Job Hopping!!

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 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 passé 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 hard work.
Yes, it pays!

Sometimes, immediately, sometimes after a lot of time. But, it does
pay.

Does this mean that one should stick to an organization and wait for
that golden moment? Of course not. After a long stint, there always
comes a time for moving in most organizations, 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 it
current employees, there is always 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 organization 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 you moving
and what are 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 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- 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?

"DESERVE BEFORE YOU DESIRE" - Dr. Gopalkrishnan, Chairman TATA Sons.