System To Find a Job You Love

I don’t really remember complaining  about my clients or office. 

Those who are close to me, often notice it.

I get to frequently hear things like, “How are you always happy and proud about the companies that you work with?”

If I look back, I have been very choosy and conscious about the people I work with. 

• During my engineering campus placements, I didn’t appear for any IT roles
• I consciously ticked all the boxes of my requirements before joining my current company 
• I don’t work with freelance clients if I don’t find them fitting in my criteria
• My LinkedIn inbox is full of recruiters as I am actively contributing there but majority of them are unexciting 

Now I understand this choice doesn’t come to everyone and reasons can be different.

But I have been extremely privileged since the beginning of my career and I am truly grateful for that. 

I got to work with the smartest entrepreneurs and mentors.

My first job was a dream job.

 Great people, awesome culture and the work that I was passionate about.

My current job is even better. I will send you a dedicated letter about it next week as I am completing 3 years here.

But what is the secret behind this happy professional life?

The secret is being clear of what you DO NOT want.

I talked about this in one of my letters: Do You Have A ‘Never-Going-To-Do’ List?

For instance, I am never going to work in a bad culture with non-supportive people that do not add value.

I have one golden statement for all working professionals and students that I emphasize a lot on –

According to a report, 60% of employees are unhappy at work.

This is sad considering that we spend almost one-third of our everyday life working.

Most people don’t hate their office because they hate their work. They just hate people and politics.

Setting up the right expectations is a key to great professional life.

I prioritize freedom and innovation because that’s how I want my work life to be.

If you feel business is the answer to get rid of your toxic boss. Nope.  

I have busted this myth in detail in these 2 letters.

• Why Being Founder Is Not A Pride
• Converting Passion Into A Profession Is The Worst Advice!

My previous company was an amazing workplace but there are limitations of working in MNCs – large hierarchies, slow processes, repetitive work and so on.

Nothing wrong in that but I didn’t find myself a right fit in that.

I realized that I am meant to be a big fish in a small pond rather than a small fish in a big ocean.

Within 2 years, I decided to explore more suitable opportunities.

So I started by listing down things that I DO NOT want in my next job.

🔴 High Priorities: I didn’t proceed if I found any of the following things –  

• Companies that value attendance over actual work. I need time off to focus on my side projects, hobbies, interests, health and personal life.
• Work where I don’t see myself growing or feeling passionate about what I am doing.
• A toxic culture of micromanagement and lack of trust.
• Lack of creative freedom and flexibility within the team.

🟡 Medium Priorities: These were some ‘good-to-have’ things that I wouldn’t mind missing upon –

• Remote work opportunities. Commuting daily in metro cities means spending around 795 hours or 33 days per year – an enormous opportunity cost
• A bootstrapped company. I personally saw how founders keep chasing funding rounds instead of working on products.
• Humble founders. I literally have a list of some arrogant entrepreneurs and people who I am never going to work with. Nothing personal. I just don’t like their arrogance in real life.
• A product-based company, preferably with products I personally know so that I feel passionate about marketing them

In the process, I talked to several hiring managers and founders. 

In fact, I asked some weird questions that probably nobody asks. Obviously, I needed my answers.

It didn’t take much long and I got to tick all my requirements when I joined my current company. 

That’s how the journey began here 🙂 

Talking about it in my next letter… next Friday!

ACTION ITEMS

If you are looking for a new place to work and prioritizing fulfillment at work –

In short term –

• Create your priority list and set proper expectations. Create a list of things that you are not going to compromise on
• Use Glassdoor and other online tools to check ratings and anonymous reviews of employees from companies
• Outreach employees and ex-employees of your target company and ask about the work culture 
• Apply only if you find relevant positions and companies. Irrelevant job will prove unfit in long term
• During your interview, ask how your typical day will look like and what exactly is expected from you

In long term –

• Start posting content around your work and skills on professional websites like LinkedIn or Github to get visibility. Hiring managers are always shortlisting candidates who are actively contributing.
• Try freelancing or side projects because companies prefer people with real experience over courses, certificates and degrees
• Within 3 months of joining, you will know whether the company is delivering what you expected. If not, restart the job search.

Reply if you want to know the process of any of the mentioned steps and I am happy to guide you further.

RELATED RESOURCES 

Recruitin is a great tool to find relevant people in your job search journey – be it founders, hiring managers, employees or anyone.

WHAT I DID THIS WEEK

Researched some AI tools for an upcoming project. I haven’t found any good tools or workflow yet. 

I spent most of my time testing and playing around with dozens of AI tools.

Didn’t realize this but I spent much of my time this week connecting my close people – physically as well as calling.

Have you watched Makdi (2002)? Yeah – the good old horror movie. I was unable to recall it so I just watched it. 

It’s available for free on YouTube. I must admit that its storyline and concept was ahead of its time.

Then watched “Munjya” in theater. It’s a supernatural comedy horror film. VFX could be better but the story is good. It’s a part of the Stree multiverse. Just waiting to see how they all connect.

I didn’t plan to watch it but I faced a power outage in my area. It was hot at home and I was anyway not able to work. Just decided to step out and watch it on a Monday afternoon.

I must say, the world looks beautiful on weekdays during working hours when there’s technically no one at places of entertainment.

I might consider taking my week offs on Mondays to avoid rush and crowds in future – who knows!