The 3 Letter word "Sir"

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Peep into the offices of most of the organizations in most of the countries of the world and you will notice a similar scene- the boss sitting in his well cushioned wheel chair like a super-human in an expansive manner and the subordinate sitting in front of him across the table belittling himself as much as possible and bending low, squeezing his limbs, trying to occupy as little area on the chair as possible and addressing the boss, after every other word of his dialogue, "Sir, yes sir, very good sir, you are right sir, yes sir and yes sir and .........."

Most people are so much accustomed to this master-slave relationship that a person at the lower rungs of official hierarchy is always treated as a dumb donkey. And this feeling is further aggravated by this three letter word "sir". This word when spoken, creates, immediately, a sense of false inferiority in the subject who speaks this word and a false superiority in the addressee. As soon as this phenomenon takes place, the actual work, the intended results from the work and the real objective of the discussions between the two persons get surrounded by the ego satisfaction of the boss and the selfish motives of the subordinates.

Many bosses feel offended if they are called "Mr so and so", they always expect to be called "sir". The subordinates on the other hand develop an unnecessary guilt feeling if they do not address their bosses with a "sir". In majority of cases, it is not out of respect that a man wants to call other person with a dignified address. It is out of selfishness, fear, doubt and the bad custom. This word "sir" arouses the base feelings of the human beings.

There are three types of situations where you will find the "sir" culture:

1. The boss wants to be addressed "sir" (he wants sycophants around him).

2. The subordinates are in habit of calling their boss as "sir" for some reasons or other (though the boss is quite open-minded on this issue)

3. The boss and subordinate both are used to it.

It is surprising that not many human behavior experts have seriously identified this calling each other "sir" a major stumbling block in the development and progress of the human society in most parts of the world. In few organizations, in some parts of the world, they encourage address by the first names or surnames and in a way, it reflects that there is no master and there is no slave. But it is doubtful if a subordinate at a junior rung or for that matter even at a higher rung of the hierarchy will be accepted addressing any CEO or Chairman of an organization or a president or prime minister of a country by his first name or as "Mr so and so".

If "sir" is used as a mark of reverence, it has different connotation- no motives are attached.

It is time that every organization every where in the world tries to scrap this kind of address and promotes a healthy man to man relationship. This should start from homes, schools and colleges. The teachers and professors should take pride in being called by their names by their students. Mere usage of the word "sir" does not bring in the sense of discipline. It's time we change our values on "what is discipline".

Reason of Switching Jobs

There are many deeply personal reasons to change your employment situation. However, from a purely strategic point of view, there are four good reasons to change jobs within the same (or similar) industry three times during your first ten years of employment: 

Reason #1:

Changing jobs gives you a broader base of experience: After about three years, you've learned most of what you're going to know about how to do your job. Therefore, over a ten year period, you gain more experience from “three times 90 percent” than “one times 100 percent.” 

Reason #2:

A more varied background creates a greater demand for your skills: Depth of experience means you're more valuable to a larger number of employers. You're not only familiar with your current company's product, service, procedures, quality programs, inventory system, and so forth; you bring with you the expertise you've gained from your prior employment with other companies.

Reason #3:

A job change results in an accelerated promotion cycle: Each time you make a change, you bump up a notch on the promotion ladder. You jump, for example, from project engineer to senior project engineer; or national sales manager to vice president of sales and marketing.

Reason #4:

More responsibility leads to greater earning power: A promotion is usually accompanied by a salary increase. And since you're being promoted faster, your salary grows at a quicker pace, sort of like compounding the interest you'd earn on a certificate of deposit. 

Many people view a job change as a way of promoting themselves to a better position. And in most cases, I would agree. However, you should always be sure your new job offers you the means to satisfy your values. While there's no denying the strategic virtues of selective job changing for the purpose of career leverage, you want to make sure the path you take will lead you where you really want to go. 

For instance, there's no reason to change jobs for more money if it'll make you unhappy to the point of distraction. In fact, I've found that money usually has no influence on a career decision unless it materially affects your lifestyle or self-identity. 

To me, the “best” job is one in which your values are being satisfied most effectively. If career growth and advancement are your primary goals, and they're represented by how much you earn, then the job that pays the most money is the “better” job.

6 tips for Switching jobs

1. Higher salary shouldn’t be the only reason

Often, the stimulus to move jobs is a higher salary, with little regard for the quality of work, the employer’s brand name, future career prospects, the potential for enhancement of skill levels and the opportunity to assume more responsibility. Don’t ignore these soft issues completely just because you are getting a higher salary offer.

2. Timing

Candidates often argue, “I am just about to get my annual appraisal and my salary is expected to go up by 20%, so if I move to your organization, it will be for at least a 25% salary hike.” If you are so confident about a salary hike, and are happy with your current job, why move at all?

If you do want to move for other reasons, time your move so that you have your increment in the bag, and better negotiating ability during an interview. 

3. Negotiating your cost to company (CTC)

Even if the actual CTC is the same as your previous job, structure it so that the cash in hand can be higher than it was in the previous job. This might be particularly important given the new rules announced in the budget, under which fringe benefits offered to you will now be taxable in your hands as perquisites. Understand how you can maximize your take-home pay, because that is what matters at the end of the day.

4. Pricing yourself out of the market

Today there are several junior employees in organizations with very little experience but with high CTCs because they have moved numerous jobs in rapid succession. They don’t realize that the high salaries they are getting are not usually because of their performance, but often because the base level has gone up every time they have changed jobs.

But without a commensurate increase in their experience or skill level, there will come a time when they could find themselves at a dead end or priced out of the market. Employers want employees who can add value to the organization, and not just get paid a high salary because that is the expectation from that industry. 

5. Performance evaluation criteria

Understand the basis of your performance evaluation in your new job and preferably, have the key performance targets given to you in writing so that there is no ambiguity during the year-end review at the time of your bonus payment.

Don’t make job change decisions in haste, without understanding whether what is expected of you is realistic or not. Stretch yourself in the new job to develop skills and gain experience, but don’t set yourself up for failure.

6. Notice period

Respect the notice period owed to your current employer. Don’t make a short-term decision to abandon your current job without any notice—it can come back to hurt you if you acquire the reputation of someone who does not respect common professional courtesies. See if you can buy out your notice period from your employer.

Bonus

Understand your key result areas and the formula for your bonus calculation, what benchmark is being used to arrive at your bonus—sales, productivity, profitability, controlling attrition, etc.

Notice period

It can be typically one–three months, depending upon seniority. In many cases, you might be able to pay the equivalent of your monthly salary in lieu of serving your notice period.

PF

Use Form 13 to transfer your account to your new employer.

Insurance

Always maintain 5–10 times your life cover, and for a family of four, maintain a minimum of Rs2 lakh floater health insurance coverage.

Salary

Don’t always expect 20% hikes. Put together a business case for yourself that shows you deserve an increment to move.

Esops

Encash all vested options that are “in the money” and understand your tax liability at the time of encashing.

CTC structuring

Understand that you will now pay taxes on fringe benefits (or perquisites) paid to you by your company at the marginal tax rate.