31–39 of 39 posts
I mean, look, the first time I had to throw out my sketches in the dumpster because I thought they sucked it was a painful experience. But after a while I grew detached to the sketch, which allowed me to concentrate on my vision more than the actual piece of paper.
"Also getting fired is something that shouldn’t come as a surprise" Sounds like an unhealthy work environment. Management was pointing fingers at other management? Lame. Getting fired should never be a surprise.
There's a few conflicting things here. One is that you fire an employee then moment it becomes obvious they will have to be fired, so a firing should be quick. Another is that performance problems should be addressed - an employee should know if their current performance is not acceptable. Finally, you don't want an employee (especially programmers) to know that they will be fired, or they attack you from within. Of…
Fortunately, the author doesn't say why she was fired. This allows us to wonder if she was fired for having sex in the supply closet or doing oxy off her company-issued tablet, which is a terminable offense at most places of employment. If this is the case, immediate sacking is appropriate. Not that I, as a manager, would terminate her, though. I'm a fun manager.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I don't know about firing, but certainly getting laid-off is really looked down on, regardless of circumstances. I've heard that employers do significant background checks now. Low credit scores are a red flag. Arrests are also a red flag. Not convictions, but arrests . The social thing sounded a bit weird to me. But then, most of the people I've worked with either base their social scene around their work, or around…
I've never heard of being laid off as being looked down upon. Firing, sure, but not laid off. That's beyond your control and is a business decision. If your company wipes out an entire product because of some acquisition or poor executive "vision" and decides they need to wipe out two thirds of your division, that's hardly your fault. And if they have a habit of favoring seniority, then it's even less a comment on yo…
You must exist on a different Internet and reality from me. :-)
Not that long ago, there was an article on HN about an internal hiring consultant (I think) telling someone that if you don't currently have a job, don't bother applying. I've heard project managers yammer on about how companies use layoffs to get rid of their least productive employees.
In a down economy, when HR is faced with a flood of resumes, they start looking for simple things which give the appearance of objectivity and wisdom, which arbitrarily reduce their pile of resumes. 'Currently employed' becomes one of these criteria.
To say it is a messed up situation is an understatement.
He should have negotiated a positive-to-neutral fact-based reference (good reviews, verification of salary, departure by his volition-- a revision-of-fact but one that companies will usually support) in the severance process. Chances are, he would have gotten it. This would have mitigated the career damage and gotten him a good job much sooner. Remember that a severance offer is a starting point. If the only thing yo…
Another thing that IMO ultimately in the long term should be fixed. Not being hired because you criticized a previous employer is worse than being fired for criticizing the current one IMO.
In the latter case, it is often very hard, time consuming, painful and costly to fire someone. However comfortable this may seem to from an employee perspective, if an employer decides to fire you they must really, really badly want to get rid of you. And that can seriously damage your reputation.
The result is that instead of firing people, both parties usually make a deal: the employee leaves "voluntarily" and gets a big fat final paycheck. Technically no firing has taken place and the whole process is way less confrontational. Employers will gladly give you a reference and keep quiet about why you were let go in exchange for a smooth exit.
You'll be hard pressed to find someone in the tech industry in Europe who has ever been fired.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I've never heard of being laid off as being looked down upon. Firing, sure, but not laid off. That's beyond your control and is a business decision. If your company wipes out an entire product because of some acquisition or poor executive "vision" and decides they need to wipe out two thirds of your division, that's hardly your fault. And if they have a habit of favoring seniority, then it's even less a comment on yo…
I've never heard of being laid off as being looked down upon. You must exist on a different Internet and reality from me. :-) Not that long ago, there was an article on HN about an internal hiring consultant (I think) telling someone that if you don't currently have a job, don't bother applying. I've heard project managers yammer on about how companies use layoffs to get rid of their least productive employees. In a…
If you're referencing the same article(s) I've read recently, it wasn't "if you don't currently have a job, don't bother applying" it was "if someone has been unemployed for over a year, there is probably a reason". It wasn't a negative judgment on being laid off, it was making the assumption that a long period of unemployment was a signal that the person may not be very hard working or talented or whatever, and with many candidates to choose from that signal could be a deciding factor.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
barce doesn't look like a girl on twitter http://www.codebelay.com/blog/wp-content/themes/thesis_18/cu... looks like a rotation image
I was disappointed, for a moment, I though this was the author: http://www.codebelay.com/blog/wp-content/themes/thesis_18/cu...
Interesting, but: In the startup, tech community, if you get fired, you become a persona non grata. That means all the social circles I had booted me out. The article says this happened "many years ago." I can't imagine the part above applying any longer with the different ways in which people socialize in the tech industry even in just the last few years. Even folks who've done pretty shady things, are potty mouthed…
Yeah, I was dubious about that statement too. I think that the author took it really hard, and got a little paranoid. They were also probably embarrassed about it, and found it hard to talk about; especially as they had signed a disclaimer.