Whenever I go to teach at media schools, I find students wanting to know about how we practice in real world. Most often, I take them on a virtual tour of a day in the life of a communicator. Some of them find it fascinating and most of them starts to think whether they made a right career choice or not. As students of so called reputed institutes, they think that life is as rosy as it is being painted by their professors inside the campuses and they start dreaming about plush offices, cushy chairs and fat pay checks from the day one! “Well my institute is the IIM of communication,” I heard someone saying recently before passing out. He’s still looking for a suitable job!

Now, what are these five things you don’t want to know about…

1. There are no shortcuts to success: You know it but you don’t want to know it. There are shortcuts everywhere, so how can this field be different. If you have plenty of money and your father is a big industrialist, I am sure you would find that shortcut to become the CEO at the age of 22. You may become successful as well. After all, success matters, isn’t it?
2. Everyone starts with a desk job: You know it but you don’t want to know it. Desk job, going through the newspapers, reading client reports, preparing basic drafts of artworks, carrying artwork arounds, fetching that bottle of beer for a ‘ponytail’ wagging senior, collecting copies of adult magazines for Ms. Bose and so on… I did all these and more. It’s part of a learning process as they say it. What’s the plus point – if they like you, they may take you for few client meetings and that’s where the learning starts. If they like you, they may allow you to sit and take minutes of the meeting during creative, planning and briefing meetings – that’s when the learning starts
3. Whatever you have learnt on campus remain on campus: Well, it’s a loaded statement, but most often it is true. I have some funny degrees, which have nothing to do with what I am doing. Well, it gives you some insight into what you are going to do but nothing much. Consider your first job as a beginning of a learning process. Many of the teachers, professors, I believe are little outdated in their approach towards studies. As they call it, people who know it do it and who don’t become teachers. So, consider your first day at a new office as a first day of college
4. Real world has real heros, which are different that the ones you see on campus: The real heros are people like you and me. No big names. They are the one who produces great work for agencies and when it comes to awards or a movie deal, they genuinely pass on the credit to their seniors. Yes. the big names act as magnets and they attract good talent and since they know that freedom can bring them awards – they allow them to create and create and create some super work without being watchdogs. I have a copy of a ‘freedom song’, which is available free of cost to students. I will show it in next class. Meanwhile, if you need it, please write to me and I shall courier it to you
5. Life is not fair to everyone: Let me be little philosophical here. You put in hard work, you put in real smart work too. But, things don’t move the way it should. Accept it and find a solution. Well, it’s easier to preach and that’s what I am doing. Some people are like me, who are stuck with one idea and remain idiots throughout their lives, some people are smart, they move on and make a big splash. The choice is yours. What do you want to become – a human with a heart or a machine with a mind – it makes a difference and that too a big one

Let today’s post remain small and for the students. May be soon, I will have an opportunity to have some guest blogger sharing his or her knowledge on various things. I am working on it and you will soon find someone writing on my blog.

Take care.