From the category archives:

You-are-not-your-job

You’re hired! — Hear Robyn’s tips and strategies (podcast)

September 30, 2009

Bay Area industrial engineer and IT professional Robyn Pierce has been laid off twice, the first time from Hewlett-Packard and the second, from a Napa Valley winery. Hear her, in this interview, talk about the impact of the layoffs, what pitfalls she has learned to avoid, and what she has learned by ways of tips [...]

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You’re Fired! — Hello and Goodbye (Part 1)

September 28, 2009

I arrived on Day One, in Item One of my totally new executive wardrobe. Anyone want to buy a very groovy flowing jacket, perfect for summer days in the subtropics? I have two that I purchased specially for that job (from my friend, Jill, an importer — into South Africa — of glam things from [...]

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You’re Fired! — 100 people = 100 stories

September 26, 2009

Ask 100 people to tell you about their lay-off and depending on who you ask and the broad circumstances, each story will be different. I became a labor statistic for the first time in Durban, South Africa, at lunchtime one muggy Friday, just a few weeks after beginning what had been “sold” to me as [...]

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You’re fired! — and another thing

September 23, 2009

Another thing about getting the boot is that you have to actually be laid off to understand what it is to be laid off. Before it happens, you can think about it and imagine what it would be like, same as you can think about getting gout, and imagine what it would be like. I [...]

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You’re fired! The search for the gift begins

July 6, 2009

Firing One: The South African nonprofit Every year, a week or two before my birthday — or perhaps on the very day  — my ex-boyfriend’s sister would head for the dollar store, dig around and find 10 items that looked like they might cost a-dollar-and-a-half because, well, I’m sure she still prides herself in being [...]

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You’re fired! — and the grapes of wrath

June 22, 2009

Five layoffs, firings, retrenchments, getting the boot or whatever. Hold a gun to my head and I’ll dredge up a few other dubious distinctions. But for now, I will fess up to the fact that I was the only first year student to flunk English Literature in Year One of my Bachelor of Arts degree [...]

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You’re Fired! Strike Three, Strike Four + Strike Five

June 21, 2009

What is the gift in this? The new publisher calls you in. Different publisher. You’ve been the editor in chief for a year. Different magazine. You know he’s not going to discuss your raise because you just got one. In fact, it’s to let you know that he’s hired a new editor to replace you. [...]

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You’re fired! Strike One + Strike Two

June 20, 2009

What is the gift in this? Just three months ago, the South African nonprofit director twisted your arm so hard, it nearly fell off. He wanted you to be his director of communications. After two hours of persuasion, you felt you’d be insane not to take the job. Now, he calls you and all your [...]

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