After a break of about 2 years - 2023 Jan I started blogging again and wrote my first post of 2023 on Jan 1 - https://sandeeprshah.blogspot.com/2023/01/here-i-go-again-first-post-of-2023.html This was followed by few medium posts - ie technical blogs. Has been a decent outing there and I wish to continue that too.
Now I post another one to close of the year.
It hasn't been a smooth sailing year. Lots of highs and a few really low moments—though not now, but maybe sometime in the far distant future, I might delve into the details. I wanted to get this off my chest before I delve into all the positive aspects of 2023.
In 2023, on 2nd January, I commenced my journey with Volvo, Bangalore, and my entire year has revolved around it. In my nine years of professional career, this is the first time I feel that it's the year's end—a closure of a chapter or whatever you may call it. It's time to come back next year stronger, bolder, and wiser. It wasn't something I was looking forward to; in fact, I never thought about this. But then, you experience it out of nowhere, and it makes me feel blessed. It also made me realize that 'This can happen too.' Most of my 2023 has been filled with these pleasant surprises.
Thanks to Christmas and the global/European culture, most people are on year-end leave. Some are celebrating Christmas, some are utilizing accumulated leaves, and some are taking well-deserved time off. Hence, I am relaxed too. I can refocus on new learnings, take a couple of steps back on other projects, view them from a different perspective, and continue the work next year.
Let me review the points I sought when transitioning from Mahindra to Volvo:
1. I desired my work to be more focused on data science/analysis and to have a support system aiding my machine learning projects—precisely what I found.
2. I aimed to collaborate with more data scientists—I eagerly sought this since my previous role lacked someone to turn to for machine learning queries. Had I been in a traditional CAE Crash role, I'd have had numerous experts to learn from, but not in ML. Fortunately, here at Volvo, I'm surrounded by a diverse set of minds and experts in my team. I learn something from everyone. In 2024, I hope to become an expert in any field to contribute more to the team, leading to a better win-win situation.
What else did I acquire unexpectedly—things I hadn't asked for initially (not covering all points):
From my perspective:
1. A cool culture—I adore the constant smiles, jokes, and camaraderie within the team. I seldom experience a serious day at work. People are committed to their work, as evident from the recognitions they receive, and it's a lively environment. Water cooler or coffee cup conversations are encouraged, and the infrastructure supports that too.
2. Working with intelligent colleagues—I'm constantly learning something new from everyone at work. Each person brings something unique to the table.
3. My Manager and Technical Lead (as I refer to them)—I've mentioned earlier that I've had good managers at different points in my career, and that continues here. I've formed bonds with my teammates with whom I can share every aspect of my life, contributing to my psychological well-being and happiness.
4. Continuous guidance—this is something I've always desired in my career, and here I receive it without even asking. The ecosystem ensures continuous feedback, and I can also proactively seek additional guidance when required.
Now, don't get me wrong about Mahindra—I had a really good time there too, and I had really good friends who helped me through thick and thin. Mahindra is where I started my work, and I was fortunate that my manager encouraged and pushed me to work in areas that were my strengths or things I enjoyed learning (automation back then). That actually laid the foundation for my other career moves.
I had colleagues there who helped me understand office politics—what should and shouldn't be done. I even took up the role of arranging monthly team meetings and yearly team outings—quite ironic since I don't see myself as a party person! Anyway, it was fun back there—except for the last six months or so when things seemed to come to a halt, and my daily motivation to go to work faded. That's when I felt it was no longer a win-win situation. In fact, I saw it as a loss-loss situation for the company and myself. I was fortunate to get the break with Volvo.
Okay, coming back to the title again—'When you get more than you asked for—2023!' Bangalore is notorious for traffic, high rent, and sometimes rude house owners—but I have that sorted out too. My house owner, who lives next door, has been great so far and always smiles when we cross paths. My office is about 4 km from home, and I take the metro and feeder bus, reaching the office in about 30 minutes or so. Thanks to the little traffic, I can catch up on my book reading for 20-30 minutes daily when the bus waits at signals.
Fitness—again, it's been on and off. There were times when I ran 8 km without much struggle and maintained the tempo. Today, I couldn't make it to 2 km but have been doing 5 km daily. Just before Diwali, I was at 78 kg (currently at 80 kg), the lightest I've been in the last three years. So far, so good.
Most of the things seem to have worked out!
I can't help but come back to point one. I don't believe in showing only half the picture; I want to present the complete picture. So when I started my work, I was happy, confident, and actually taking it slow. Things were okay-okay, and suddenly, I snapped. Some 2-3 months back, I felt defeated—I saw no way out, and my past victories seemed to offer little help. Then, my support system kicked in—my bestie, cousin, and my newly formed friends at the office helped me out, and now I'm back with new energy. I can dream again for a better tomorrow.
In my life, I've always felt that I got everything easily, and I hardly had to struggle for anything. Maybe this was a lesson to prepare for hard work (perhaps I was avoiding that) and to move ahead with a new perspective. I cracked IITB easily, and marathon training, though it took years, I could finish it with ease. Perhaps those things came naturally to me, so hard work didn't feel like work—I don't know. Now I am clear about what I want and in which direction I should move forward. This year-end relaxation couldn't have come at a better time.
I want to write something about FEA/FEM (Finite Element Analysis) and how it has shaped my career—but I will reserve that for the next post.
I would love to hear your story and your perspective on my story!"
