Pritam's Blog
I Have Grown Up… And I Have Mixed Feelings About It
I still remember, how, back in college days, we used to get excited at the prospect of having a hot girl in our team whenever there was some team activity or assignment and the members were selected by the teachers.
Yeah, yeah, I know. It’s cheap and superficial and desperate. It was wrong. So, I wouldn’t say anything in my defense.
We never bothered about whether or not the girl was smart, serious and good at things we were supposed to be good at. If she was hot, nothing else mattered.
Things are so different now.
In the past one and half years, I have interviewed so many people for my team at work. But it’s only today that I realized how I have changed…
A candidate had sent an assignment. Before reviewing it, I was doing some routine background check, like going through her LinkedIn profile, checking her social media activities, and the likes.
No, the company doesn’t have any strict requirements when it comes to your social media activities. This is something I do. I mean ours is the Content Team (Marketing) and I prefer people who are passionate about writing and not opted for the profession because they didn’t get any other job. Social media accounts are a good place to understand what sort of writer a particular candidate is or if the candidate is really a writer.
Anyway, as I was going through her accounts, I realized that she’s super hot. Like those girls in magazines. And to be honest, I felt a certain kind of excitement that I used to feel back in college days whenever I was teamed up with a hot girl. Come on, I am just 30! Actually, I am 29. I spent my 30th birthday in lockdown. I didn’t even buy books. So, it doesn’t count.
I went through her assignment. Boy, it’s one of the worst assignments I have ever reviewed. And she had applied for the post of editor. Look at her audacity!
I wrote a long feedback. Not because she is so hot. I always do that for every candidate I interview or review assignments for. I think it’s extremely important to share feedback even with those candidates whom you have rejected. Your 15 minutes can change someone’s life. Mine did. I screwed up the first interview I attended after my masters. I screwed it up royally. The guy literally yelled at me. But he gave detailed feedback and it helped me improve myself. That’s another story.
Anyway, I rejected her and I realized how I have changed. If I were in college and if it were upto me to select members for my team, a part of me would have wanted to choose a hot girl. The shy, socially-awkward, unsmart_with_women me would probably end up choosing a friend I was comfortable with.
It occurred to me that I have grown up. Honestly speaking, I am having mixed feelings about it.