One of the things about life that continually amuses me is irony…
People who have attended my workshops and speeches and engaged my coaching services over the years have heard me say, “I often learn more from the people who I’m supposedly teaching than they are likely to have learned from me.” I don’t say this in a “PC,” self-deprecating way either—I truly mean it. Over the years, my life has been deeply enriched by the people who have crossed my path. My “students” have taught me much about how to be a good and decent human being and about how to live a “successful” life.
A couple of weeks ago, a software developer whom I have known for many years approached me after having been downsized. He related a story I have heard thousands of times, “A ‘special,’ spur-of-the-moment meeting was called and a bunch of us were told that our jobs were being eliminated. We were then walked out of the building and told to contact HR to arrange a time to pick up our personal items.” Every time I hear such accounts, my heart fills with empathy. It’s no fun to suddenly lose a job you enjoy—one that makes you a good living.
I think back on the time I was employed teaching workshops for a well-known company. I was in the middle of day one of a two-day workshop in Virginia. I was downsized with an email—in the middle of a workshop! Can you believe it?! A colleague was teaching the same workshop in another conference room, and was also downsized. I had to calm her down and talk her into completing her two-day workshop instead of simply walking out.
When I’m working with a person who has been downsized, I always emphasize the importance of networking in finding another job. (The majority of new jobs are found through networking. In fact, many job openings are never advertised. They are filled before they ever have to be advertised.) I advised my software developer friend to stay in touch with his colleagues who were also downsized. I pointed out the possibility that one of them could land in a situation where additional help is needed.
A few days later, I heard from a person in my network who had shared a lead with my software developer friend. She told me that not only had he submitted a resume for consideration, but he had shared the lead with his colleague who had also been downsized, and that man had also submitted a resume. My friend’s rationale was that the company might find his former colleague a “better fit” than him. If so, that would also be a good outcome.
In a world that conditions us to be aggressive, compete, look out for “number one,” etc., it is so refreshing to work with people who have a broader view—people who care about all of us—not just some of us—and certainly not just themselves! In my professional work, it has been my privilege to work with many such people. I have come to believe our world is full of them. That fact gives me hope for the future.