Great Food, AC and weekends…

Three things I like about being in an MNC. Food. Doctor, Me and Meeta never spare an opportunity to boast about the way this company keeps us well fed… Then there is the AC. I know you would say, what is the big deal about the AC? But honestly, for someone who is not used to the Mumbai weather, an AC is the most beautiful thing that happened to human civilization... And then there are the weekends! Infosys taught me to appreciate weekends a lot. Weekends are like a weekly festival . They motivate you to work through the week. And here, with its 5 day working week, makes me love it all the more... Add all these together, plus good pay, nice work culture and there is nothing that you would not like about it! BUT… Yeah there is a ‘but’... I still can’t get over the corporate phobia. I cannot work in a corporate setting. Despite the AC. Despite the weekends… (Anyways what are weekends? The very fact that people look forward to weekends – despite good food, despite AC - so eagerly, proves the quality of work they get to do) Reason 1: The Boss Yes the primary reason for I not wanting to work in a corporate is the ‘boss’. I don’t like bosses. I just don’t. I don’t like to take instructions. I don’t like to prove myself to someone. I don’t like someone assessing me, apart from me. I don’t like the way people work here – to please the boss, to get noticed by the boss... to prove it to him that you are worthy (of what I don’t know)… Reason 2: 8 hours People work here. They really do. But whatever work I do can be very well done in 4 hours instead of 8. Then why can’t I do it in 4 and then be free for the rest of the day? Why do I have to be here for 8 hours, even though there is not enough work to fill the 4 extra hours? Ans : the boss – to prove it to him that you are there. Working(?). That you are there shows you are committed to your work! (???) I fail to understand the logic (if there is any) behind this. I want to do a lot of things in my life. Work will be a part of it too. Those things are equally important to me. Not more. Not less either. If I work efficiently, and finish all my work in 4 hours, and then give the rest of the time for my other interests, does it by any way show my lack of commitment to work? Reason 3: work In Infosys I did testing, documentation etc. Here too I do that. I guess almost 50 % of my work here is an ‘insult to my intelligence’. When I say this, I know people in love with the corporate would argue saying, ‘that’s ok’, ‘taken’... ‘You can’t possibly get everything....’ But well… I do want everything. I do want to use my complete intelligence and yes I do want to stretch my abilities – by abilities I don’t mean my time management abilities or my documentation abilities alone.. I believe I can do work which is more intelligent. So all in all, my last efforts to fall in love the corporate culture seem to be going down the drain too. I really really had hoped I would like corporate somehow – as much as my mom would like me to like this coz she is scared of the one question that I am scared too – ‘If not corporate then what?’ And the weird answers that I give her for this question frighten her! But guess she will have to live with her fears… Corporate still doesn’t seem to be for me... PS: Any efforts by anybody to prove me wrong above are sincerely welcome.