You’re Fired! What’s Next?
Most of us have had the experience of being fired. I was fired from my very first job. I was in high school, working part-time in a small downtown department store (back in the day when such things still existed) as a janitor.
I was there for a couple of months when we got a new boss. The new boss was just a few years older than me, working his way up in the company. I knew right away that he didn’t like me. He thought I was a lazy punk. I’d like to say he was wrong, but at 16 I was a lazy punk.
One Saturday at the end of my shift, he called me to the front of the store. He asked if I swept under the clothing racks like he told me to. I said I did. He then reached under one of the racks and pulled out a piece of paper.
“Then what’s this?” he demanded.
“Um, it’s a piece of paper” I said. (I may have actually said “Um, it’s a piece of paper, dude.” I’m not sure.)
The boss started turning red and said “I put this here before I told you to sweep! You didn’t sweep under the racks like I told you!”
“Yes I did, I just missed your piece of paper”
“No you didn’t! You didn’t sweep!”
“Yes I did.” (There may have been another “dude” reference here.)
“You’re fired!”
“Fired? You’re gonna fire me for that?”
“Yes you’re fired!”
“You can’t fire me, I quit!” (I had always wanted to say that.)
My parents were not happy about my getting fired. They were afraid that the stigma would follow me for years, that I’d never be able to find another job, that I’d end up sleeping on a bench somewhere.
None of that happened. I found another job, pushing another broom, in another retail establishment, for another boss who thought I was a lazy punk. I finished high school and went on to work many more jobs, and even got fired one or two more times.
But I have to admit that getting fired hurt my feelings. It is always hard to be rejected and to have someone tell you that you are not good enough. It is not the end of the world, however. It is not even the end of your career.
Remember a couple of things. Remember that just because the boss says it, doesn’t make it so. Bosses get these things wrong all of the time. Getting fired does not mean that you are incompetent or unable to do the job – it just means that your boss decided, for some reason that you will never really know, to have you leave your job. The boss may have had a good reason. The boss may have had an unlawful reason. In either case, it doesn’t really reflect upon you. Remember that and stay strong.
Also remember that you will work again. It may take time, but you will find new employment. Most of my employment clients have been fired and every one of them that has looked for new work has eventually found it. Looking back, many of them say that getting fired was the best thing that ever happened to them.
On a more practical note, if you are fired you should apply for unemployment. If you suspect that your boss may have broken the law, call me to talk about it. The laws that give employees rights in the workplace sometimes have short time limits – do not delay.
For more information about how to know and protect your rights, read my free Secret Employee Handbook.