Monday, December 10, 2007

Woes of ‘flying cheaper’

We were heading to Kathmandu, Nepal. The Kathmandu flight was from Delhi at 11:45AM. The day started at around 6:00AM to catch a connecting flight from Bangalore to Delhi. Known to the uncertainties of cheaper airlines, we still hoped that we don’t get delayed. The hope was almost satisfied or that’s what we thought, cos we boarded the plane and got seated on time.

Then, something went wrong..It looked like AC was not working and we really did not mind that initially. Then came an announcement saying AC unit was not working and the plane cannot take off. The next question was for how long we need to wait and the irony is none of them had an answer! As we started feeling hot inside, all passengers disembarked the plane. It was a hot sunny day and we squatted in the shade of the plane. Time was running and people became furious. Another dismaying fact is that having fault on their side, the airline authorities did not bother to display any tinge of courtesy. Didn’t they go to any airline academy for training in dealing with the customers? It needs no further explanation to emulate the distress experienced by senior citizens/children without food and water

Apparently the AC unit got repaired and then it was realized that there was no fuel. Help from HAL was not at all timely due to internal politics with this specific airline.

It was 2-3 hours of wait in runway watching other planes landing and taking off-experience of my lifetime I should say!

The problem got fixed and we reached Delhi in time to know that we had missed our flight to Kathmandu!!! There was a “no show” for us on that flight and we could not even cancel the tickets.

Our journey continued on another flight, but will there be a “stop” to such traumatic experiences?

Monday, December 03, 2007

Being long in one organization – boon or bane?

Job-hopping has become a natural trend these days. The reasons triggering this may be a hike, or a tiff with current boss or the attrition in your circle/group etc. Irrespective of what it is, impulsive decisions here are not going to pay in a longer run.

Pros
- Everyone knows you, In corporate lingo you are “visible”
- They get back to you for advice, suggestions etc
- You have a say and if you are doing good, you can almost get what you want
- You will be in a quite comfortable zone
- You can tackle issues, people, conflicts very easily as you would be using your expert and experience gained so far
- On the whole, work will be with “less ripples”

Cons
- Monotony, and you hate it if you are big fan of “change”
- Personal and professional growth may get stagnant
- Same ppl, same culture may get to your nerves sometimes
- Boredom, as you can predict exactly what issue would pop up at what time
- You may be looked upon as a Granpa or Granma figure in the team and their characteristics adorn you (Ex. Not welcoming any change)

Given all that, I would say it’s a personal and independent choice. These cons can have their own solutions and there would be no reason to job-hop! Or another perspective is “Do you need a reason at all?”