Clouds and silver linings
I've been - well, not made redundant, more asked if I'd consider resigning - three times, and each has worked out well (so far, touch wood).

The first time was back in the early 90s, I'd been working in an industry I hated ever since leaving school, decided to go to Uni at the age of 26, in August I came down with a really bad virus, and although I was genuinely ill, I wasn't in a rush to go back to work so kept getting signed off by the doctor.

Anyway, one of the two people I'd confided in at work about my place at Uni managed to blurt out my plans, which resulted in me getting a phone call from my employers saying that there was probably little point coming back and if I sent them a letter of resignation they would pay me three months in lieu of notice.

I recovered pretty well after that and spent the month before Uni inter-railing rather than working in a London office. Result.

And on that inter-rail trip, I made sure I visited both of the cities where I would have the option of spending my year abroad, which meant that when the time came to make the choice in my second year, I knew I was choosing the right one.

Second time was three years after graduating, I'd slipped back into the industry I hated because there were no other jobs around, I was obviously unhappy at work and my boss would disappear down the pub for hours on end leaving me to cover for him. My work was suffering, and the company - nicknamed "Break 'em & Sack 'em" by staff, which rhymes with its actual name - suggested it was time to move on.

(Aside: This was during the World Cup in France in 1998, so I hopped on a plane out there and had a great time - although I wouldn't recommend wearing a kilt in Marseille when the temperature is in the 90s and you're dehydrated from the night before).

As a result, I was forced to make a complete career change which started with a lower-paying position and in terms of the firm I was at quite a menial job, but a couple of job moves later (in the same position) I found an employer who gave me opportunities to advance my career and over the next five years I shot up through the ranks there, almost trebling my salary in the process.

So that was result number two, and after five happy years there - during which time I also met my wife through a work colleague - I took a job away from London in a beautiful city which I absolutely love.

Now, the boss at this new job was an absolute psycho - future QOTW material there - and after a couple of years I was headhunted to a job in Birmingham but didn't want to leave where I was living, so ended up with a two-hour commute each day.

The work was well paid, but it was a high-pressure environment, and with my Mum back in London dying of cancer at the time, I couldn't give it 100%, and when around 18 months ago (and six months after my Mum had passed away) I came in to work one morning and was immediately ushered into a meeting room with the head of personnel and my boss, I knew what was about to happen.

Still, another three months in lieu of notice sweetened the blow, and after making two phone calls - the first to the missus, the second to the place I'd worked for five years, who I still did the odd bit of freelance work for - I spent the day on the piss, thinking that this might not be such a bad turn of events after all.

So, 18 months later, I'm working freelance from home, making decent money, and on days when I'm at a loose end waiting for work to come in I can go on a bike ride in the beautiful countryside round here, or take the dog for a long walk that invariably involves a stop at a pub or two.

At the same time, it has left me with enough free time to start pushing my career in other directions - I am getting paid for spending my Saturdays as a sports reporter and have also started getting photography commissions at decent commercial rates. In the longer term, those are the areas that I would like to concentrate on, which probably wouldn't have happened if I'd still been working in Brum and spending 20 hours a week commuting.

So things are working out for me pretty well so far (again, touch wood) and although I sympathise with people who are made redundant from a job they love doing, or who are unable to find any other work once they have been let go, on each of the three occasions it has happened to me it has got me out of a situation in which I was unhappy but where I'd probably have just kept drifting on and put my life on a new path.

In fact, just writing this has put a lot of things in perspective and given me renewed determination to succeed with what I'm doing right now, so for that, it's a good QOTW from my point of view.

Hopefully others out there can also turn what is after all a nasty, negative experience - I'll always remember how numb, even physically sick, I felt on the last two occasions - into a positive.

Apologies for length and thanks if you've read this far.
(Capo, Tue 7 Apr 2009, 10:24, 1 reply)

Very true
Sometimes losing your job works out to be the best thing, gives you the proverbial kick up the arse to sort your life out.

Nicely told, mate.
( SpankyHanky, Tue 7 Apr 2009, 10:27, closed)