Long story: of a job that I did not quit.
During my undergrad days in Delhi University, I would often pick up random part time work. That income supplemented the modest living allowance my parents sent every month.
One such job was with a market research firm during my summer vacation. Task was to visit architects and designers listed in a database and get a questionnaire filled by them.
Remuneration: Rs. 50 per form filled - a reasonably attractive amount for a student those days. I was excited.
But the excitement was short lived. I soon discovered the work was not as easy as I had imagined.
Physical exertion of meandering around Delhi localities on foot in scorching summer sun to locate addresses (no Google maps those days) was just one part of the problem. Getting time with my prospects and convincing them to share their information was the harder part.
I barely got any forms filled in the first few days. Was wasting my time and losing more money than I was making. It seemed like an unprofitable venture. I felt like quitting.
Long story short, I eventually did make a decent amount of money over two months of that summer and learnt a lot.
You won't find this job on my CV today. Was reminded of it while talking to an old friend the other day. Couldn't resist reflecting how that summer job early in my life shaped me in powerful ways and paved the way for more fancy things that steal the limelight on my CV today. Some lessons:
1. Power of perseverance: while many who joined with me quit within a week, I stayed on. Part desperation to make money and part a strong desire to make it work.
Lesson: being able to endure rough patches is an advantage like no other.
2. Power of asking: the fact that many were quitting created some bargaining power for me. I used it to negotiate with the firm a different commercial construct that paid a smaller amount for 'effort' and a larger amount for 'outcome'. It completely changed the Economics of this venture for me.
Lesson: you often have to ask to get what you want.
3. Power of practice: with time, I discovered ways to become more efficient at the job. e.g., getting prior appointments, different versions of pitch for different segments within the target group, looking for clues during the conversation, etc.
Lesson: some lessons can be learnt best 'on-the-job' with practice.
4. Power of letting go: despite best effort in planning and execution, I would not be able to convince some prospects. Initially, that rejection felt personal but soon it became normal - pretty much a part of the game. I learnt first hand that no matter how hard you try, there would always be factors beyond your control.
Lesson: worrying too much about things that you can't control takes away energy and focus from things that you can control.
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