On The Other Side…

During your walk on life’s journey, a stage comes when you start feeling that you are on the other side.

I entered the room and looked around in a big hall with approximately fifty students. The room was tense; some students were reviewing their notes, others were murmuring to each other, and a few were looking at their wristwatches, mentally preparing for what was about to come. Of course, this nervous room was typical of any critical exam.

I went in and took my seat. As I sat in my chair, there was a pin-drop silence. Yes, because I was the examiner for their Viva exam or orals. I looked around to see many faces with varying emotions and expressions. I could sense a high amount of anxiety and excitement coming from the students. I could feel the confusion, admiration, and disapproval aimed at me; I even noticed some students raising their eyebrows, silently questioning my authority. Contrary to them, I was poised and calm. I drank some water, and then I began with the Viva.

In that room, I was the youngest and the tiniest person. I was twenty-two, and my — not-so-impressive and not-so-distinct — five feet, forty-five kg body was mostly invisible in any crowd. In contrast, my students were all in their late forties or fifties, most of my father’s or uncle’s age, all grown older men with gray hair, beards, and mustaches.

It was early 2000; those were the days when the banks and government offices initiated computerization. As a part of the process, they made all their employees mandatory to undergo specific computer courses and certifications. It was a hard time for all these middle-aged men and women to start learning new technology, especially in the days when the term ‘technology’ itself was very uncommon. Their full-time jobs, domestic or personal responsibilities, and age added to their difficulties. On the other hand, I was a fresh graduate of Computer Science, fully equipped to take on all the challenges and, of course, without any additional burdens or responsibilities.

As we proceeded with the interviews, I noticed the expressions on their faces started changing and turning more positive.

With all my empathy and consideration, I could not admit that a cunning and mean version of me was not enjoying the fear of the test in their eyes, their stumbling on difficult questions — of course, difficult for them but super simple for me, and prayers for not getting any tricky question on their plate.

Let’s fast forward a couple of decades.

Now here is me, in my mid-forties, trying to get back to professional life after a break of a few years; despite my continuous efforts during the break to stay up-to-date with changing technologies and processes, I still grapple with the new software apps, slang, the significance and role of social media, and networking.

The recruiters, consultants, and hiring managers are so young, sometimes half my age. Especially in the Crypto world, a large percentage of the crowd is in their twenties, and people in their thirties consider themselves older.

These youngsters are not on WhatsApp or Facebook but on Discord; they talk about bots and channels; they are primarily active on Reddit, listen to podcasts, and tune in to Spotify. Catching up with them, it’s overwhelming!

A few weeks back, I realized that a virtual course I’d joined was posting the links only on their Discord server. I had my son help set up Discord. He explained the bots, channels, and servers and helped me choose the skin and avatar; he never tried to hide the smirk. I remembered the days when I helped my Mom set up her Gmail, Facebook, and WhatsApp; I taught her how to operate computers and make Skype calls.

That smirk helped me register that now I am on the other side!