Good Question. Well no appreciation from others, so self appraisal. This might be a common topic, but the reason why i had chosen this topic to write is one it has been a long time i wrote and the other one of my friends has gone onsite recently and the problems of
being in onsite has made me write about this.
I have no prior experience of enjoying the facilities/ enjoyment that onsite would provide. So some of the probables which would or could make onsite interesting.
- First and Foremost one gets to lavishly feast on the huge amount of money he/she earns.
- Lots of new and wonderful places to be visited.
- Journey by Air
- Helps during Marriage Proposal
- Food
- Strict timings of not more than 8 hours.
- Internet
- Strictly for Guys -------------------(Up to you to fill it)
Let us take point by point and analyze.
First point is commendable. Worth going onsite for that (only for that). You can play with money once you go there. But as money comes one has to spend (vazhkai oru vattam, innaiku irukarathu nallaiku irukaathu, innaiku irukaathathu nallaiku irukaama pogathu). The expenditure varies on the place where you are posted. One short story which comes to my mind straight away (will keep it short) is
Two Bedroom Flat (Many might have heard of this).
A person goes onsite with the dreams of earning lots and lots of money. His dad would have brought a one bedroom flat with his hard earned money after retirement. But this guy after all the hassle's ends up buying only two bedroom flat. He could have earned more if he had stayed back. Is it real worth to go onsite just for that extra bedroom. I would prefer to stay back.
But this doesnt mean that who ever goes there ends as an spendthrift. One of my colleague has saved nearly 15 lakhs in his short period of 2+ years. He has cleared off all his debts. He could atleast breath some sense of relief now. And from now on what he would earn will be for his own and his family.
Next, i would prefer to onsite only for this. One gets to see a lot of new places. But one question that lingers in my mind when i think of it, Have i seen all the places in my own country. The answer is NO. BUt still everyone has his/ her own reasons for going onsite.
One small question which would come to everyone's mind, if i had to go to onsite only to see the places there, why cant i go on my own. The answer here is quite simple, If i go on
my own i will have to spend more. But i would certainly be saving a lot if my company sends me there.
For those who are travelling for the first time and a long journey, it would be mixed emotions, kind of excitement, thrill combined with fear in their mind. Last week one of my friend was supposed to travel to Chicago and he was going to board the plane for the first time. What he had in mind was only fear on whether he will reach there without facing any problems on the way. He had hell a lot of questions like how he is going to travel for this long, will he face any problem while clearing his visa check etc etc. Those who are frequent travellers may feel bored or some may even have the passion of flying. And lot of rules and regulations that are to be followed visa verification, two or three stops in between, full journey inside the flight, only the sky, flight members and the crew members for company throught the journey. Might be really difficult for those travelling.
I dont know how far it helps for ladies, but for guys it surely becomes a point to boast. Even if the guy doesnt reveal, the first thing that the girl's side would come to know is
the guy is working in US and it would be safe for her to get married to that guy. But one thing that the parents fail to notice is whether the girl and guy would make a perfect pair. Just because the guy is working in US, Everyone thinks he would make a perfect Bridegroom for the girl (Well i dont want to dwell into a totally new and different subject. May be i can take this offline). Again this is not targetted. It might or might not be true.
Food - I would like to totally go against this. It would be very difficult for a normal person to get accustomed to the food there. My friend who had recently gone to Onsite was really petrified when she found out that for just having a Dosa she had to travel a long distance(i dont know how many Kilometre's) there only to find a single Indian restaurant. The food that she takes to office is curd rice and pickle's. The best part is she has to cook her own food. A person having got to enjoy a wide variety of food here in India refusing everything here and going there just to have curd rice. But there are some food buff's who like all the pizza, burger etc. Well i don't like any of those.
Here comes the interesting part. Many people brag about having got a new laptop before they go onsite. It is a devil in the form of disguise. Do you really think you would have to work only for 8 hours. Boss then why are you given those Laptop. Work from home for full 24 hours. And those scintillating night offshore calls (Scintillating - Obviously Sarcastic comment). You never know when you will get a call and what the offshore has in store for you. People here think that people going there just pass their time, but as the famous saying goes the other side of grass is always green. I have heard people spending their full nights in office and turning up in home only for 2 or 3 days in a week. One of my friend in Las Vegas just sleeps for 4 -5 hours a day(the same person who used to sleep for a minimum of 8 - 10 hours in India).
The Internet is the only entertainment you would have while in home or in office. I have heard folks downloading movies every night and watching it. It is like the office throwing
a single biscuit and getting the work done equivalent to that of earning a full biscuit packet (It might or might not hold any relevance here. Sollanum nu thonichu sonna).
The last point i have lots of comments. But i leave it to you. That Fill in the Blanks is for you readers to fill up.
So coming to the conclusion part, according to me going onsite is not worth it leaving your nears and dears behind just for the sake of money. But who knows after writing this much, i may follow suit. Only my fate and the future can tell. But actually speaking, my visa was initiated 2 times in the last 2 years. Last time i lost it in the lot. And this time too the result my status is not yet updated. And the answer i expect from them is "INNUMA INDHA UZAGAM NAMMALA NAMBITTU IRUKU".
P.S --> If you find too much of software lingo, i am sorry but i cant help it.
