Difference Lies in ‘Loves Labor or Labors Love!’
It is often said that when you fall in love with what you do. Then, you will never work ever! In other words, ‘you don’t feel that you are doing work.’ For the tedium of work is overthrown by your passion for the task that you are doing. That way, I have explored my passion for writing in different types of jobs using the advice given by my parents.
I found out early on that the joy of working for the mere pleasure of it, will always be such fun! If I have a mental map for the workday then, it is easier to achieve job satisfaction! In the end, when you self-reflect, you find yourself in much better state than before.
Of course, there is a downside to it. Emotions are tightly woven with what you do. Sometimes it becomes too personal for comfort!
First Jobs | My Parents Were My Employers
My first jobs in two different fields were given by both my parents. Amma appointed me first and then Appa followed suit.
Amma Was My First Manager
For Amma I did three chores at home in the early days since after my mid-semester in 8th grade. They were the Front Yard, be the standby Maid when she is on leave, and light lamps in the pooja room. She was an exacting first Manager to whom I reported at the tea time.
Though I cleaned up the front yard ok, but my design with rice flour was standard geometry figures. She would listen to all my rant about the rice flour and I would keep comparing my design with my neighbors and feel totally at loss.
I made such wobbly circles, shaky triangles, and all at 45-degree slant to the first step leading to the entrance of the house.
I repeated these kindergarten patterns endlessly and never seemed to be going anywhere with it. Though they did become straight after a year or so.
She never allowed me to do rangoli in the prayer room. I would get all set lamps and I had to add oil and light the twin lamps or two silver Jyoties.
Of course, later in my college days, she taught me how to design Hirudhyakamalam or heart of lotus pattern. This had some yoga implication in ordering the mind. It was a much later understanding for me.
The design is the most auspicious pattern for the lamp settings. Even today, I make those designs on the circular platform of the lamps. These days they are mixed with zen practices.
So, I’m not sure if my mother agreed to it back then. But then, I flexed my muscles in my prayer rituals and did it my style.
For Amma, as long as the lamps were lit by 6 pm in the evening she was fine. I was free to do any spiritual practices after that task.
The lines are still not perfect! I can freehand draw on paper; but not with rice flour, it keeps slipping through the gaps in my hand and is often messy. I have the grip problem even today!
She was forgiving of my design blunders. Her focus was on the well swept and water-cleaned front yard. She even often encouraged me saying, ‘it will get better in the future with lots of practice.’
She was such a ‘Nike’s Just Do It’ kinda mom for me!
Other standby jobs that I held for her were sweeping and mopping the house, standby cook if she is not well this was after I had my voting rights, permanent afternoon chaiwallali, responsible for lighting evening lamp and standby helper in the kitchen, and waitress on demand.
She was not good at teaching how a task gets done. She will give pointers and then go figure! I was left to learn the processes by observing her. She disliked repeating herself and never micromanaged me, except the kitchen tasks if the fire is involved.
Appa Was My First Colleague-cum-Employer
With my Appa it was a lot different but difficult too! He believed in micromanaging every single task! He will not leave the task and ask me to complete it by myself. He would be seated right next to me until it is done.
Since my job from Appa was desk jobs or organizing files, papers, stationary jobs. He would always do it with me and never assign them and leave me to do it.
He ran a xerox shop alongside his construction business. We had the Ricoh brand photocopier in which he taught me how to take photocopies until I learnt it exactly the way he did it.
Even though I was used to my Amma style of managing, my Appa’s style gave me confidence to correct any errors that I made.
I was also a standby person for Appa too. After one summer of typing and shorthand lessons. For the life of me, I couldn’t complete the program.
But it did teach me the typing basics and nada knowledge on shorthand. Phonetic marking is beyond my brain power.
Cause of the short lessons, I was much faster than Appa who typed with one finger (oru veral Krishnarao! | one finger Krishna Rao [rough translation from Tamil saying]).
From my eighth grade, I began occasionally helping. By eleventh grade I was his part-time typist full time and have worked late into the night. Mostly it was me who kept saying that I want to finish and then go to sleep.
I always had my way in his assigned task. Late into nights were rare but I stuck out with him until it was done.
He will not give me any of the handwritten paper and ask me to type it alone. He would sit by my side while I used the office PC for keying in the details.
One thing he did not like about my working style was crashing the MS Word Processor application.
So, to show that I know how to handle it. I had to sneak into the office downstair when he is at the construction site supervising the work. I would practice without his knowledge the application by trail and error.
So, when he sat down to dictate the write up or business proposal, contract bid application, and et al office documentations, I made sure no crash is allowed.
I had to make sure that I never even once crashed the word processing application. Appa could be unforgiving, but Amma was more flexible. But as a team we worked well.
Between the two of us, we discovered the margin problems and how to fix it. Because the printed letter head needed space which the printer can recognize. So it cannot be global, which meant that you add spaces in the front page on the document writing space and not set margin globally.
I don’t know if MSWord have addressed the problem of first page letter head space as yet!
Both as Employers and Their Temperament
These employers were the two types of Managers from my younger days when the foundation of my work culture evolved into real-life understanding!
I have never found a manager like my father to date. But the principles in life and career were set in rocks for me by these two loving people.
Whenever I felt overly hurt if my work went wrong or not above par, they allowed me to voice my disheartened thoughts, but kept the calm advice for the times when I was more receptive.
I still need to learn to listen with care, it is still work-in-progress for me.
For the tasks that I did at home, it was love of the job’s labor than laboring on my love for jobs. It is partly the reason why I love to work in tandem with another person. There are very few people who can work with me.
After which I worked in different places and felt disappointed that my colleagues were not like my father in their attitude towards work. The rampant selfishness to standout could get in the way of a teamwork.
I believe in working together and the recognition is secondary for me. I always feel elated for my team more than my doing a good job.
Different Managing Styles
Difference of Managing Between them lies in the fact that Amma’s job if there is any mistake it cannot be a huge social error, but Appa’s tasks has business implication and more serious.
So, in later life, I understood it but now I appreciated it more than ever.
Any job needs the space for controlled mistake testing and putting the best foot forward. That can be achieved by persist aim for perfection as far as possible with leeway for controllable errors.
Itinerant Storyteller 