STRESS, SUCCESS AND EVERYTHING IN-BETWEEN
The Highs and Lows of A Woman’s Journey in the Corporate World
CARE: This is Chapter 43 of my book Stress, Success and Everything In-Between. These are individual anecdotes but to understand the professional journey in totality, I would recommend reading the book right from Chapter 01 onwards.
Life at the Bank's Staff College in Gurgaon was in total contrast to my earlier fast-paced life at the branches. The college was newly opened, and all the roles had not been clearly defined. While others were busy, I floundered, unsure of my role and responsibilities. My initial thrill of exploring the library soon faded. How long could books hold my attention?
Determined to contribute, I approached every faculty member, eager to undertake any task they could delegate to me. I edited study material, created OHP (Over-Head Projector) slides and even wrote welcome messages in the lecture halls – anything to make myself useful. This willingness helped me understand the training system: it also provided me time for writing, leading to published articles – a source of immense satisfaction.
One suggestion gave me a new direction, researching the level and sources of stress in the lives of bank executives. Months later, after I presented my findings, the Principal proposed Stress Management sessions in the programme for the Regional Managers, who were all senior Scale V officers. A faculty member was assigned the job of taking two sessions on stress and its management. He approached me for the reference material on the subject, and I happily extended all cooperation to him, handed over the study material and prepared all the OHP slides for his lecture.
On the day of the session, the faculty member who was to lead the sessions panicked at the last moment. He felt he could not handle it and asked me to substitute him at the eleventh hour. He also told me that he had already taken the permission of the Principal. Before doing so, he had not even shared his intentions with me. The session was to start at 2pm, and he asked me to fill up for him at 1 pm, just before I was leaving for lunch.
Initially, overcome with self-doubt, I refused. It meant two sessions of ninety minutes each, and I was not mentally prepared for it. I had not even prepared the structure of the two sessions. The participants were far more senior than me. They were all in Grade V, and I was in the lowly Middle Management Grade II. Also, I had never conducted a session for the Bank officers before. But he continued to beg and plead. I struggled with myself for a few minutes, but saying I can't has never been my wont. And I agreed.
Skipping lunch, I frantically prepared notes and entered the lecture hall with a nervous smile, masking my inner apprehensions. To my utter surprise, the Principal, Vice-Principal, and all the faculty members walked in to be present as observers. Were they there to learn stress management or to evaluate my performance? Was it because it was the first time that inputs on Stress Management were introduced in a training programme at the institute? Whatever the reason, their presence intensified my stress.
As I started speaking, my heart pounded. I quickly recalled the "Chalk and Talk" method from my earlier lecturer-ship days and picked a chalk to write on the board. When I rested my left hand on the board to write something, the palm left a moist impression there, a clear manifestation of my anxiety. Quickly removing my hand from the board, I consciously took charge of my mind and regained composure. Suddenly, I started addressing participants very confidently. The words flowed smoothly for the next hour and a half. The time flew by: the participants listened to me spellbound, and the session overran its time.
The tea break was a whirlwind of questions, eager requests for solutions, and genuine compliments. Deriving confidence from the success of the first session, I handled the second session effortlessly.
The evaluation of the programme on the last day revealed my sessions on Stress Management were rated the best and were given perfect scores. From then on, these sessions became my domain, giving me a new role and a renewed sense of purpose. Although my designation remained Research Officer, I often started working as a faculty member, even for officials in the top executive grade. This incident helped me to get in touch with my innate strength and grow my self-confidence.
To me, the designation mattered less than the role I performed. After all, what is in a designation?
(To be continued....)
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4 comments:
Your confidence, experience as a Lecturer, having prepared the material came to your rescue. Often we do not know our own capabilities, they come out in extraordinary circumstances.
You were brilliant in BS matters and stress management- I know.
Designations never matter.
This episode reveals that from all your earlier travails and tribulations, you virtually emerged as a superwoman at a relatively young age, with a heart strong enough for any fate. (KBS Bedi)
Happens...when the time comes...Happened at my appointment -interview... Me, a nerdy nervous twit who could never handle an audience of more than 2, had a pleasant , almost breezy interaction with those 4-5 senior strangers ( to me), who were on the panel that day. (Lakshmy Iyer)
Thank you for sharing this! Yes ..this happens. The way you handled the situation without any retort or remorse, shows your upbringing, steadfastness and rising to the level of sudden challenges. And let me remind you: Fortune favours the braves like you. Kudos!
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