I was on a meeting and someone asked me,
"How and why do you have that Google mug?"
I replied, "Because I used to work there."
A very small number of people know that my very first job, out of college, was at Google. In fact, it was the very first company I interviewed at.
At SRCC campus placements, Google was the first company I applied to, along with more or less all of my batch. At that time, it was commonly known as a 'dream' to be working at Google. Remember - this was a time post the bursting of the tech bubble. Google had come out victorious. Also, with all new features like YouTube and multiple other verticals, it was the place to be. (not that it isn't now)
Anyway, after about eight interview rounds, where I was asked questions I never expected in interviews, I was one of the few selected to work there.
My time at Google was great. I realized that while the whole 'dream job' thing was maybe a bit overrated, Google was the perfect place for me to learn how to work. The healthy competition, the uniqueness of every challenge coming my way, the scale at which my actions affected the WORLD - my tenure there was the perfect preparation for the rest of my career.
I can speak about this forever, but the fact is this - every time I look at my mug, I remember my experience of working at Google fondly, and I thank my team - including, among others, the gang who had joined along with me: Vibhav Nigam, Alistair Braganza and Rushil Grover, my clients and the company in general for being the perfect launchpad for everything I achieved post them.
P. S. Thank you to Mridula Saria for the diary!
#workingatgoogle
