4 ms·

This is kind of what scares me. I'm 3 years into my first job out of college, and I'm not sure how people get fired if they're performing fine. I meet my perfor

This is kind of what scares me. I'm 3 years into my first job out of college, and I'm not sure how people get fired if they're performing fine. I meet my performance goals, get along fairly well with my manager and my skip, and business seems to be doing well...how do people in this same position end up fired? How can I avoid that? Sorry, I know that's a bit of a vague question, but threads like these keep me up at night

pm90 6y ago
Many times the circumstances aren’t in your control. The business may not be doing well, or your project or your division. Your manager may get replaced or his skip or the division manager. They may not like you because you speak up a lot. There can literally be a million reasons for getting laid off or fired and keeping that in mind is always healthy lest that you’re caught off guard.
smsm42 6y ago
You can't really avoid it, especially if you work in a big corp. It can happen absolutely regardless of what you do - somebody could decide the whole section is redundant, or they're getting out of this business, or they just need to reduce the workforce and you got the short straw. It'd suck if it would happen, but it's better to realize it's a possibility and be ready. I don't mean to work with one foot constantly out of the door, people don't like that, but have a plan just in case - just like people have plans for natural disasters, etc. Keep your knowledge fresh and broader than your current job, take interest in new stuff that may help you find your next job, network with people that may not be connected to your current job but may very well help you find the next one. Maybe you'll be lucky and will work at this job until you're sick of it and ready to leave or retire. Or maybe not - be ready for it.
annoyingnoob 6y ago
Certainly kicking ass at your job helps. Sometimes you kick ass and the company fails or merges or changes directions and there is nothing you can do. Even when there are tough changes companies don't like to lose good employees, just do your best. But realize that you can pick yourself up if you fall.
phamilton 6y ago
Usually it's when expectations change. In my case, I took on new responsibilities and pushed to be compensated accordingly. I was then held to higher expectations which I was unable to meet. In my case this was mostly doomed fail from the beginning because my responsibilities were in conflict with the company's needs. Small startup, poor management structure, pre-revenue, etc. all contributed. Your metric of "meet performance goals, get along with manager and skip, business doing well" is a solid way to track things, especially earlier in your career.

pm90 6y ago

Many times the circumstances aren’t in your control. The business may not be doing well, or your project or your division. Your manager may get replaced or his skip or the division manager. They may not like you because you speak up a lot. There can literally be a million reasons for getting laid off or fired and keeping that in mind is always healthy lest that you’re caught off guard.

smsm42 6y ago

You can't really avoid it, especially if you work in a big corp. It can happen absolutely regardless of what you do - somebody could decide the whole section is redundant, or they're getting out of this business, or they just need to reduce the workforce and you got the short straw. It'd suck if it would happen, but it's better to realize it's a possibility and be ready. I don't mean to work with one foot constantly out of the door, people don't like that, but have a plan just in case - just like people have plans for natural disasters, etc. Keep your knowledge fresh and broader than your current job, take interest in new stuff that may help you find your next job, network with people that may not be connected to your current job but may very well help you find the next one. Maybe you'll be lucky and will work at this job until you're sick of it and ready to leave or retire. Or maybe not - be ready for it.

annoyingnoob 6y ago

Certainly kicking ass at your job helps. Sometimes you kick ass and the company fails or merges or changes directions and there is nothing you can do. Even when there are tough changes companies don't like to lose good employees, just do your best. But realize that you can pick yourself up if you fall.

phamilton 6y ago

Usually it's when expectations change. In my case, I took on new responsibilities and pushed to be compensated accordingly. I was then held to higher expectations which I was unable to meet. In my case this was mostly doomed fail from the beginning because my responsibilities were in conflict with the company's needs. Small startup, poor management structure, pre-revenue, etc. all contributed. Your metric of "meet performance goals, get along with manager and skip, business doing well" is a solid way to track things, especially earlier in your career.