The Agony Of Getting FIRED

I really should've blogged about this much earlier, when my memory was still fresh and lingering.

Its utterly horrible.

No words can describe it.

The sight of seeing a few good buddies being told that they've been released by the company. Terrible. Just so ruthless is the environment we're in that nobody's safe from "not contributing enough towards the revenue of the company".

It happened on Tuesday. We even had a good celebratory cheer about Man U winning the championship when I got in to work that morning. We talked about the Macquarie Warrants tradegame that we all joined and how we were gonna win it. Too bad I missed lunch as I had to meet some ex-colleagues. It happened after lunch when the first him was innocently asked to go into a meeting with them. Nobody knew exactly what was going on but something was just not right.

When it was all over, he was escorted out of the office. Didn't even have a chance to pack up and leave. Escorted out of the office. Wahlao.

Then they also called the second him in also. This time around there was abit more grace. He was allowed to come back to his desk to pack up, under a manager's supervision. And then he too was escorted out.

That was even more terrible in fact. The fact that you have all your colleagues' eyes fixated on you as you turn off your PC for the last time and pack up all your belongings. All this while the watchful eyes of the manager makes sure you are not doing anything suspiscious.

We were all confused. Blur. Went down to try to catch them and find out what was going on in that meeting room. I could see alot of anger. I could see alot of pain. I could see alot of sadness.

They were given two simple choices. To resign on their own accord, or to be terminated by the company. Sign, and you pack up and leave immediately. Everything else, get a colleague to pack it up for you. There are no other alternatives.

We had a final dinner together at Burger King that evening, and the rest of us still had to go back to office for the FX Seminar. Haiz.

Yesterday was round 2. One more was let go. Another was transfered to marketing.

In total, 3 were release and one was transfered out of my department. By last night, my team had shrunk from the original 12 when we first came in, to the current 7.
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It is times like these that you do wonder what's really good for you. You fear being treated with such ruthlessness. And yet you somehow come to expect it in this line of work. Once you don't meet the grade, you're asked to move on. Indeed, only the fittest survived.

I have lost some pretty close colleagues. And the office is all the quieter without them bantering and being silly and making jokes. The Gears of War email thread has lost an integral member. The Golfing buddies have lost two key members. One less smoker in the company.

Somehow, things will never be the same again. And yet, we have to keep moving forward.

We have to get over this quickly and reach for greater heights, or the ones who have left would have left in vain.
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Bros, I will really miss you guys. Keep in contact always.

"Cos you had a bad day..." - Daniel Powter