A True Story - Part-1: Man proposes, God disposes
Each one of us starts planning his future after leaving college. We have certain dreams in our eyes. But many times, we end up in a situation, that was not our goal, where destiny leads us.
We have a variety of career choices and paths. Most of the time our career choices are rather influenced and seldom rational. We tend to be influenced by our surroundings, sometimes advice from our parents or friends, and sometimes our perception of certain fascinating careers. And then, a day comes when you start feeling that you have reached somewhere, which was not your planned destination.
Many times in such a case, we adjust ourselves according to the requirements. Many times the growth potential of a career works as a motivational force to stay back in the same field. But many times the situation is otherwise? Was there any fault in your planning or working it out? Whom to blame for this situation - your incompetence or destiny? What if you are troubled in your career? Life does not allow us re-takes.
Is this situation very common or a rare case? Let's try to find out an answer. Let me share with you a true story of a person who struggled hard in his career.
Dreams are made of glass
I start from the school days of a not so brilliant yet ambitious student. It was long back in the 1980s when an admission in Engineering Degree was a dream come true. There used to be three choices for a common man - IIT, University of Roorkee, and then came Regional Engineering colleges (Today's NITs). Then came the state engineering colleges. A few well-off students who belonged to financially strong families could opt for some private colleges, mostly in the southern part of India.
Admission to the most prestigious engineering institutions - the IITs was always done through their Joint Entrance Examination (JEE). The second best option - the University of Roorkee used to conduct a separate entrance examination, and finally, admission to the state quota of various RECs was conducted by the REC of your state of domicile, and admissions to state colleges were also done on the basis of your merit in your REC-entrance examination.
For those who could not secure a seat in an engineering college, the next option used to be a degree in pure science or a degree in humanities followed by MBA or numerous other careers. After finishing his undergraduate, the hero of our story could manage to get on the waiting list for admission to the RECs/State Engineering colleges. The seat which he could finally get was in a REC, far from his native place. Although it was a good proposition, due to three days long journey to the extreme south, his parents did not send him so far off from his native place. However, he could complete his B.Sc. with first division. Now instead of continuing further studies in pure sciences, he decided to take a break and prepare for the whole year for a prestigious seat in engineering.
While he was preparing for the next year's entrance examinations with a determination to crack JEE, one day a friend met him and gave a newspaper advertisement for the recruitment of Technical Assistants in a national research laboratory. A job was not on the cards for him, even in his remote thoughts. He was still in the temperament of studying, so at the very outset, he refused to even apply for it. But the friend, like any other young and energetic lad in his 20s, said, "Why do you think of joining a job. Just apply and have an experience, and if they call you for the interview, just go and enjoy an outing because they will provide you rail fare."
Turning Point - The thing you call the Destiny!
This is what I call destiny. This time, his dedicated preparations could qualify him for a seat in Unversity of Roorkee through their entrance examinations, as well as in a State Engineering college.
And guess what? He was called for the recruitment process interview for the job, he applied for and got the job with meritorious performance in the interview. He was already studying in B.Tech Ist year when he got an appointment letter for a Technical Assistant.
It was a big dilemma for a young man who was about to complete his twenty years of life. Those were the times when a person earning in "Four figures" had great respect in the society. His classmates in B.Tech. who were already graduates said that it was a wastage of time studying B.Tech for four years, when I already have a UG degree as well as a job in which one could earn in 'Four Figure'.
In that situation, it was but natural to think twice. So he got a fancy idea to join the job and be a bureaucrat, by qualifying Civil Services Exam in the days to come! And he joined a job as a Technical Assistant, leaving B.Tech. just in the beginning.
This was how a mechanical engineer of the future, turned into an uncertain path. Isn't it destiny?
The second phase of life had started.
Later he realized, that was in fact not the right age nor it was the right time for one to join a job unless family factors are compelling. But there was a ray of hope - he liked the R&D job very much. I enjoyed experimenting and interpreting the results. But it was a great setback as well. Due to such a devotion to work, he could not do justice with competitive examinations like Civil Services.
Now let's give some critical thought to the story so far. Was it the right decision and calculated amount of risk? Or do you think it was just a foolish step? Whatever may be your perception, but I call it destiny.
In my next post, I will discuss what happened to his future. In the meantime, I invite the readers to give their views. What is your opinion on it? Destiny has some influence on our careers or it is just a foolish thought!
I shall be waiting for your opinions. Please log in to comment.
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