First Experience 2: Day One

First day of work. Although I was anticipating to experience the feel of it since quite a time, I was privileged today. I was ready and even expecting to be conscious about the way I have to behave, walk, talk, smile faintly etc, what I prefer to refer it as the first day fear + awkwardness. Fortunately due to my track record of spending few of the important years of my life in the hostel - adolescence epoch - made it easy for me to acclimate to the new ambiance. I also like to vest equal credits to my team members who were very welcoming and helpful.

My official part of the first day started with the call I received from my cab driver asking to confirm my address which he had received from my transport. Officially it was not my very first day in the workplace. I had been there for two days, for interview two months back and for a day of “New Hire Orientation (NHO)” yesterday. The reason behind calling today “official” is today was the day I entered the office premises with the I-card bearing my photo identity with my name. I believe I don’t have to specially mention that I had to punch it every time I crossed any electrically operated door I crossed. It’s different issue that the card failed to work every time I tried to used and the security behind the door had to punch his card to let me in (later I was informed that I should bear another card which they call “access card” and that it was presently out of stock).

         I would like to digress here to say something about the so called “proud feeling” I had when I first entered the work place on the first day of the two-day interview process. It was the world trade center located in Bangalore. I have to confess that I was acquainted about the existence of WTC only after the 9/11 incident. WTC in Bangalore is located in the Dr. Rajkumar road in the brigade-gateway-premises along with a mall, plethora of apartments, brigade school and so on so that it covers anything I would have missed since I have not got the opportunity to explore it yet. A mere step into the building showed me the sophistication, security and lavishness that I hadn’t experienced. I wishes I could show what I was experiencing to my family. The lifts were about 2 to 3 times larger in volume than what was in my undergraduate college. WTC in Bangalore is of 30 floors, there were three divisions alone to take the lift according to the floors one wanted to visit (roughly bay one for 1-10 floors, bay two for 13-21 and bay three for 22-30). And each such bay had 6 lifts. Although I’m accustomed to it now, I thrilled to see it all for the very first time.

        The foyer in the ground floor past the huge, electrically operated rotating glass doors, was adorned beautifully with elegant piece of furniture. After getting temporary, visitor’s ID, I took a lift in the bay 1 (as I previously mentioned) for the interview scheduled in the 6^th floor. I followed the same procedure the next day, to the same floor since I manage to successfully clear the first two rounds of the second interview. Before telling the evident fact that I got the job, I want to digress yet again: as I can remember, 1.5 years back we celebrated on of my friend’s birthday in the mall I mentioned earlier. The entire brigade set-up was new then. I had expressed my urge to work in WTC to one of my friends in our gang. I was self-impressed that I could turn those words into reality.

          Coming back to my official first day: I was told that my work station was in ninth floor. After collecting my I-card I reach on to the door to make my First futile attempt of opening the electrically operating access doors. On enquiring I was told that my training begins from next week. In addition to that my manager was on leave for a week. But there was another thing that rang a bell. Although I was given the laptop along with my appointment letter, according to the company’s policy, the user ID and password is vested in the hands of the manager which is to be handed over to the employee by them. I was not worried that I have to spend a week jobless as an employee, the thing that I began to dread about was not having the user ID and password and hence no way to pass time !! Fortunately the IT department helped me out and I found a decent way to pass a week amidst my very hardworking team-mates.

          I welcomed my first official working day with warm team-mates, friends, awesome place, tasty food at the canteen, luxurious cab (home – office – home, as we call it), nice view etc. I can say for sure, I absolutely enjoyed my first official working day, in my own jobless way! There is one more thing I would like to mention here. At the end of the day, when one of my team-mates asked me what I felt about the first day at the work place, I replied her that it was boring. She challenged me to give her the same answer after three months. I called it a day, confused if it’s appropriate to take it seriously and prepare me for that day after three months or to enjoy myself till then. Former sounds lousy !!

P.S.: I’am posting this on my second official day although I transcribed on my first day