I think the last job I lost was the worst.
I was employed at the Raleigh News and Observer as an Ad Designer, and did mostly car ads - hardly inspiring work. As such, I did the best I could and actually did some fun things, but after a few years, it wasn't that great anymore.
During this time, I became
active in a hobby and its community. With the size of the community, it wasn't hard to rise through the ranks and develop a reputation for working hard and having a unique skill set in design and print. So I began leading events and started an online magazine. As you may have figured out, everything that I didn't use in my job came out here. And after awhile, the staff noticed.
My last review was not good, mainly because my supervisor had gone on to another job, so her notes were probably read, but not used. I wasn't a good worker, nor did I communicate well...in fact, the head of department didn't know what to do with me. In his consideration, he put me on probation and gave me a raise of 2%.
The really sad thing here is that the max raise they were giving was 3%. And HR had to figure out a protocol to define how people got their raises by a checklist. Literally, a check would be a fraction of a percent. And the raise didn't match inflation. So there wasn't much reason to care.
My review time was a month, so I went through it and did okay, but was asked if I was going to be at the office for my birthday. I said I should be...but I called in sick.
The next day, I was let go. When I got to the office, I had a note on my keyboard telling me to go to the department manager's office. And when I got there, my manager and her manager were there. And I was told, "We don't need you anymore," and was asked to surrender my ID.
I was escorted out of the office, with the department manager (the guy who reviewed me) escorting me. As we left, I was told that I would be able to get my stuff out later that week. And as I was
led to my car, the manager said, "You knew it was going to end this way."
"Now's not a very good time to lecture me," I tactfully replied.
A few days later, I returned to the office and got my stuff. One of the other managers asked how I was doing, "I really don't think it's any of your concern," I told him. But inside of one month, I got paid for running a national convention, then got funding to launch a magazine that I now run. I am just beginning, so it's been bumpy. But it's also been exciting.
And my old department? Within a year, half the staff was let go. The economy got the paper hard, and the future is still pretty bad for them.
So I look forward to what tomorrow will bring - it has opportunities, and I just gotta be sharp enough to catch them!
Joe, 44 of Raleigh, N.C., is editor of Brick Journal.
I was employed at the Raleigh News and Observer as an Ad Designer, and did mostly car ads - hardly inspiring work. As such, I did the best I could and actually did some fun things, but after a few years, it wasn't that great anymore.
During this time, I became
My last review was not good, mainly because my supervisor had gone on to another job, so her notes were probably read, but not used. I wasn't a good worker, nor did I communicate well...in fact, the head of department didn't know what to do with me. In his consideration, he put me on probation and gave me a raise of 2%.
The really sad thing here is that the max raise they were giving was 3%. And HR had to figure out a protocol to define how people got their raises by a checklist. Literally, a check would be a fraction of a percent. And the raise didn't match inflation. So there wasn't much reason to care.
My review time was a month, so I went through it and did okay, but was asked if I was going to be at the office for my birthday. I said I should be...but I called in sick.
The next day, I was let go. When I got to the office, I had a note on my keyboard telling me to go to the department manager's office. And when I got there, my manager and her manager were there. And I was told, "We don't need you anymore," and was asked to surrender my ID.
I was escorted out of the office, with the department manager (the guy who reviewed me) escorting me. As we left, I was told that I would be able to get my stuff out later that week. And as I was
led to my car, the manager said, "You knew it was going to end this way."
"Now's not a very good time to lecture me," I tactfully replied.
A few days later, I returned to the office and got my stuff. One of the other managers asked how I was doing, "I really don't think it's any of your concern," I told him. But inside of one month, I got paid for running a national convention, then got funding to launch a magazine that I now run. I am just beginning, so it's been bumpy. But it's also been exciting.
And my old department? Within a year, half the staff was let go. The economy got the paper hard, and the future is still pretty bad for them.
So I look forward to what tomorrow will bring - it has opportunities, and I just gotta be sharp enough to catch them!
Joe, 44 of Raleigh, N.C., is editor of Brick Journal.
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