
She left her spotlight,
for ‘twas time for young to shine.
She had conquered Time.

“How could you support him?” She yelled, hands on hips, lips pursed in disapproval. Just as I thought she was done, “Him!” She yelled again. Unable to form any more words, she stared while I sipped my soda.
“What’s wrong with him?” He wasn’t the best but he was a good candidate. He created controversies, but also good arguments. And as his bushy hair soared, so did his popularity. I stood my ground, certain that responsibilities will alter attitudes.
“But he contested against me!” She wailed, her eyes welling up. “How could you not support me for class leader, Dad?”
Welcome to the largest conglomerate in the city. You’ll be a part of an exciting team of talented individuals who come together every morning with one major goal: creating world-class products and selling to the world over.
We’re excited that you’ve decided to join these individuals in bringing your skills and unique personality to serve the greater good. We appreciate you and your talent, and as a rewarding gesture, we offer the following work perquisites.
Flexible work hours: We believe that every person has their own schedule and preferences. We respect that. That’s why you can come in and leave at any time you want. What’s more, our office is so comfortable (with couches and bean bags and footrests and sliding drawers) you’d want to come in early, and wouldn’t want to leave.
Recreation: Work while you work, play while you play. That’s our motto — at least it’s one. When a launch drags your workday, you don’t have to risk leaving late. Instead, you can finish it off and spend the night in the office. There’s a sleeping area — separate for men and women.
When you need a break, during the day, you don’t have to get out. Instead, just walk in to the playing area—from tennis and ping pong, to carrom and chess, pick your sport and let the muscles relax. No more healthy gaming in the sun and heading out for unhealthy pizza afterward. Whether you win or lose, we have fresh juice and ice. All inside the campus.
No micro-managing: Our company’s culture is seeded with self-driven teams that organize their own work. No big bosses, no small bosses. No task allocation, no work pressure, no time constraints.
Don’t worry, though. When it’s time for a pay rise, your supervisors will offer what you deserve. We have a successful history of understanding what every employee enjoys doing and letting them do what they want.
We don’t define job roles and responsibilities; everyone’s a marketer and anyone’s a developer, if they’re interested enough.
You may not know where to begin, or how, but it’s our belief that you will learn as you go. And there’s no better way of learning than by doing.
Apart from said perks, you will also enjoy the following:
We’ve built a workplace and a tradition within our company in such a way that our employees are among the happiest in the world. In fact, [insert the name of a big research company] has named our company as the fifth most desirable place to work in [insert current year].
Glad to have you on board.

Basking on the glow,
and the splendour from atop,
sat the crow. A mute.
This is one of my oldest photographs. I stood on my terrace and happened to capture this crow trying to make up its mind whether to fly away or stay awhile. Perched on top of a pole, it looked as indecisive as I felt with my life.