The Pakistani Spectator

Mr. Gopalakrishnan succeeds Mr.  Ratan Tata as Chairman of Tata Sons Ltd., the holding company for many of the Tata Bluechips - like Tata Steel, Tata Motors,Tata Power, Tata  Chemicals, Voltas, etc. Possibly, he is the first non-Tata person to  head the Tata Empire.

The below article, written by  him, is really interesting!

The grass isn’t always greener on the other side !!

Move from one job to another - but only for the right  reasons. It’s yet another day at office. As I logged on to the marketing  and advertising sites for the latest updates, as usual, I found the headlines dominated by “who’s moving from one company to another after a  short stint”, and I wondered, “why are so many people leaving one job  for  another?  Is it passe now to work with just one company for a sufficiently long period”?

Whenever I ask this  question to people who leave a company, the answers I get are

“Oh, I am getting a 200% hike in  salary”;
“Well, I am jumping three levels in my  designation”;
“Well, they are going to send me abroad in  six months”.

Then, I look around at all the people who are  considered successful today and who have reached the top - be it a media  agency, an advertising agency or a company. I find that most of these  people are the ones who have stuck to the company, ground their heels and  worked their way to the top.

And, as I look around for people who  changed their jobs constantly, I find they have stagnated at some level, in obscurity!

In this absolutely ruthless, dynamic and  competitive environment, there are  still no short-cuts to success or  to making money. The only thing that continues to pay, as earlier, is  Loyalty and Hardwork.  Yes, it pays!  Sometimes - immediately,  sometimes - after a lot of time.  But, it does pay.

Does this mean  that one should stick to an organisation and wait for that golden moment ?  Of course not.  After a  long stint, there always comes a time for moving, in most organisations.  But, it is important  to move for the right reasons - rather than superficial ones,  like money, designation or an overseas trip.

Remember, no company  recruits for charity.

More often than not, when you are offered an  unseemly hike in salary or designation that is disproportionate to what  that company offers its current employees, there is always an unseen  bait attached.

The result?

You will, in the long-term, have reached exactly  the same levels or maybe lower levels, than what you would have in your  current company.

A lot of people leave an organisation because they  are “unhappy”. What is this so-called-unhappiness?  I have been  working for donkey’s years, and there has never been a day when I am  not unhappy about something in my work - environment, boss, rude colleague,  fussy clients, etc.

Unhappiness in a workplace, to a large extent, is  transient.

If you look hard enough, there is always something to be  unhappy about.  But, more importantly, do I come to work to be “happy”  in the truest sense ?  If I think hard, the answer is  “No”.

Happiness is something you find with family, friends, may be a  close circle of colleagues who have become  friends.

What you  come to work for is to earn, build a reputation, satisfy your ambitions, be  appreciated for your work ethics, face challenges and get the job  done.

So, the next time you are tempted to move, ask yourself “why are  you moving” and “what are you moving into” ?

Some questions are

Am I ready and capable of handling the new responsibility ?  If yes,what could be the possible reasons my  current company has not offered me the same       responsibility

Who are the people who currently handle this  responsibility in the current and the new company?  Am I as  good as the best among them?

As the new job offer has a different profile, why  have I not given the current company the option to offer me this profile

Why is the new company offering me the job  ?  Do they want me for my skills, or is there an ulterior  motive ?

An honest answer to these will eventually decide  where you go in your career - either to the top of the pile, in the  long-term (at the cost of short-term blips), or to become another average  employee who gets lost with time in the wilderness?

- By -
Dr. Gopalkrishnan