Today, I lead a 10-member team at HabitStrong. Many years ago, I headed a team of 3,500 people when I was the Trivandrum City Police commissioner.
So which responsibility was harder? Naturally, running the City Police, right? Nope.
Even though I had a team of 3,500 people, I never had to worry about where their salary would come from – the government treasury would take care of that magically. Could we run out of money? Of course not! The government was always there.
In the police, if I faced problem (e.g., rioting, VIP visits), I had an army of people at my command. We had thousands of guns and hundreds of vehicles.
In comparison, at my startup, it is my job to figure out where the salaries would come from. A few years ago, in my previous startup, I ran out of money to pay salaries and I went through living hell.
My point is not that the policing job was easy but that every job has its own complexity.
Whether you are an investment banker, a software engineer, a cop, or a Fortune 500 CEO – every job can be hard and you will know it only when you face it.
Don’t underestimate any job. They all deserve respect.
– Rajan