An Inside Look At A Non-Techie’s Job At Google

What you know about Google: great benefits, free food and that, whether you work there or not, you’re pretty much dependent upon it. What you might not know: what a day in the life of a pro Googler really looks like. Luckily, we've got your "in."

If things like brainstorming hashtags and catching up on YouTube vids makes up your ideal day at the office, then Ramya Raghavan's job may be your dream come true. Ramya is the Head of Politics and Causes for Google+, a role that has her immersed in digital trends and the latest news from sun up to sun down. Career Contessa invites you to read on for a glimpse into a day in this busy creative’s life—we dare you not to get jealous!

6:00 a.m.: Wake up and check my phone (I’m three hours behind on the west coast, so my inbox is full by the time I wake up).

6:45 a.m.: Google shuttle ride to Mountain View. I use the shuttle ride to catch up on email and read the news (the buses have wi-fi so it’s like being on a rolling office).

8:00 a.m.: Grab cereal and tea at work. I’ve learned to avoid the cafes, which serve bacon and eggs every morning, because the “Google 15” is no joke.

9:00 a.m.: Lead our daily editorial meeting where we go through the calendar and talk about any corresponding programs we have planned on Google+.

10:04 a.m.: Watch a video of Congressman John Lewis dancing to Pharrell’s “Happy” on YouTube and share it with my colleague who manages YouTube Nation, YouTube’s new daily show about trending videos.

11:00 a.m.: Call with the team to plan the upcoming House of Representatives Social Media Day to figure out the logistics of Google’s presence there.

Noon: Sushi lunch meeting with my friend and co-worker, who focuses on civics and innovation at Google.org, to see if we can collaborate on upcoming projects.

2:00 p.m.: Brainstorming with my team. What are we doing for Earth Day? How about something with Google+’s Auto-Awesome photo feature? What’s the hashtag for the campaign? Can we involve Captain Planet or is he trademarked?

4:00 p.m.: Submit conference room theme ideas for our new G+ building on campus and get others to vote on them. Sadly, my “animal idioms” submission is losing to “evil lairs.” Spend ten minutes trying to convince others that meeting in a room called “The Cat’s Pajamas” would be really fun.

7:00 p.m.: Back in San Francisco and it’s time for dinner. My husband and I are trying to resist the temptation to bring dinner from work and instead, actually cook a few times a week.

9:00 p.m.: Trivia at Vinyl, a local wine bar in SF. We don’t win but I’m proud of my contribution that Kazaam is the name of the 1996 film where Shaq plays a genie.

To read Ramya’s full career story, head over to Career Contessa.