various turns updating on personal and professional lives since we last met.
And as I looked around the room, I knew I owe a tremendous debt to a couple folks took a gamble more than a decade ago to hire this crazy Canadian chick who had some mad notion she could build a life and career based in India. I came armed with a few introductions but no job. The most crucial intros were through my former employer in Canada which had three joint ventures in India.
As I greeted our ex-CEO, I recalled our first meeting in his club in South Mumbai. It was my 3rd and last introduction to the joint ventures…
By that point, I felt a bit like Goldilocks and the three bears….
TOO HOT: As I was with a Canadian financial services distribution company, the initial thought was the distribution company would be the best potential fit. Met with the big wigs and it was pretty apparent very early on this was NOT gonna work.
TOO COLD: Then as the Canadian distribution company I worked with largely focused on mutual funds, the next round of meetings focused on the mutual fund company. Again… sooooooo not gonna be my new work home.
JUUUUUUST RIGHT: The last effort turned to the insurance arm. The area where I had the least knowledge and experience. I’d learned from the previous meetings, there was a universal expectation of a linear career path and ‘relevant’ education. Which is certainly not the case with me!
Tell me about your career?
Um… other than my years with the Winnipeg-based financial services company, I’ve focused on academics and along with it taught drama, worked in Universities, libraries and restaurants, ran an international conference, even set-up a late-night vegetarian cafe… (not exactly the typical stuff of banks, mutual fund and insurance companies?!)
And education? MBA…?
Um… actually I have a degree in South Asian history… my thesis is entitled “Disinheriting Daughters: Applying Hindu Laws of Inheritance to the Khoja Ismaili Community of Western India from 1827 – 1937.” (Silence… )
Miraculously, the CEO was kind enough to not immediately shut the door in my face and instead introduced me to the COO. Which lead to another meeting and then a telephone interview with the man eccentric and courageous enough to take the final gamble.
At our re-union, he reminded me humorously of our fateful telephone interview… Let’s just say he initially wasn’t really convinced. But one after the other, he came up with quite reasonable objections which I somehow satisfactorily countered. Keeping his trump card until the end…
You must understand, this is India so it may be challenging as you can only speak English….
I switched to Hindi, blathering on, little knowing at that time that HIS Hindi is… well… let’s just say not exactly his 1st or even 2nd language!
With all ‘excuses’ exhausted, the job was mine and the rest is history. So thank you Gary, Nani, Pete and most of all Nanda!
The smart guy who hired kick ass women…
When did you last time you took a chance on someone? Or was the beneficiary of a ‘break’?
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OMG… job interviews… what an ordeal…. this has brought it all back to me 😉 I’ve not had one in a decade!
Haha! It was an amusing period… thankfully haven’t gone through too many more either after this one! 😉
I was just thinking about my school before reading this and how lucky I am that they gave me a break! I couldn’t have afforded to stay in Berlin for very long without a job! Reckon we both have the gift of the gab 😉
Haha! Amazing ain’t it… talk your way into an honest to gawd real job! 🙂 Been lucky more than once and wish I had more opportunities to pass the breaks on… 😉
Wow, I am impressed! I cannot imagine moving half way around the world without a job! Thanks for stopping by my blog. I imagine you may have come from Nancy’s site?
Yup! Nancy is the common connect 🙂
I’d given myself 6 month months to get a job & settled. Found a job in less than 2 weeks but at that stage, I was attempting to have a slightly more linear career path so was aiming for financial services rather than training consulting work.
With BSLI, managed to combine the two as was hired as head of training for the third party distribution & group sales channel. Lucky indeed! 🙂
So nice to ‘meet’ you! Congrats to you on exceeding your expectations. And thanks for the follow, I look forward to keeping up with your adventures too!
Nice to ‘meet’ you too and thanks for coming along for some everyday adventures too. 🙂 Looking fwd to reading more of your ‘curvy roads’ tales too!
Job interviews are often pure evil, but once you really land THE job (mind, not A job), all the terrors of interview are forgotten.
Ah, I keep in touch myself with ex-coworkers from two of my previous companies, and I had a luxury (or misfortune) to try working for a number of them. Since working with these people was a pleasure at that time, it still is a pleasure to meet them as often as we’re able/willing to get together considering all the different paths and careers we now all have 🙂
That’s great you keep in touch with ex-coworkers. For me, some have long ago shifted from professional to personal relationships. 🙂
I’ve conducted far too many interviews to view them as evil… just a process to find the right fit between the person who hopefully wants the job and the organisation that is hiring. Goal is for both to be successful with the new arrangement. 😉
And I’ve made quite a few ‘untraditional’ hiring decisions too. What is especially unpopular in India is hiring someone ‘older’ i.e. above 35 years!? Or visibly Muslim like a young woman wearing a hijab to work in largely Hindu areas… or… (I could go on!)
Heck my last project had me responsible for setting up the entire recruitment piece, so I had an opportunity to build processes and tools to help build a great team. Best is I know we were on the right track… the positive energy, drive and enthusiasm plus calibre was palpably high. A good feeling.