the story of it all

you'll see no capital letters here. you wont see the right punctuation. and words may even be splet this way.

but the beginning was just the same; no punctuation no grammar no structure> just idea floating around with but a few hands to grab at him

the idea game isnt so much about elusive as it about - too busy to care -

one such grab led us to creating this playground we call look beyond resumes. its been a difficult difficult past year watching this baby come to life just so faintly. it takes a whole truck load of drive to move this from a thought to  an action.

come january 2012 and it will be a whole 365 days since we took the concept head on. weve seen people come, we've seen people go. believers, skeptics, experimenters hapless, name it and we've met at least one of them.

the its me tour, or the bharat dharshan as we fondly refer to it was just the experience we needed. travelled to 6 cities in about 2 weeks, met over a 150 people on the trip and we were just kicked to just be talking to each of them. this wasnt a lame marketing stunt we wanted to pull off.

that would be easy. hire a pr agency, get them to have a 100 people wearing tshirts and roaming around a city and interview people randomly with no emotion and look for a paycheck in return. how god awfully mistaken a direction!

what is was for us, was an opportunity to meet people who were once strangers transformed into friends and well wishers minutes later. we were invited home for lunch, met up for coffee at a mall, went for a walk, listened to a mother's tale about how work is taking away time from her daughter, a 30 year veteran speaking to a junior like me and telling us how he saw himself in his youth in our shoes, had a whole class of students smiling and egging us on instead of snoring, the list goes on

so the only thing i want to ask of you is to join us to help make this story a journey where people came together and people made a difference.

not one where people are consumed and people consume. lets build and lets move. im not talking about carrying out a mass walk down mg road in 10 cities. im talking about small changes, in small doses. just make that one better decision every single day. live a life of better choices, and eventually live in a world thats human and just right

all you need is a space, a playground, we'll give you the toys > the tools. and no we're not selling you anything. come over if u truly want in. no loiterers encouraged.

see you around!

Mysore - 11th November

Mysore turned out to be a great experience. Met some extremely hospitable people and met strangers who turned out to be friends over a conversation.

The It's Me! Tour continues to surprise and continues to be fascinating! Can't wait for Hyderabad and the next leg which goes East.

Hyderabad - 14th and 15th November

The It's Me! Tour continues in its pursuit to meet people who provide employment and those who seek. And now we've reached Hyderabad, and on the 16th we'll be in Vizag. It's a timeless and tireless journey and we're documenting every bit of it.

We've been learning so much in the past few days, we are extremely excited to see what the rest of the country has to offer!

Stay tuned to hear from a whole list of people, and let us know if you want to participate any which way.

Reena D’costa – Entrepreneur, Big Jobs

4th November, 2011

Balmatta Road,

Mangalore

Walking up to the building where Big Jobs was located we noticed a signboard for Big Jobs. In a sea of clutter, here was a well thought out logo informing us of their presence.

Going by first impressions we were expecting a set of smart people. Meeting Reena and Vsevolod D’Costa confirmed just that: Two dynamic people setting off on a new venture and looking ahead to a better tomorrow.

They threw some hardball questions at us and what it was the Look Beyond Resumes was aiming at achieving. At the same time, questions were tossed back about their drive to excel in what they did. This opened the flood gates. People who were total strangers a half hour ago, were now engaged in such intense debate it had us reaching deep inside to demonstrate the passion we have in making Look Beyond Resumes larger than life.

A meeting that started at 5:30pm went on till 7:15 and at the end we had two more believers and Team LBR was on a high. We’ve been working inside of our offices for the last year, and now when we reach out to people, getting such intense responses is simply a boost like none other. 

Simply put, THEY GOT IT.

Big Jobs is dedicated to quality and so are we. This is our first step toward transforming how we search for careers and hire, and I’m sure with more people like Reena and Vsevolod our mission will be a reality.

Thanks guys and you have our best of wishes for a future, brighter than ever before!

Suman Shetty - Story of a Mother

Hallmark Solutions, 
Car Street, Mangalore
4th November, 2011


Car Street reminds me of the Bangalore I grew up in. Not buildings everywhere but a quiet neighbourhood with people chugging along without too much of a fuss. 


Before we knew it, Suman welcomed us into her office with a big smile. Hallmark Solutions is a small husband and wife setup, where Suman doubles up as the placement consultant and Harish her husband is into printing. 


Sitting at her desk, we started our first It's Me! Tour conversation.  Shy to begin with, Suman came out soon enough and started to pour out her difficulties.


She went on to give us a brief on how she does her placements and what were her challenges. Parts of her interview are on video, and once you watch it, you would probably connect to her just like we did. 


Talk about resumes, and it didn't take too long for her to identify with our mission. She agreed to join the Look Beyond Resumes bandwagon in the one hour we spent talking to her. 


A proud mother of a daughter, she's has been  considering closing down her business because she hasn't been able to give her kid the time needed. Through her, we found a new place where Look Beyond Resumes would help people and their businesses. She is now literally freed of sitting inside an office and can carry her work on with a laptop and a phone right from her home. Being able to be part of Suman's life and helping her be closer to her daughter was truly an experience that gave us the motivation to push further with what we do. 


Find Suman on our Facebook page and connect up with her if you need any help in Mangalore. She will definitely be someone who will brighten your day. We wish you all the best for your future Suman and welcome to the Look Beyond Family!

Mangalore, Thank you

I distinctly remember planning to set out on this trip we fondly called "Bharat Darshan" which morphed into what we call the It's Me! Tour. Today, just one city down, my heart is racing.

Mangalore, was such a shock to our system (And I mean shock in a good way) that as a team we've been knocked out of our senses. 

Let's be honest here, we're a team of entrepreneurs, we don't enjoy the financial stability of the big guys, and we've been braving some pretty tough times. Times of doubt, times of trial just testing our will to push through with our vision. Ever since we started to get Look Beyond Resumes on it's feet earlier this year, nothing has come easy. 

The struggle in itself is a joy, and today, after visiting Mangalore, I can tell you this much. There isn't a shadow of a doubt left in my mind about the value in what Look Beyond Resumes is attempting to do.

The hows and whys of this transformation you will hear about soon. As of now I'm a believer, a believer of the fact that the world needs better and that what we are doing can help change lives for the better.

And for this, Thank You Mangalore. You will always be a fond memory in my life.

Its Raining Grizzlee- in Mangalore Today!!

The  'It's Me' juggernaut is on it way- and coming soon to a town near you :)

Our first stop- Mangalore!!

Why has Grizzlee chosen Mangalore as his first point of destination? (Not just for the scrumptious  Neer Dosas I can assure you, nor for that wonderful expanse of beach between the Western Ghats and the Arabian Sea)

But for the people- the mix of students, activities, coffee drinkers, business men and entertaining characters that make up this most vibrant of cities!

Over the next two days, we will try and cover as many of your local hangouts as we can- so that we can talk to you, understand who the ''me" behind you is, and also share our stories from the road!!

Keep watching this space for more updates, and if you have any suggestions for where you would like us to be (or a favorite haunt where you dance through the nights!), tell us, and Grizzlee will be there to talk to you!

Right, back to enjoying some of that perfect coast air!!!

This is Grizzlee signing off from Namma Kudla- more soon!!!

Who is the "Me" Behind These Words?

As we keep reiterating, it is our belief that words tell you everything you want to know about a person. This week Grizzlee has dived deep into the bottom of the interweb to find some quotes from your favorite sports persons. These quotes are NOT about the sports they play or about the records they've made, but about the  inner working of their mind and the numerous little practices that make them who they are...

Let's see how many you can recognize without rushing to Google!!

The cricketer has Test matches through the year, the tennis player has four Grand Slam events in twelve months, the golfer has the same number of majors annually. Constantly, there is an opportunity for redemption, a chance to stake a claim for greatness. Not for me. My only chance comes every four years. My only chance is seventy shots in 125 minutes every four years (the first 60 shots have to be fired in 105 minutes, each of the final ten shots within 75 seconds.)

We have to be a little insane to do this, a trifle obsessive, almost as single-minded as shaven monks who sit for years meditating under trees in search of distant nirvana… Let’s be clear: we are not you. We are not better than you, or other athletes, just caught in lives weirder than most

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This is the first time in the last ten years that I've played a maiden over

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The feeling suits me; the cathedral hush of the Centre Court is good for my game. Because what I battle hardest to do in a tennis match is to quiet the voices in my head, to shut everything out of my mind but the contest itself and concentrate every atom of my being on the point I am playing. If I made a mistake on a previous point, forget it; should a thought of victory suggest itself, crush it. 


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We in India make the mistake of thinking only good boys make good captains.

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I don't know driving in another way which isn't risky. Each one has to improve himself. Each driver has its limit. My limit is a little bit further than other's

So Which Me Are We Saying This Is?

To be absolutely honest, the "It's me!" theme took some time to resonate - not because I don't believe in it, but because one of my secret fears always has been that there is perhaps- more than one me- that my personality splits right midway (or quarter way) into four or five distinct personas based on who I am with at the moment.
Being a scientist, (and a natural skeptic), I decided to put this theory to test by asking four or five near and dear people to write to me telling me who they thought I was, and to see whether these coalesce in some way.
Here are some of the responses I got:



Mama Grizzlee:
Grizzlee, you have always been a hard working young boy - the most responsible of the huge brood of cousins you have, and always had that frightful temper. As you've grown older you have become more and more independent, to the extent that I sometimes worry about you. Do you still write those lovely little poems- ohh what a sensitive soul you were when you were younger! Don't forget to call me this Saturday- you always do!!!

Cuddly McDonald (Grizzlee's Roommate and Partner-in-Crime in College):
Ohh Grizzlee!!! Boy, did we spend a crazy three years together!! When I was not worrying about waking up to somehow get to classes, it always amazed me how you managed to pull things together at the last minute and never miss a deadline! And do you remember that one time I threw coffee over your assignment- man, you really flew off the handle that day!!! Even if you no longer spend your evenings under the window of (name redacted), I hope you still strum those lovely Beatles songs when you're free from work!!
By the way, mail me sometimes, dude, its been ages!!!

Griz Von Gristopherson (Grizzlee's multi millionaire ex-boss)
Ahh Grizzlee!! I remember teaching that young boy everything he knows when he was still a little green behind the ears (and all over , to be fair). Nice chap- stayed to himself, worked hard, and didn't ask too many questions. Preferred working on his own instead of in a team, to be honest! And boy, could he hold his drink!! There was something about him- how he was so empathetic and good at listening- that I always took the chance and sent him to meet an irate customer! I wonder if he still keeps that old blog of his, the one with stories about the corporate world!!
And let's connect on LinkedIn some day, young man! Are you ever even online?

Well, that was weird. I always thought I was the life of the party when in college ("yes you were- just not quite as exciting as you like to believe you were"- C McD) but turns out I have been the same person all along- driven by deadlines, independent, responsible- and apparently- terrible at staying in touch!! (I am so boring, I bore myself even as I am writing this). I have always had an extra curricular which has been an escape, and clearly, this is a hobby I discard every season!!
And my mother- bless her old heart- was not kidding about my temper!!

So what does this mean- that however much we pretend, the underlying "me" doesn't really change?? That barring the process of growing up, and masking our emotions better, we remain the same person??
Why then, do we attempt to hide it in a resume!! Might as well own up to it - warts (or fur) and all!!
Time to stop pretending and start shouting from the rooftop- Its Me??