BLogarithm

This story is about me getting fired.

I was two months away from graduating from college and I had dreams of  climbing to the next rung on the corporate ladder.The job wasn’t particularly challenging or interesting but it paid the bills and I didn’t hate it. I was comfortable where I was.

I was able to complete my mundane tasks relatively quickly and efficiently. I tried explaining how I did what I did to my supervisors but they had no interest in me or what I had to offer. My interest in the company began to wane.  I spent less time focusing on the work and more time on the internet.

I was called into the manager’s office one day and asked whether or not I was using the internet for personal use on company time. I answered yes.

I was asked whether I knew that this was a violation of company policy or not. Again, I answered yes.

I didn’t bother to explain that I was bored by the work. I didn’t bother to explain that I felt that I had more to offer the company or that I really wanted to share my ideas about how we could do better business. I just answered his questions and accepted his judgment.

I was fired that day. All of my personal effects were stuffed into a used cardboard box and I was escorted out of the building. At first I panicked. I had never been fired before and I didn’t know what to do. I had rent to pay and car payments to make and I had no savings to draw on.

However, I quickly learned that getting fired is actually freeing. I didn’t vanish into the ether the next day or the day after that. I continued to exist. I was humbled but I still WAS.

Getting fired was the best thing that ever happened to me.