At 8:35am yesterday, Friday, March 3, 2017, I received a company-wide e-mail wishing one of our accountants, Bob, the best of luck on his future. While I didn't know him well, Bob looked perfectly fine on Thursday. In fact, he gave me a smile and a wave around 3:30pm that day when I glanced at him near the copier. On that Monday and Tuesday, Bob had helped me with an invoicing issue. Nothing out of the ordinary there.
Curious about Bob's fate, I walked to the head of our accounting department's office to ask her if everything was O.K. She wasn't present so I ended up talking to Paul, one of our staff accountants. I asked Paul if Bob was let go, and he nodded yes. Then Paul told me that Friday would be his last day too. Saddened at the news, I gave Paul a pat on the shoulder and got his e-mail information. I liked Paul a lot as we both shared an interest in Star Wars.
I walked back to my office and sat down to digest the disappointing news about Bob and Paul. Around 8:55am, my boss, Jan, came into my office and quietly shut my door. She looked extremely solemn, like someone viewing a recently-departed friend at a wake. I could guess the news she was bearing from her grim appearance. Yesterday would be my last day at the company too. Tears rolled down Jan's cheeks as she explained the situation. Only six months earlier Jan had hired me away from my previous overseas employer in Japan. Other than the initial reaction of shock, I admitted to Jan the truth- I was scared.
Scared was an understatement. With little in savings, two grade-school children and a mostly stay-at-home wife, I just didn't know what to do. The overseas search was conducted while I had a well-paying job. The math was simple, it took me over six months to find my job with the company, and I didn't have nearly that much saved. Worse yet, only six months of employment with my now-ex company and a gap in employment would be a killer on my resume.
Jan put me in contact with two recruiters and gave me a hug. I desperately needed that. Not long after my conversation with Jan, Mona, our HR head came into my office, shut the door and explained the company's exit procedures, my last paycheck and the survival period of my benefits.
After Mona left, I called my wife, Natsu, to tell her the awful news. My whole world was spinning. We had never been in a situation like this. Natsu took the news very well. We were not sure when to tell the girls. I ended the call with a speech worthy of a Mel Gibson epic: We will prevail, things like this make us stronger, fill-in-the-blank- rousing stuff. I actually believed my speech at that moment, which was good. It was Friday after all. I next called my Dad. We would not be able to go to the Blackhawks game on March 9, darn. He would do everything he could to help me, Natsu and the kids. Finally, I called my sister, Kira, who lived close to my downtown office. She was saddened by the news and invited me over for lunch. JJ, my nephew, was sick so I would get to see both of them.
I packed up my mini-Godzilla office figures, pictures of my daughters and the quill feather pen my old paralegal gave me and turned off my work computer for the last time. I discreetly said goodbye to a few of my co-workers on the way out.
My little sister and I talked about the future with a few bits of humor infused here and there. Like my dad, Kira and my brother-in-law, Jack, would do everything they could to help us during this difficult time. Jack and I are in the same trade, the only difference is is that he is an absolute rock star at what he does and well, he is a genius. He graduated number one at his law school, which is in the top three schools in the nation. Feeling a bit better, I caught the 2:40pm train back to the suburbs. I learned that an e-mail similar to the e-mail about Bob was distributed to the company about me around 2ish. The end of my time with the company was now official.
I got a big hug from Natsu when I got home. She had a few errands to run and while she did so, I played with the kids. I love my two little sweeties. Mimi is ten and Boo is seven. We haven't told them the bad news, but they are aware something is going on because "Papa was talking in a serious voice to Mama during Mario Kart time." The night ended with a coffee at Starbucks and e-mails to four recruiters and one completed internet application. I also reached out to two ex-interns from a previous office, two law school classmates, and a Hong Kong buddy.
Like my previous job searches, this one will be lots of reaching out to and reconnecting with friends and lots of online applications. My most current job (prior to Friday's bad news, of course) was obtained while I was overseas, via an internet application (I completed roughly 230 applications in a six-month span). However, I hope that searching for jobs in Chicago from Chicago will be easier than searching for jobs in Chicago from Japan.
Of course, due to not having a job, this search will be conducted at a beast-mode pace with the utmost urgency. My new full-time job is finding a job.
Day One Lesson: Encouragement From Family Is Great
Contacts Reached Out To: 11
Applications: 1
*Names have been changed to keep people's identities confidential
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