Towards Infy, in ambivalence

I'll be joining Infosys as a Software Engineer in a month. I plan to work there for an year, and then leave it to struggle in Advertising. I have absolutely no credentials to get an advertising job as of now, so it is going to be tough. I will have to prove myself. And that is why I want to save enough for that phase.

Why am I joining Infosys in the first place? Why not start in Advertising right away? Well, that is mainly because it promises to be a huge growth process. It will be the first time I'll live away from home, totally on my own, and be financially independent. I long for that high! And then, all my friends at Infy aver that the training at Mysore is an experience of a lifetime. I confess that I am joining Infy for the sops it offers, not because I'm eager for the job.

And now, a word about my job. When I got it, everyone in the family was ecstatic. All my friends congratulated me on my "achievement". But, I never really felt like an "achiever." The statistics were in front of me. Out of the 156 students who sat in the Infy test that day, 115 cleared the written test, and out of those, 109 were selected. I was one of them; just one out of the bunch. It was clear that it had not been a selection, but a rejection process. They had taken practically everybody who cleared the first round. So, I had not been chosen because of any special skill or talent of mine. Did this not tell enough about the job? Wasn't it clear that they didn't want me because of any brains or smartness that they saw in me, but that they just needed young, programmable minds, which they would train in 4 months to suit their needs, and then I would be just one more brain-robot in their scheme of things.

I know I am painting too bleak a picture, but that is the image my mind conjures up. And it does get corroborated too, from sources like this. I am not too sure that Infy can provide me the excitement and stimulation that I so badly crave in the work I do. I am not sure if I will develop a passion for my Infy work. Will it involve actual problem solving? Programming? The real challenge? I hope it does. I fear it will not.

I am going to Infy with decidedly mixed feelings.