By Madhan Kishore Botlapati,
Publication Date: 2026-10-20 12:00:00
Thirty seconds into my career as a Cisco apprentice, I walked into a meeting room, looked my new manager directly in the face, and asked, “Hi! Which one of you is Saravana?”
He grinned and said, “Boss, that’s me! 😂”
The whole team laughed. Not cruelly. But loudly, and all at once, and at me.
Here’s how it happened. I’d done what I think every nervous new joiner does the night before day one: I looked everyone up. I studied my manager’s Webex profile photo like it was an exam. Clean-shaven, no glasses — that’s him. Got it.
Those nerves didn’t stay at home, though. They came to campus with me. I got to the Bengaluru office early — far earlier than I needed to — and spent that spare time asking myself, “Am I dressed right? Is everyone here going to be smarter than me? What if I’m asked something and I don’t know the answer?” Everyone walking past me looked like they’d been doing this for years and knew exactly where they were going. I did…
