The first thing you do... matters!

Recently, I had the opportunity to attend a Career Planning Programme conducted by my company's Human Capital Development. I must say, it is one of the most important courses I've attended in my life, much better than those career ones from NUS Career Center. The programme is targeted equipping employees with knowledge for planning of your career path and building up of your current skill sets.

I learned about what you look out for in career is separated into deficiency needs, as well as growth needs. Deficiency needs include Security, Relationships, and Performance; these are the basic core needs you require to keep your basic life going. It refers to your financial income, your social interactions, as well as job satisfaction and learning outcomes. On the other hand, growth needs such as Transformation, Contribution, and Service; refer to needs that will continue to build your character and continue to grow outwards. These are the needs which keeps learning going, and essentially is what keeps someone in a career. This is because when there is no learning, your career will just be stagnant and your sight will be set on somewhere else which can provide you the resources to fulfill these needs. In addition, I learnt that it is important to see how a company's track can meet my personal plans, and together, form a strong organization together. It is through such strategy that we are able to know what we are capable of and match it with what the company is offering.

In addition, a careers anchors self-assessment was conducted to find out what do we seek out in a career and the style that we work. For me, I'm a balance between the "Autonomy" and "Lifestyle" anchors. "Autonomy" means I am a person who looks for own control in a job. For example, I would like to take ownership on the projects I'm working on, and not have someone breathe down my neck all the time for updates. With that said, I also feel that it is important to have freedom with responsibilities. Freedom is a very vague term, and what I'm trying to direct at is that the freedom should have responsibilities attached. Obviously, I can't have the freedom to not complete a project despite a deadline coming up. "Lifestyle" is also another easily misunderstood term, it doesn't mean to have a lot of free time or off-work time to enjoy. On the other hand, having a "Lifestyle" anchor simply means I would like to enjoy work, and I should engage in projects that can be integrated with my interest areas. It also means that while being able to enjoy work, I also look forward to enjoy my free time out of work, and being able to draw a distinct line between them such them they don't lapse into each other. Therefore, I would say that I find myself to be in a comfortable fit in my current job.

Coming into SATS, I've learnt a lot and I believe that our first experiences here is very crucial. It's parallel to orientation camps in universities. If you have a good entrance, you will have a good first impression and subsequently able to enjoy your time much better. Hence, it really matters what you do at the start of your career. For me, I've already been in SATS for four months and I roughly can tell where my interest mainly lie in. My first posting for this job is to the Gateway sector in December, while the position is still unknown, I've already lost my position in PAX, and to be honest, I was quite affected by it. I try not to show it but deep down, it's an ache I'll never be able to get rid of. Hopefully, with time, that ache would be less painful and I will get my chance at PAX soon. In the meanwhile, I hope everyone would enjoy their first term of office in SATS.

Presenting to you, GAPsters 2015

Email Etiquette

In the corporate world, words are all we have. We build our reputations, deal our businesses, and suck up to bosses with words sent out through emails, and hence, email etiquette is of utmost importance.

However, one particular recent email I received really pissed me off so badly, I cannot stop talking about it. Brief background information: A particular superior is trying to damage control before damage is done, but apparently, her damage control caused more damage than the situation might potentially cause.

"As the first job, it doesn’t really matter what you do, it is a process of learning and learning to know what you are good at and what you like more, and it is also a process, I quote Jack Ma, “make mistake” that you can afford."

First and foremost, it has every matter what we do as our first job. This is the entrance into the corporate world for us, and most (if not, all) of us landed ourselves in this job based on passion. By directly chucking our passion aside, and "forcing" us to accept what is given to us before it is even given simply shows how much we are worth in their eyes. It is an entirely a different scenario if you tell us to accept what we are given after the posting is given, but the fact that you are preempting us that we are not going to get what we like, shows you aren't even going to consider our preferences in the first place.

And i'm pretty sure the process of learning is deeply ingrained in every one of us. We do not need an outsider to remind us of that. In the event we do get something undesirable, I will definitely force myself to outshine the rest and not crumble and fall. You are clearly underestimating the eleven of us. Also, to make mistakes we can afford should have been done during this 5 months of training. I don't think any employer would be so generous to be accepting of mistakes made after being in an organisation for 6 months.

"You might get something that you don’t really like, but if you put your full commitment to try, I am sure you will gain a lot out of it, and you might start to like it.  The key word, take ownership, put in your full commitment!"

It's a career, not a game, obviously we are going to put in all our efforts to ensure we do well and get our well-deserved promotion right? Why should we put our salaries at risk just because we don't like what we are doing? We still have to earn money to put food into our mouths. And who are you to be sure? What do you have to guarantee that thinking? What if I do not gain anything? Are you going to give me a car or something? Last but not least, obviously I will take ownership if I wanna do well in it, hence that is a totally redundant repetitive line.

In conclusion, the whole email angers me because it insults my intelligence, shows how brainless a higher management could be, and shows how worthless we are to them. I am so angry I don't even think I make sense here.

And quoting Sam Smith, "I know I'm not the only one." (to feel this way, that is.)

Actions, Reactions

It's been a brutal two weeks for me, feeling like a fucking outcast because I chose to stand for what's logical. It resulted in standing on opposite ends and harsh words, not from me but directed at me. It resulted in a dying heart and resolved mind, growing from what used to be weak and small. It resulted in a deciding move away from the norm, leaving where I am now. Sometimes, I wonder if it is all worth it, and whether I've been acting too rashly, but you never know until the problems start coming and piling up on you.

How I wish I could have kids I could call my own. It doesn't matter if I'm married or single, I just want to see the smile on my child's face when I come home from a long and tiring day of work. To enjoy spending time and doing things we love together. Isn't that the most simple and basic form of happiness?

I guess I am just being really random right now. SFI has been good so far, I just don't like going into the kitchen so much.