PEOPLE BE CRAZY

Recently at the juice bar we found ourselves in the position where we needed to let one of our employees go. These kinds of situations are never fun for anyone and I was dreading the actual conversation we were bound to be having. As the manager, I am part of the hiring process and that means I'm part of the firing process as well. I have never been fired, but I have been laid off. I know it sucks. I know it makes you angry and feel like you've been treated unfairly. It's not fun for your employer either.

I am not a very reactionary person. I tend to clam up in uncomfortable situations, which keeps me from saying something I might later regret. I have not been witness to people who generally fly off the handle and spew word vomit like a teenager when something doesn't go their way. Mostly because this behavior is reserved for children, not thirty year olds.

It was shocking for me to sit through that conversation as this employee argued and interrupted with excuse after excuse about how this was unfair and we were playing favorites and no one provided a chance for improvement or been honest. I couldn't believe that this employee absolutely refused to take any responsibility for their actions, but instead kept throwing the blame back on us and how terribly we were treating them.

I'm sorry, but in what world is being fired or let go ever fair? When is the timing ever good? I will argue some people may be let go unfairly but that is maybe the exception and not the rule. Whatever the case may be, it is in your best interests to keep your damn mouth shut. Employers and business owners talk to each other. If the community finds out that you are a juvenile disrespectful employee who constantly makes excuses, no one is going to hire you.

If you want any advice from this situation, it would be this: bow out gracefully. Keep your dignity. Don't leave a bad conversation and then text mean, unnecessary comments to your former employer. It just makes you look immature and reaffirms that they made the right choice in letting you go.

Anyone that needs to tear down other people in order to make themselves feel better has a lot of growing up to do.

But even though that was a rough day, I'm glad to have gone through that experience. Not only is it a vibrant reminder of how not to act in a serious situation, it shows me how other people with different temperaments react to the world around them. Not everyone is a dignified, classy member of society. And also, some people will never learn.