In 1985 I was called into the corporate office I had worked in since 1978. I was very excited because I had landed in the top 10 out of 300 national sales people for the fourth time. One year they awarded us with $10,000 tax free, once a trip to Mexico and the other was a week in Hawaii. I had been hoping for an upgraded car. The sales car dujour was a 4-door Chevy Impala. Even though it had power steering, it drove like a tank. I was all glittery-eyed of the Chevy Brougham which came with electric windows and seat adjustments. I had picked out the deep burgundy and had sat in one at the show room at least a dozen times.
So off I went to Hayward at 6:30 am, being ordered by my district manager to be there by 8 am. The traffic was horrendous and I had learned to make it more bearable by listening, and singing to the oldies!
I arrived shortly before 8 and my boss greeted me at the door by asking me to wait in his office after asking for my keys. Now I was sure I was going to get the Brougham!
A few minutes later he came in, sat down at his desk, pulled out a white envelope and handed it to me saying without even looking at me, ”I’m sorry, but you’ve been terminated!”
I thought he was kidding! How could I be terminated when I was one of the top sales people nationally? I’d worked for them for eight years, given up vacations, stayed late, worked weekends, shown up every time they asked, received calls at 6 am and 11 pm without complaint . . .
He stood up, as did I, and grabbed my elbow and escorted me out of the building into an awaiting taxi cab which drove me all the way back to Walnut Creek.
I was numb . . . I was terminated . . . I had no job . . . I had just bought a house . . . I was alone . . . who was I now that I no longer had a job?
It might not have taken as long to land on my feet if I had had a support system in place and if those I knew hadn’t kept telling me to just get another job, any job.
But for you, you’ll learn through my experience what you can do to avoid ever having to go through this experience ever again!