After my last note, got a couple of comments that encouraged me to launch into one more rambling. Again, let me remind readers that you are free to ignore these notes and save yourself a lot of suffering. :)
A few weeks back, my missus surprised me one afternoon as I was leaving for office. Our anniversary was approaching and I had not even shown her any signs of recognizing that (though I had made some secret arrangements). Now, this is what she said as I was putting on my shoes - "now go to your first wife!" I was shocked and stunned and just stared at her for a whole minute. Here I was having a difficult time managing one, and she is talking about another! Then she clarified 'Your office is your first wife'. Sigh! I breathed heavily in relief and just left. Did not want to get into an argument at that crucial juncture in the day that has the potential to spoil the day for both of us.
The reason she was pushed to that level was that I was spending a lot of time at the office trying hard to boost my Pipeline and support the team. It totally escaped me that I was using the house as a Hotel - to sleep, eat food and get back to sleep. So hard pressed was I that I was checking official emails even on the weekends and felt restless after Sunday morning to get back to office.
Now, I could have chosen the easier route of trying to explain what was happening at the office. Though I keep my missus updated with the big picture, I never discuss the details. This is for several reasons. The major one being she will unnecessarily feel worried and pile up pressure on her already overworked home schedule. The other one being she just might not understand. This brings us to the crucial question - How much of your official life do you share with your spouse?
Now, I can understand sharing it completely if your wife is a Hillary Clinton, Indira Nooyi, Chanda Kochar or Kiran Mazumdar Shaw. They would understand the nitty gritties of professional life, its complexities and pressures. But is it the same level with your wife, mother and sister? I don't think so.
Though I do not have much of a female fan following for these posts, let me clarify that I am not the male chauvinist kind. The women mentioned above are of the business type who roll in the same muck as we do and can understand. But for a housewife or someone employed in a Govt. organization or a nationalized Bank, life in a private organization is as much of a mystery as 'The Lord of the Rings' are to me!
My final observations are these - there is a very thin line that differentiates professional and personal life. It is always good to know where that line is and try to avoid mixing up both sides too much.
P.S.: My anniversary did pass of peacefully with the missus getting to see the surprise gifts I had got her. The low point is that I started getting restless after 7 pm at home and logged onto my official email!
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