There is little agreeable to coming home to a letter from your companys’ 401K and pension plan, to read that you are no longer eligible for those plans. Unless, of course, it is the day that three quarters of that company team has just been let go, and you are, so far, still standing.
All the reasoning that is both voiced by you and others in your last hours together as a team, and otherwise just felt communally – is of no help for the emptiness emotionally. Those leaving face a new yet uncertain future, those left behind feel the same emotions one feels at a death. There is something irrevocably changed, that shall never be again.
The situation is understandable on one level, knowing life is not fair. One can only guess why one person who is talented, productive and personable is gone, and another remains. The only thing I would say with any certainty is that the ultimate goal is two-fold, the bottom line in dollars, and the long term health of the product (as seen by a new set of eyes). And take that observation with the caution that as long as you work in some one else’s company…that is the way that it is.
It is a sad day for me, even having the temporary shelter of continued employment. I will miss sarcastic wit sitting next to me, home grown vegetables and finding a hidden tropical tree grower, learning about new ethnic foods, shared lunches in trendy Culver City, the newest iphone tricks, but mostly i will miss that shared high you get from finding solutions, when the code finally works, making it better together…every single day over a number of years.
I love a good team, it is like a second family. I have found that it can take close to a year to bring a new team member totally into the fold, and longer to build a strong team that works together seamlessly. There have been times when i did not know if the company i worked for had enough to pay my next paycheck, but there was such a spirit of team work, and such value placed on our work by the company owner that the entire company worked diligently until times were smoother. And the owner…never stopped thanking us in various ways.
Choose your team wisely, you will not be sorry.
Even though i have mostly worked within a corporate environment (i favor larger teams where there is more shared knowledge), i have always felt that it is my career and my skill-set, my passion, and my duty to live up to the most i can make of myself. no one needs to tell me i need to learn something new, it is a constant process of learning. One of the greatest gifts in the tech community is its openness and willingness to teach and share; whether it is on a list apart, wikipedia, github, jsfiddle, westciv, paul irish’s blog, smashingmagazine, or (i know i am going to forget someone)…there is a plethora of knowledge and shared expertise just waiting for your soft brain.
Keep up your skill set, it is like having fiber in your diet-it’s good for you.
I am thinking of everyone who i will not see on Monday, when i swipe my keycard and enter the companies private domain –
you are good
you will be missed
go for the gold
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