Thank You For your Annoying Preaches

 

I am no Nostradamus or whatsoever. I just find myself living life with future worries. Even during my working days, the way I acted in project planning and execution was more on details to ensure everything is taken care of. I always in the mind of, 'what if', 'maybe this will happen. So always have a backup plan to ensure I have the fallback and the solution to the problem from moving on. In short, it's more on risk management kind of things. 

I won't say, I am on the 'hiatus' mode from the working world because deep inside, I was dying to make a comeback to the working world. I went for 3 interviews after I was laid off. The interviewer put me off. I would say most of the interviewer nowadays kind of looking for the book smart who are good in papers and book jargon. The question on the certain case studies during the interview was more on the theoretical solution than practical. As a person who started working life from the bottom and only obtain a paper in the mid-age of working life, to be honest, the HR or interviewer need to think and analyse the situation given in the real life. Not sure whether anyone understands what I am trying to say here.

Look around and observe the young generation nowadays. They have been growing up in the 'spoon-fed' environment and it's very challenging for them to survive in the real working environment. The working world isn't as beautiful as what your non-working experience lecturer or a lack of field experience government paint to you. No matter what process you have learned in University or College, that was just a foundation or basic things. You must learn to apply and tweak according to the situation. Things won't turn exactly as you imagine no matter how diligent you follow the process. 

Giving the economic situation right now, it will be harder to get a job for someone experienced like me. Most ads kind of look like the company is squeezing the employee dry like a 'dried squid'. People may assume I am choosy. Just put in the more soft word. I am more selective about applying for a job. 

Looking back to my situation right now. It turns out exactly as what I imagined when was in the 30s. I remember being jobless for a while at that time too. Life is hard at that time. I made my own resolution to save hard when I get a job. I did and don't stop working. Every bonus and increment went all the way to my investment accounts. My lifestyle didn't change much except for frequent travel. When others busy owning a smartphone. I only use it around 3 years after the trend started. I bought the China phone though. It's cheap though and at the price that I want to pay. hahaha

I am living this kind of lifestyle, knowing the facts I am one person who always has difficulty in finding a job if I lost one. I don't want to live a suffering life worry about not having a monthly salary. I know how hard it is if it happens to me. 

When I was in my mid-30s, one of the ex-boss asked me during his morning lecture. Can you survive without a monthly salary, if you lost the job next month? If the answer is YES. How long can you live? If your answer is NO, how are you going to continue living? Then he continued. He made his first million at the age of 24 and manage to climb to the CEO position at that very young age. At that point of listening to his lecture, I was disgusted by his boasting. Being a pessimist myself, I really hate his talk at that time. Yeah!!! it sounded like salespeople talk to me. He was 40 plus at that time. I was in the mid-30s. I felt like a super loser when listening to him. Gosh! I am just an Accounts person, for goodness sake. I can earn as much as my employer gave me. I work harder also won't give me more paycheck, what!!!!! The salesperson is different the more they work the more commission they make. They are the profit-making tools in the company. While my department is always considered as a cost centre in any company I work with. The only I can do was squeeze and save hard with whatever I made and always consider job-hopping for more salary increment. I don't live life by the monthly salary. I change my life by living life with my own capability. Meaning if my monthly salary is late into my account, I still can live as usual. That's part of an achievement for me.

No matter how I perceive when listened to my ex-boss preach, at that time. Deep down in my heart, it does register and planted in my mind. I must save with consideration can live and survive without work. YES! I did it now. As I predicted at the age of late 40s lost my job and forced to stay home. 

I am very much thankful to my ex-boss for preaches throughout 3 years plus working under his wings. Your preaches annoyed me so much because reality is hard to accept. I was glad to lend my ears and learned it by hard.