it's been slightly more than a month since we have "graduated" from our year-long graduate program in the workforce. through and through, i am thankful for growth. growth that comes in spurts - some longer and more tangible than others. even sitting in ambiguity for a protracted period of time was in itself a growth journey - albeit a quieter one. to aptly summarise my journey thus far in the best way i can and know how:
this is the free-verse poem i had crafted on behalf of the eleven of us and verbalised to over fifty colleagues (including bosses from both my department and others) who had turned up for our virtual graduation ceremony last month. am still grateful to have had the opportunity to share a piece of what makes me "me", in what is normally perceived as the cold and hard corporate sector. i can be both - two selves co-existing in one body. i can have my cake and eat it.
--
we gathered around the conference table of merlion two
as acquaintances, as new colleagues,
sharing the camaraderie of emerging
from the competition that had annihilated everyone,
from the competition that had annihilated everyone,
but us.
us - twelve minus one.
even from day one, we have been a collective.
many of us had just laboured through college,
eyes fixated on the ultimate reward that was now in our grasp,
but still an obscure concept - this concept called "work".
the rest of us had jumped ship
in hope of greener pastures -
biting the bullet of adjusting to a new environment
despite emptier pockets.
all of us - wide-eyed,
impressionable blank sheets of paper
eager to learn and absorb.
youth is a currency to be spent
while one is young.
we are young.
we were, and still are.
and so, we learn.
we quickly learn that we chafe at achieving for achievement's sake.
certifications are a means to the greater end of learning,
not the end in themselves.
we learn that to go fast is to go alone
but to go far is to go together.
we learn that there is value in pushing back,
in managing expectations
and finding the right time to say no.
we learn the onus of self-enablement
falls squarely on our own shoulders -
there is no longer going to be
periodic examinations or assignments keeping us in check.
along with that came the quiet realisation
that we are now in charge of determining our rest -
out with the academic calendar that determined our summer holidays,
in with the financial calendar that we use to plan around our holidays.
swept in the whirlwind of change as the new constant,
we were forced to adapt to changes quickly - some even
painful changes that hit home.
call us the walking personifications
of pro-sci's "change management" (just kidding).
we learn that we are eleven individuals
gifted with different skill-sets and personalities,
each unique in our own way.
how could we complement one another with our strengths,
to combat our individual weaknesses?
what could we each bring to the table and show up for?
find your niche,
only then the reward will be proportional
to your hard work.
i hope you, the audience, would agree,
that we are all individually known for something.
this journey was not a bed of roses.
coming in without any prior experience was daunting,
and at times even demoralising.
we were building credibility from scratch -
every action we took either a vote towards building our brand
or against it.
and so we had to tread carefully.
how was it possible that we went through
so many hour-long enablement sessions in the beginning,
but the workings of the company still felt like a mystery
existing only in theory, in the fog of the unknown?
our services grad counterparts had it harder -
enablement came with their job,
on the job itself.
out of the blue they found themselves
waist-deep in projects
when they hadn't even learned how to swim yet.
what does good look like for the job,
and by extension, for a grad?
ambiguity, the big word
encapsulating the environment
we found ourselves mired in.
lacking defined expectations of us,
we found ourselves confused -
were we doing well?
or just doing enough to get by?
even when we were told we were doing well,
imposter syndrome always crept in
to steal the limelight of our victories.
our victories.
a year later as we look back we are able to say
with greater clarity:
we are proud of our victories.
gaining client facing experience early in our careers
particularly for many of us fresh out of college,
is a triumph in itself.
the piecemeal knowledge we've gained day by day,
over three hundred and sixty-five days,
empowers us with more confidence in work and customer interactions.
we even surprise ourselves sometimes
with knowledge that we didn't think we had (but do),
or when we're able to deliver on something
that no one expects us to.
but our greatest triumph as a cohort
is that we've stuck true to ourselves, together.
trouble-shooting, laughing, collaborating, eating
even crafting and dancing,
as a collective.
in managing expectations
and finding the right time to say no.
we learn the onus of self-enablement
falls squarely on our own shoulders -
there is no longer going to be
periodic examinations or assignments keeping us in check.
along with that came the quiet realisation
that we are now in charge of determining our rest -
out with the academic calendar that determined our summer holidays,
in with the financial calendar that we use to plan around our holidays.
swept in the whirlwind of change as the new constant,
we were forced to adapt to changes quickly - some even
painful changes that hit home.
call us the walking personifications
of pro-sci's "change management" (just kidding).
we learn that we are eleven individuals
gifted with different skill-sets and personalities,
each unique in our own way.
how could we complement one another with our strengths,
to combat our individual weaknesses?
what could we each bring to the table and show up for?
find your niche,
only then the reward will be proportional
to your hard work.
i hope you, the audience, would agree,
that we are all individually known for something.
this journey was not a bed of roses.
coming in without any prior experience was daunting,
and at times even demoralising.
we were building credibility from scratch -
every action we took either a vote towards building our brand
or against it.
and so we had to tread carefully.
how was it possible that we went through
so many hour-long enablement sessions in the beginning,
but the workings of the company still felt like a mystery
existing only in theory, in the fog of the unknown?
our services grad counterparts had it harder -
enablement came with their job,
on the job itself.
out of the blue they found themselves
waist-deep in projects
when they hadn't even learned how to swim yet.
what does good look like for the job,
and by extension, for a grad?
ambiguity, the big word
encapsulating the environment
we found ourselves mired in.
lacking defined expectations of us,
we found ourselves confused -
were we doing well?
or just doing enough to get by?
even when we were told we were doing well,
imposter syndrome always crept in
to steal the limelight of our victories.
our victories.
a year later as we look back we are able to say
with greater clarity:
we are proud of our victories.
gaining client facing experience early in our careers
particularly for many of us fresh out of college,
is a triumph in itself.
the piecemeal knowledge we've gained day by day,
over three hundred and sixty-five days,
empowers us with more confidence in work and customer interactions.
we even surprise ourselves sometimes
with knowledge that we didn't think we had (but do),
or when we're able to deliver on something
that no one expects us to.
but our greatest triumph as a cohort
is that we've stuck true to ourselves, together.
trouble-shooting, laughing, collaborating, eating
even crafting and dancing,
as a collective.
the first of july 2020.
we gather around the virtual table
about to say goodbye
to this year-long journey.
to this year-long journey.
not as colleagues, but as friends -
sharing the camaraderie of journeying through
the highs, lows and everything in the in-between
from our first year of work at salesforce.
the highs, lows and everything in the in-between
from our first year of work at salesforce.
even from day one, we have been a collective.
