Importance of family support in an Indian professional’s life

Aditya stays in an apartment in Noida and works as a Software Engineer and his wife Naina works as a Teacher in a Convent School. They have a son named Aarush and Aarush’s favorites at home are his grandparents. A typical day for Aditya starts in the morning with the alarm bell snoozing twice and finally, he gets up thinking about what is in store for him during the day. His son comes running towards him and tells him that piping hot tea is ready. He enjoys tea prepared by his mother. His wife completes the morning chores, and his son gets ready for school… I am sure the narration is relatable to most of us…Work and family are commonly regarded as the two most important and closely intertwined domains in people’s lives. There are umpteen small things that our family does for us and we do not realize the importance of it until we sit back and think about it. Specifically, in an Indian set up family plays a major role in the professional life of a person. To fulfill individual dreams and achieve excellence professionally, family support is extremely critical.

Your parent’s twinkling eyes and the poise with which they pat your back and say I am sure you can do it! has done wonders. The positive energy that you receive from elderly people is unparalleled and has resulted in many success stories professionally. Similarly, we feel that a child needs our support but the reverse of it is also true. Imagine having a stressful day at work, when you go back home and your child greets you with a broad smile, indeed you feel that the day is worth it for this smile. Children are the best stressbusters; they make you feel good about life. Playing with them and spending time with them recharges you for the next day. In addition to the parents and the children, a spouse also plays a major role in the professional life of an individual. It is a boon to have a partner who instills confidence in you, pushes you to move out of your comfort zone, extends a helping hand to ensure that you work towards achieving your professional goals.

We all witnessed unprecedented time in the year 2020 and it’s continuing but one thing that made us sail through the time frame is the support of our friends and family. In my close circle, I saw people standing up to the occasion in different ways and exhibiting that no matter what, we are together! A friend of mine got infected with the lethal virus and we all prepared a video to pep her up and wish her a speedy recovery. We also had zoom calls with our extended families where we spoke about anything other than the pandemic to lighten the atmosphere and not get affected by the negativity all around. One of my relatives organized an online birthday party and it was a wonderful experience to be a part of something different. Something that struck me in all of this is that human beings are social animals and no matter what, they find their own ways to stay connected. Also, one more thing that was evident is that people support each other in a time of need, it does not matter if they know each other or not. There were food packets distributed to the needy people who lost their jobs due to the pandemic. Families and friends also supported people who went into depression because of staying at home. 

Life for all of us has changed in the last year, where our home is also our office space. Indeed, this paradigm shift called for a great level of understanding on the home front. This transformation was an inadvertent one but our families also supported us. It started with all of us needing space to work from home or attend classes from home but sometimes we all adjusted to the change. This was impossible without family’s support. It was not just us who had to make changes in lifestyle but also people around us who were used to us not being at home. All of this was possible just because the families stood by unconditionally, be it related to work at home or work from home. Sharing responsibilities, helping each other in time of need, understanding the stress levels, and acting accordingly are certain things that our family does for us and do not even talk about it.

We must thank our family members periodically for all the small little things they do for us. It is vital for us to make them feel important and a part of our professional journey. We must remember that:

“Families are the compass that guides us. They are an inspiration to reach great heights, and our comfort when we occasionally falter.”