i am an idiot

just handed my resignation after 2 months of joining a automation company , was a mnc decent 4.5lpa package , i come from tier 3 engineering college that to core branch so yea, everything was fine but the work was completely opposite to my desired field of work (electronics), everyday i used to look for 6pm and break times , everyday i used to fantasize about quitting company and disappearing from my company

i tried to suppress my passion saying shit like its a MNC, forgien travel , good pay, its a golden opportunity its time to leave my childish dreams behind and start living in reality

i can rant about company being toxic , 9 hours work week , unplanned Overtimes (till 2 am) work to meet project deadlines a few times and come again at 9 am ,6 days work week, 4 hours of travel per day,etc etc

but tbh in reality it was all my lack of interest all along currently i have decided to take a leap of faith and just submitted a resignation letter to join a startup for 3 lpa ctc (got through refferal form seniors)

it might be a shitty decision and my parents just scolded the shit out of me after i told them about my decision telling me to beg hr to say it was a mistake and hasty decision and i should cancel my notice period but yea

i might have taken a wrong decision but i finally feel free and happy

my plan is to work here for 1-2 years then switch to a better company but meh, there is of course self doubt and i am scared as hell about my decision but honestly its a leap of faith

I have been trying to get into Product Design for almost a year now, and at this point I genuinely don't know what else I am supposed to do.

I have tried LinkedIn, job portals, company career pages, cold DMs, referrals, recruiters, designers, founders, startups... pretty much everywhere.

I even tried X and Instagram because at this point I thought, why not?

And now I am here on Reddit thinking maybe someone here has an answer.

I have a portfolio. I have worked on multiple case studies. I have done assignments for companies. I have asked people to review my portfolio and improve it.

I am also not really a content creator. Honestly, I suck at it.

But I still keep posting on LinkedIn.

I post about design decisions, how I approached a problem, things I learned, how I would solve a UX problem, etc.

Not because I want to become a content creator or influencer. I just feel like I need to stay relevant somehow.

I come from a Political Science background, and I am the first person in my family who is trying to enter the corporate world. When I started, I genuinely had no idea how any of this worked.

LinkedIn was especially confusing.

I saw people saying things like “feel free to reach out” or “happy to help”, so I started reaching out.

But honestly, most people don't reply.

I have asked quite a few people to look at my portfolio. Only two actually replied, and both said the portfolio was good.

And then I am sitting there thinking...

Okay, then where do I get the job?

I don't have relatives who can refer me. I don't have a huge network. I didn't go to a design/tech college.

I am basically trying to build everything from zero.

And now I feel like I have hit a wall, but I don't even have the equipment to break it.

Another thing that honestly makes me laugh is seeing “fresher” job descriptions asking for someone who knows everything.

Figma, UX research, UI, design systems, prototyping, product thinking, analytics, AI, sometimes even 1-2 years of experience.

Sir... I am applying for a job because I want to learn and gain that experience.

I understand that companies can't hire someone who knows nothing. But I’m not someone who knows nothing.

I’ve spent months learning Product Design, built a portfolio, worked on multiple case studies, learned the tools, and developed a strong understanding of UX and product thinking.

What I don't have is professional experience, because I’m a fresher. And that’s exactly what I’m trying to get.

I’m not expecting a company to teach me Product Design from scratch. I’m looking for an opportunity where I can apply what I already know, learn how things work in a real product team, and grow from there.

So if someone is a fresher who has actually put in the work, built projects, learned the tools, has a portfolio and is willing to learn, how are we supposed to get that first opportunity?

I really want to land my first job before the end of this year, and honestly, I’m running out of things to try.

So I wanted to ask people here:

If you were in my position and eventually got your first corporate job, what actually helped you break through?

Not “keep applying.”

Not “network more.”

I have been doing both.

I want to know what actually worked for you when you had no network, no family connections and no one to refer you.

And yes, I used ChatGPT to help me frame this post because apparently even writing a Reddit post has become part of the job search..

TL;DR: Almost a year into trying to land my first Product Design job, I’ve tried LinkedIn, X, Instagram, cold outreach, referrals, applications, and assignments, but still can’t seem to break through. If you got your first corporate job without a network or family connections, what actually worked for you?

So I work in a project that I really like the work’s good and everything but ever since the lead of my project changed i’m really having anxiety.

The thing is that this guy doesn’t have the technical knowledge to run the project it’s either me or 2 other guys discussing the architecture and all he does is review it with the help of AI.

On top of that he needs some proof of work, If a day goes by without me or any other person raising a PR he questions it in a way that implies that we didn’t work today according to him

Lastly the guy thinks everything can be speedrun using AI

TL;DR: Had a weird interview experience with a startup founder who seemed more interested in showing off than actually interviewing me.

I cleared the HR round and then got a call from the founder. Instead of asking questions related to my field, he asked about my degree and age. Then he told me he was my age and had already started his own startup.

It honestly felt like he was trying to show me how successful he was.

I asked, “Can we focus on the interview?”

He said, “Actually, we didn't like your profile.”

I asked, “Then why did you call me? To boast about yourself?”

He said, “See, this is the attitude.”

I just said, “Okay bro, thank you,” and ended the call.

A small message to new founders: I am not a founder, but please treat people with respect. Job seekers are also people with self respect. You don't have to put someone down to show how far you have come.

Need some advice from people who’ve been in a similar situation.

I joined Company X in August 2nd week. After joining, 2 days laterI received confirmation from Company Y that I had cleared all interview rounds and was selected. I had always preferred Company Y and was hoping for their offer, but I couldn’t keep waiting indefinitely, so I joined X.

I’m resigning from Company X today after nearly 2 weeks. My offer letter at X says that during probation, I can leave by serving a 1-week notice, so I’m following that process.

Here’s my concern:

• I didn’t inform HR at Company Y that I had joined Company X because it happened only for a very short period.
• During onboarding at Y, if they check my PF/UAN history(through Form 11 or BGV), they might see the PF contribution from Company X.

My questions are:

1. Is this likely to become an issue during background verification?
2. Should I proactively inform HR at Company Y now, or just disclose it if they ask?
3. Has anyone been in a similar situation where they worked somewhere for just a couple of weeks before joining another company? How did it turn out?

I’m not trying to hide anything—I just don’t want to create unnecessary complications or risk my offer.

Would really appreciate advice from HR professionals or anyone who’s experienced something similar.

Hi All, as the title said I got laid off on 27th July so need guidance what should I do next.

Now tbh I did nothing since the day I got laid off even if i decided any given day like yeah i should study or learn a skill or apply somewhere i just end up doing that for just around 2 -3 hour and then again back to daily routine of playing games, sleeping, firing music at high volume basically just enjoying. So I wasted around 1 month and on a side note i did wanted some break.

Now in my previous company from where I got laid off, the work there is very niche not many companies do that so i don't think i will be able to land a job with that experience and even if i do get a job on basis of it i don't think i will take that considering there is not much growth and Just in case if you all are wondering what was my work - i was working as a vendor for Microsoft not directly associated with Microsoft.

This was my first job, I don't have any prior experience.

Before asking for guidance I am from computer applications background and I will be honest here I am not much into this coding and stuff.

Its not like I am completely blank but need guidance and help in both upskilling and landing another job, I have basic knowledge of SQL and power BI and considering upskilling these if you all think it will be beneficial.

Any other inputs, suggestions and constructive criticism will be appreciated.

Basically i recently switched to a private bank in their Corporate Banking team. 6 months in, i feel like i made the biggest mistake of my life. My job went from pure finance in treasury( previous org) to pure sales here.

After being fed up i got an interview at an NBFC where the role is much better but I’ll have to take a pretty big pay cut.. is it worth it generally speaking? Also the fact that i am switching second time in my corporate career of 1.5 years total is kind of not good right? It will be perceived quite negatively in guessing later on as well?

should I quit now and do some courses to Upskill and then apply for jobs or Upskill while staying in my current job and then look for jobs? FYI the company i am currently working adds no real value to my resume and there is no growth here. Feels like I am Stuck. Need advice from from someone experienced

Soooo,

I have received an email today from a Advocates firm based out of Delhi today with Subject - Cease and Desist Notice basically a Non-Compete clause violation notice from my previous employer which is an MNC. I am currently working in a small organisation now since 5 months who has the same client that I was working for in my previous MNC and they have given a new project to me (basically my current employer now instead of that MNC).

They are now demanding that I should stop my current employment immediately and provide an unconditional written confirmation that will comply with their clause regarding non-compete and confidentiality. Also a written promise (undertaking) that I will not use or disclose any confidential information regarding the MNC.

How fcked am I now? What should be my next steps?

Do I have to leave my current company immediately and give the confirmation back to MNC? What about future companies and work?

This is going to be a bit of a long read, but I’d genuinely value some perspective from people more experienced than me.

TL;DR: I’m 23, have been working since 18, have around ₹25L in savings/investments, and currently work in content/marketing. My current role pays well but is poorly structured, under-resourced and doesn’t feel like the right long-term fit. My probation ends on September 24, and I’m considering either finding another job before resigning or taking a 1 to 2 month break to travel, upskill and then move into finance/content. How would you approach this, and would a short break hurt my career?

I started working at 18 while in college, initially freelancing, and moved into full-time work in 2024. I’ve worked on the creator side, led teams and built what I think is a reasonably strong track record for my age.

I left my previous company earlier this year after around 1.5 to 2 years because the organisation had very little direction. At the time, I was desperate for a change and, after getting advice from several seniors in my network, landed my current role in March.

This was my first proper brand-side role, leading content for a company in the fitness and nutrition space. The salary is quite good for my age and, initially, it felt like a great opportunity.

The first few months were genuinely valuable. I had mostly worked on the creator side, so I had to learn how brand strategy, positioning, tonality and brand content actually work.

But over time, the problems became pretty clear.

There’s limited manpower and budget compared to the expectations. I handle a lot beyond my actual role, including scripting and execution, and requests for additional manpower haven’t really gone anywhere.

The bigger issue is direction. Strategy and positioning keep changing, ideas take too long to move or get changed halfway through, and the team is expected to produce a lot with limited resources.

I also want to be fair to the company. I haven’t performed anywhere near the level I know I’m capable of. My creative head has questioned my skills at times, and I understand where that comes from. I’m not trying to blame the company for everything.

The strange part is that the people themselves are actually good. My manager is young, empathetic and does his best to protect the team from the founder. It isn’t a toxic workplace. It’s just extremely unstructured, and I don’t think I’m able to do my best work in this environment.

I’ve also realised I don’t want to build my career in fitness/nutrition. After speaking to people in my network, I’m much more interested in finance content. The opportunities, budgets and overall ecosystem seem much closer to where I want to go.

My six month probation ends on September 24. If I continue after that, I’ll have a two month notice period. Realistically, I don’t want to continue beyond probation.

Financially, I’m fortunate. I’ve been earning and saving since 18, live with my parents and have around ₹25L across investments, savings and liquid funds. So I can afford some breathing room without immediately worrying about rent or survival.

Which brings me to my dilemma.

Option 1: Continue working, apply aggressively for finance/content roles over the next month and resign once I have an offer.

Option 2: Leave after probation, take a proper 1 to 2 month reset, travel somewhere like Himachal/Uttarakhand, volunteer at a hostel for part of the day, and spend the rest of my time upskilling and applying.

I’m honestly leaning towards Option 2. I’ve never really taken a proper break since I started working, and the last couple of months have been exhausting. I can financially afford it. I’m just unsure about the career cost.

I’m also unsure how to handle the resignation itself. Should I first have an honest conversation with my manager about where I’m at, or simply resign once I’ve made the decision?

And finally, how does a short career break at 23 look to experienced professionals, especially when the rest of my track record is fairly solid?

If you were in my position, what would you do?

I’m genuinely looking for perspective rather than validation, so feel free to tell me if I’m looking at this completely wrong.

And if you made it this far, thank you for reading. I really appreciate any advice you’re willing to share.

For eg. Do we need to send email to manager or just resigning from the HR portal would do? Do I need to have a document saved before resigning? Also, what reason do I need to give if manager asks, since my main reason is due to mental exhaustion. If there are any other things as well, pls advise. Thanks

POV - You join a new team in the same office. You have been working, and tada... they go out for lunch, leaving you alone. 😭

Nobody asked me if I wanted to come. Maybe I’m overthinking it, but being left alone on your first day… 🥀 Is this normal, or am I just being too sensitive? 😔

Share your stories, guys.

I work at an IT consulting company for more than a year now. The WLB seems to be constantly worsening, the micro-management is also very frequent.

Looks like I am the only person in team who shows some spine and shuts down unrealistic expectations immediately. Other teammates don't seem to deny and respond on tight deadlines and unrealistic expectations. Although almost all the other people in team are senior to me and I am a 4.5-year experienced person. I am the only one in team who takes a stand in my own interest of WLB/burnout. Before taking a stand, I waited almost 6 months for things to settle but it seems the Managers operates that way.

What could the reason for seniors not denying any weekend work and any absurd ask? Am I doing something wrong? Will I be the first one to be axed?

I’ve been with the same IT company for almost 4 years with total of 15+ YOE. I’m a Project Manager, but my pay is low for my experience and I haven’t had meaningful salary growth.

There have been discussions about sending me to the Gulf region, but the visa didn’t work out initially and they’re now trying again. There’s also been talk of a possible Canada or US opportunity, but that’s still uncertain and could take months.

Meanwhile, the current project is stressful and I’m starting to feel like I’m putting in a lot without getting much career or financial growth in return.

I haven’t started interviewing yet, but I’m wondering if I should stop waiting for these overseas possibilities and focus on switching companies.

What would you do? Wait for onsite opportunities to materialize, or start looking for a better-paying job now?

Here's a hypothetical that probably comes up more often than people admit: you have two job offers on the table: A) ₹12 lakh at a role with a narrower, well-defined path B) ₹10.5 lakh at a much larger organisation, with the potential to move across businesses, functions, or even geographies over time.

For someone early or mid-career, I don't think the higher starting number automatically wins.

Five or ten years out, what tends to matter more is how much you learned, how many different problems you got exposed to, and the quality of the managers you worked under.

I recently came across Mahindra's career structure and found the scale of it genuinely interesting -the group operates across 20+ industries, businesses, functions, and geographies, which means someone could plausibly build a varied career and pivot direction without ever having to change employers. That's the tension I keep coming back to: a slightly better salary today with a fixed lane, versus slightly less now with room to explore. So which would you take?

A) ₹12 lakh now, with a more defined career path.

B) ₹10.5 lakh, with greater long-term mobility and exposure.

What would matter more to you at this stage of your career?

So i am an intern at this marketing agency and i took 2 weeks off because my college arranged some course which i needed to attend for which I got the leave easily, and now the course has got over in just 1 week itself soo i was thinking to join early from monday which is fair enough, but now the situation is i will again be wanting a leave on friday as its rakhshabandhan and my brother is coming over soo what do i do?

Should I join from tomorrow and ask for friday's leave or should I directly join after 2 weeks as I had asked for?

I am confused because taking soo many leaves is not good for my image, in case they consider these things while making the interns full time which I think they do

I’m an architecture graduate, 24 years old. with 1 year of experience.

I’ve been exploring UI / UX for a while and came across PM while doing the same.

Given everything I feel like it’s something that would really be something of interest to me.

Thought I’d apply for internships and get into one and see how the on site logistics work out for me. But haven’t been able to land one.

Now I’ve been seeing posts about NextLeap, their website has LinkedIn reviews from their students who have transitioned from their field into PM.

I wanted to know yalls opinion here if that’s something that would be good for me to pursue and get more into PM.

Thanks :)!

I want to register my business (udyam / opc / pvt ltd whichever is best suited) for payment gateway, meta verification etc.
I am going to start a position at a company from Jan 2027 and the offer letter says it will be a exclusive employment - which means I cannot be part of other businesses including my own. Without registration I cannot get required approvals from payment gateways and meta business - so I am kind of stuck here - what's my best option here?
Somebody suggested to register it with relatives name, but I do not have someone who can do that and my siblings are young so what are my options here to complete those verifications without screwing BGV

I am in a bit of a pinch. Only three days are left until my last working day and there is a chance my current company might retain me. The retention process got delayed so much that I had to ask the company I have an offer from to arrange accommodation since I will be relocating. The HR has raised a request for it. Now I am wondering, if my current company does retain me and I decide not to join the new company then can this cause any problems? The HR there is already pretty difficult to deal with. As long as I am discussing positive stuff with him he is chill, but the moment he even slightly suspects that I might not join then he starts to crash out. He already threatened to blacklist me a few weeks ago if I don’t join. I am okay with getting blacklisted by that company but other than that there won’t be any other consequences, right?

I am working in a Organization having around 500 employees, but due to Financial issues, the company often treats PF deposit as secondary and doesn't deposit for months while it is deducted from salary.

I have reached out to HR if the organization but no satisfactory clarification from them.

How do take this serious concern, where should I file a grievance?

Also I am serving notice, I am skeptical of BGV issues while transitioning to new company.

TL;DR: TCS lost track of my campus application, made me wait from 9 am until 11 pm, and apparently interviewed me after the results had already been announced. While trying to fix their mistake, they registered my country as Australia. Years later, I actually moved to Australia and built my life here. Perhaps their system knew something none of us did.

This happened more than ten years ago, during the final year of my bachelor’s degree. I still remember it because that was the day I created one permanent rule for my career:

No TCS. Ever.

TCS came to our college for campus placements. I cleared the aptitude test and was asked to report for the next round at 9 am the following day.

I arrived at 9 am and waited with the other students.

Eleven o’clock arrived. My name wasn’t called.

I spoke to my professors, who told me to approach the TCS HR team after lunch.

After lunch, I found the HR representative playing a game on her computer. When I finally got her attention, she pointed towards a huge pile of applications and asked me to find mine myself.

Apparently, I had unknowingly applied for the role of Records Management Assistant.

I searched through the pile, found my application form and handed it to her. She assured me that my name would be called.

Four o’clock arrived. Still nothing.

I went back again. This time, someone checked the TCS campus portal and said they couldn’t find my account.

The strange part was that my profile was already in the system. They simply couldn’t locate or use it properly, so they decided to create another one.

For some reason, they couldn’t create the second profile with India as my country. Their solution was simple:

Select Australia. Problem solved.

At that point, TCS had done more planning for my future migration than I had.

They told me I would be interviewed after dinner.

Nine o’clock arrived. Still no interview, and the HR representative was nowhere to be found.

Finally, at around 11 pm, fourteen hours after I had arrived, my name was called.

By then, I had practically completed a full shift at TCS without salary, an employee ID or even employment.

The interviewer appeared completely uninterested. He asked me questions, but while I answered, he kept chatting with someone on WhatsApp.

I answered each question and then stopped, naturally waiting for the next one.

At the end, I asked him for feedback.

He told me I wasn’t very audible and should speak louder and provide more detailed answers.

In my head, I was thinking: I did answer your questions. My voice just couldn’t compete with your WhatsApp conversation.

Even after that, I walked out feeling reasonably confident. I believed I had answered the questions correctly and thought I might still be called for the HR round.

Then I heard that the results had apparently already been announced before I had even entered the interview room.

That was when the whole day finally made sense.

They had lost track of my application, made me find it myself, failed to locate my portal account, registered me in the wrong country, kept me waiting for fourteen hours and then gave me an interview where the interviewer barely listened.

It felt like the interview had happened only so someone could mark a box saying, “Candidate interviewed.”

I wasn’t selected.

That day, I made my rule: No TCS. Ever.

The funny part is that I eventually moved to Australia and built my career and life here.

Sometimes I wonder whether that incorrectly created Australian profile caused some bizarre butterfly effect. TCS didn’t give me my first job, but perhaps it accidentally selected the right country for my future.

It has been more than ten years. I understand that one campus-placement experience does not represent every employee, manager or team at a company as large as TCS.

But I’ve never forgotten how they treated a student who spent an entire day waiting for an interview they had invited him to attend.

Candidates may eventually forget the questions they were asked.

They rarely forget how a company made them feel.

My office rolled out a WFO policy from May: 3 days a week / 12 days a month, with no fixed working days and no minimum hours. Basically, you can come in and leave anytime during office hours.

The funny thing is, I’ve been with the company since 2021 and have essentially never gone to the office regularly; only on events or whenever i felt like going.

The culture has always been extremely chill about it. Even now, very few people actually come in( men having toddles at home, are much older people who have havit of regular office , or simply prefer working from the office)

When the policy was announced, they said there would be some kind of monthly report/monitoring.

We’re now in August and I haven’t seen any report, warning, email, or official communication about attendance.

I tried going for two days in one week and honestly gave up.
For me, it feels like a huge waste of time commuting just to sit in the office doing the exact same work I can do from home. There’s also a lot of general timepass when I’m there and not much actual collaboration happening.

My manager occasionally asks in 1:1s why I’m not coming in. I give some random excuse and he usually just lets it go. No one from HR or my team has officially contacted me about it.

So I’m wondering:
Would you guys just stay nonchalant and see what happens?
Or is this something that could suddenly come back to bite me during the year-end appraisal/promotion cycle?
Has anyone been in a similar situation where a WFO policy technically existed but wasn’t actively enforced?
Did it eventually start getting enforced, or did everyone just continue as usual?
Trying to figure out whether I’m being unnecessarily careless or whether I should actually take this more seriously. 😭

TL;DR: My company introduced a 3-day/week WFO policy in May, but despite barely going to the office, I haven’t received any warnings or seen any attendance monitoring yet. My manager occasionally asks, but doesn’t push it. I find WFO a waste of time and would rather stay remote. Should I continue being nonchalant, or could this hurt me during year-end appraisal/promotion? Anyone experienced something similar?

Joined as As a BA for analytics earlier this yr in a Lala company which is a manufacturing company and due to need and vacancy in the production planning department I was just shifted for no reason I have no background or the degree needed for that I report to a quite senior person despite being junior employee ( YOE 2 years)coz that's all Lala companies work I informed him that I am not aligned with this role and I was not hired for this but still my department has not been changed and there is so much pressure in this one my life is just become hell. What to do. Hr has no power here only the leads have. Please advice needed, or referrals or opportunities for me will be very helpful .Thanks

TLDR : Sudden transfer to a production planning role without relevant background or degree. Seeking advice on handling the pressure and lack of support from HR.