My first tryst with Microsoft was in the year 2005 when I started using Microsoft Paint to draw animals to teach my younger cousin. It was eventually used by us to listen to music and play our beloved Super Mario. It was in the year 2006 when I purchased my first “licensed” Windows XP software installation CD. The years that followed were about deleting random files from my C drive because “they refused to open”. I fail to recall the number of times I had re- installed my OS by 2010 (that could be as much as 50).
My mother had been a programmer till late 1990s and so was my youngest uncle and aunt. So, since an early time in my childhood, I had been in touch with a lot of newly launched gadgets and computers. All this, but pursuing my engineering in Computer Science was the last thing I ever wanted to do. (How I ended up doing my graduation in Computer Science, is another interesting story for some other day. Considering my current passion for programming, some find this hard to believe but yes, it’s true that Computer Science was never my choice. :P )
When I learned Microsoft was visiting our campus towards early August 2016, I was on cloud nine. The platform which introduced me to computers; I could finally get a chance to be a part of the same organization. Last one week before the interviews, I burned the midnight oil and made sure I am thoroughly well prepared. It was at 9:42 pm on the night of 23 August’ 2016 when after three rounds of interviews, I learned about my selection.
The memories of that day will stay with me forever. That was the night that kindled enthralling emotions. The smile on every face around me at home, my mother gushing with happiness, I knew that was the moment that she is extremely proud of.
One of the events that I was looking most forward to post my selection was the annual New Hires’ Day at Microsoft. I received the first communication about it on 17 February’ 2017 at 5:22 am. I was still awake at that time. Lucky enough to experience that thrill before I went to sleep.
I knew it was not long now before I will finally get to visit the office where I will be soon working. I was now closer to realizing my dream of working with the same organization that had introduced me to what a computer can do in 2006.
The amazing #mydayone team at Microsoft were equally excited about welcoming us. We were made to fill a quirky questionnaire regarding our travel arrangements and what awaited next was a wonderful surprise.
It was on the evening of 9 March’ 2017 when I received a call from the guard at my apartment who informed me that a bouquet was on the way for me. I was puzzled. Am I being stalked? Have I got a secret lover? What is this mess that is here to unnecessarily haunt me? Or is it yet another bouquet for my mother sent by one of her students (but Teacher’s Day was still not near)? I was in utter confusion until the door bell rang. To my astonishment, the bouquet was indeed for me but it was not from any stalker or secret lover but someone whom I love and adore- Microsoft. I was the lucky one who in fact received two sets of chocolates and bouquets (Yay!).
I quickly clicked a selfie with my surprise and shared it on Twitter. The response in the form of re- tweets and likes from the Microsoft team made me even more excited for the NHD celebrations.
When some special treats force you to grab your scissors and colored sheets out of the drawer. Thank you, Microsoft! :') #mydayone pic.twitter.com/buE1NIbBtu
— Diksha (@diksha_28795) March 10, 2017
It was soon 17 March’ 2017 and I was scheduled to board my flight at 11:40 am. I had always wanted to check out Terminal 3 but none of my previous trips had allowed me to do so (considering it’s used for international departures and all my other trips had always been from Terminal 1 :( ). So, finally I was getting a chance to visit Hyderabad, my workplace- Microsoft, and the icing on the cake was my departure from Terminal 3.
When we reached Hyderabad, we were greeted at the airport by the team from Microsoft who were there to oversee our safe travel (I could now finally associate the letters and the gifts with human faces :P ). Our accommodation was arranged at Treebo Tara Residency. We reached our rooms- tired, but again there was something in store for us to make us jovial and pump us with excitement after the long journey.
We clicked pictures with the swags and tried out our Pyjamas (the mystery behind what are they meant for- made the present even more interesting), relished the delicious cookies and got ready for the networking dinner that was arranged for us at yet another exciting place- Rendezvous. We met nearly 450 of others there who were also now a part of the Microsoft family, learned more about the culture at Microsoft from its leaders and alumni and enjoyed a sumptuous buffet dinner that was set for us.
The itinerary for the next day was even more exciting.
We reached Microsoft office, had our breakfast, and finally rode our bicycles to set a Limca World Record for the largest number of people dressed as dabbawalla.
We got the opportunity to interact with more leaders from Microsoft and Dr. Pawan Agrawal who introduced us to “A day in the life of a Mumbai dabbawala”. We created art pieces using stickies and finally got into the main event- the Ultimate Scavenger hunt where we finally burned out the calories we had gained after feeding on the repeatedly delicious meals we were getting treated with.
The night that followed was electrifying. We realized what Britney meant with the words “dance till my body aches” and also clicked a lot of creative pictures with the exclusive booths that were set for us (and we had some more food too).
With way too many memories to cherish and friends that we will meet again soon, we left Hyderabad early morning on 19 March’ 2017 to relax in the comfort of our “Home Sweet Home” and sleep like a Panda. The countdown to July’ 2017 has now begun (that’s when we will be officially allowed to finally visit the Microsoft office every day :D ).