"My 10 Years of Unemployment" - Sevalaya Murali

I am enjoying my ten years of unemployment! I quit my corporate job on 31st March, 2009 and now one decade is over, after I have started a full time volunteer work.  

I joined PSI Data systems in Bangalore, after I completed my Engineering in Indian Institute of science in 1984. My first appraisal was due at the end of my first year in service and the appraisal form had the usual question “What do you want to become after 5 years and 10 years?”.  I had answered “Nothing”. My boss was shocked to see this answer and called me and tried to explain the significance of this question. “You see, we want to know your aspirations so that your career growth can be planned properly”. I told him “My priorities in life are different.”    After three years in PSI, I moved to TCS and spent 22 years. In 2009, I completed 25 years in corporate life. My initial thinking was to work only for 25 years and leave the job and do only free charity work thereafter. Meanwhile in 1988 I had founded Sevalaya and the organization was also growing big and required my full time participation. To make the tax calculations easy, I had decided to quit on 31st March, 2009, being the financial year end. So I put in my papers in TCS, giving proper notice period and walked out of corporate life as planned.  My wife knew my plans, may be even before I knew it, so she was very supportive of my decision.

My father was shocked, he was almost in tears. “All your children are still students. There is no earning member in the family. How can you just throw away a good job like this? Who knows what type of expenses will come in future”. I tried to comfort him telling that I have made all calculations and saved enough in 25 years of IT job and so no need to worry about financial status.  Now after 10 years, I have had a comfortable living, my family didn’t suffer and we are all okay! I could have earned more and more money and may be created more wealth for my family, but at the cost of denying myself what I really wanted to do!  Time has proved that I did take the right decision. 

Having Mahakavi Bharathi, Mahatma Gandhi and Swami Vivekananda as my bosses and seeing so many underprivileged get benefited gives its own joy and fulfillment. Yes, the work is tough, may be thankless job sometimes, but as long as I am happy with what I am doing, who cares!

When I walked out of my office on 31st March 2009 and got into my car, I told my driver “That’s it. I have resigned and we don’t have to come to this car park anymore. “ My driver quickly responded “From today, I don’t think there will be time to park the car. I may have to drive the car all over Tamil nadu, non-stop. “ Yes, his words have come true. In the last 10 years, Sevalaya has opened eight more branches in Thiruvallur, Kanchipuram, Pudhucherry, Thanjavur, Thirunelveli etc.    

The wheels keep rotating.

From
Muralidharan
Founder & Managing Trustee
Sevalaya
21-March-2019