STRESS, SUCCESS AND EVERYTHING IN-BETWEEN
The Highs and Lows of A Woman’s Journey in the Corporate World
CARE: This is Chapter 81 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.
Grappling with hard-core defaulters, two years at RAR Branch passed in a
jiffy. Profits started rolling in. Life was good. Then, bam, I got
a change of position. I was moved to the position of Circle Development
Officer. It was lateral movement, but they perceived it as a 'promotion'. In
the new role, I was responsible for everything in the circle except the
actual business. Transfers, postings, training, promotions, bills, residences,
furniture, and all other resources… basically everyone's happiness or displeasure depended on
my decisions.
I was amused to feel the transformation: it was nothing short of
dramatic once I was saddled with the new role.
The usually indifferent Security Officer leapt forward to open the car
door when my car reached the portico. My usual briefcase was now perceived as
too heavy for my delicate hands. It was quickly picked up by the Messenger, who
was waiting at the entrance gate. Until the previous day, I carried a much
heavier briefcase myself.
At the lift, the liftman, who previously would not even look in my
direction when I pressed the button, balancing my briefcase and
purse, saluted me with military precision. He rushed to open the lift
reserved for the exclusive use of the top triumvirate.
I reached my new office to find a beautiful bunch of large red roses
decorating my table. Soon, the office room started smelling of the sweet scent
of sycophancy. Even before I settled down, a never-ending stream of
departmental heads walked in to introduce themselves, along with impressive
bouquets of fresh flowers. Roses, Lilies, and Orchids in myriad colours filled
up my room. In my entire career, I had never been felicitated like that.
There happened to be an already scheduled dinner that evening. I was the
centre of attraction, and they vied with each other to take care of me. Trying
not to be rude to anyone, I overfilled my tummy with the goodies being forced
on me. Finally, the dinner ended, and it was time to leave.
In the departure area of the hotel, I stood behind everyone else as in the past,
waiting for my car to come. Invariably, it was the last one, trailing behind
all the high and mighty in the carefully orchestrated car procession. But that
evening, my car was driven in soon after the top trinity drove away. That
evening, I led the parade of peer-level colleagues. The pecking order had
changed overnight.
The heady aroma of power, which I had never tasted earlier, came with a
vengeance. It was intoxicating. It was dangerous. I knew this game. I had seen
glimpses of this played before. The constant stream of flattery and the subtle
manipulations could lead to the insidious erosion of judgment. This newfound
attention was a new experience. I was fully aware that this respect was for my
position, not for me as a person.
Every night, I prayed for strength, humility and wisdom to resist the
heady feeling of power. Every morning, I reminded myself that this is not for
me. This is about them. This is for my position. It will vanish the day I move
from here. It was challenging, easier said than done. I tried to remain
grounded, remembering that my role was to serve the institution and the employees and to ensure
fair and equitable treatment for everyone. I kept reminding myself to stay
humble, focus on my responsibilities, and resist getting intoxicated by power.
The heady smell of power had to be desisted under any circumstances, for it was stealthy, subtle and treacherous and could erode my judgement.
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