The Fresher Trap

How often do you find yourself trapped in the “Fresher” cycle?

You just graduated, which means you have no real-world experience yet. So, all that your office folks ask you to do is either make coffee or handle tasks you have absolutely no clue about.

“You dare leave on time? You’re a fresher. How can you be so strict about your time?”

You are expected to spend your entire day doing unnecessary things in the name of being a fresher. And then the cycle continues. Nobody really speaks about the bullying that happens under the label of “training freshers.”

I am an Interior Architect. While people in many other fields work around 48 hours a week on average, I was working a minimum of 51 hours. Even after that, my Sundays would go into working on more designs and endless variations — because apparently, everybody likes options.

To be honest, I genuinely love my career and all the chaos that comes with it… until the “fresher” label starts becoming an excuse to disrespect boundaries.

I am very punctual and extremely strict with my time. My office hours were from 9:30 AM to 6 PM. Every single day, I would reach exactly at 9:30. Throughout the day, I worked sincerely without wasting time on my phone or unnecessary distractions.

But as soon as the clock struck 5:30, my boss would suddenly bring in more work to be completed before I left. In my early days, I would still try to finish everything quickly because it took me almost two hours to travel back home.

As days passed, this became a routine.

Late hours became normal.

Sunday work became normal.

Seven-day work weeks became normal.

And slowly, it started affecting me — not just physically, but mentally as well. Every day, I would hear comments in the name of being a fresher, until one day I finally decided to become strict about my time and boundaries.

That was my story.

I’m sure many of you have faced different versions of this in different workplaces.

And no, not all bosses are bad.

Not all seniors are ruthless.

Take time to understand your workplace and your seniors before jumping to conclusions. But at the same time, know your worth.

It is absolutely okay to be a fresher.

That does not mean your opinions hold no value.

Trust yourself.

Your boss or senior will not always be right.

You do not need to take responsibility for mistakes that are not yours.

At the same time, always accept your mistakes when you are genuinely at fault.

Be punctual.

Be sincere with your work.

Do not entertain unnecessary behaviour.

Learn to make your own decisions and take responsibility for them.

Most importantly, keep learning.

And always be polite to your co-workers.

If you are someone being bullied in the name of being a fresher, I genuinely request you to break the chain. Speak up against what is wrong — but before that, make sure you are also being fair and responsible from your side.

The happiness I felt during my convocation slowly started getting overshadowed by the negative aspects of workplace culture.

No fresher deserves to lose their excitement for their career before they’ve even truly started.