In August 2013, I got fired from my dream job. While it was one of the most painful moments of rejection in my life, it was probably also one of the best things that could have happened to me.
It was a good thing because I responded well to the event. In fact, three things I did launched me to being even more successful over the next couple of years than I would have been if I’d stayed at the job.
Here are the three best things you can do while you’re getting fired and what they’ll do for you.
1. Identify a Project to Work On
Nearly everyone has a business or book or something they want to work on. But they don’t have enough time to work on it. Fortunately, if you’re in the middle of getting fired, you’ve just found the perfect time to work on that project. Now! You’ll never have more time to work on it than when you’re unemployed.
Most people spend a few days after getting fired licking their wounds. And I get it. That feels better. But imagine if you gained an excitement for your project while getting fired. That actually happened to me and I was able to create a couple of great companies quickly.
2. Identify What Went Wrong
If you can’t collect yourself and ask these questions while you’re getting fired, have a debriefing meeting a few days later with your former employer. Ask what didn’t work about the situation. What was it about your personality that didn’t fit within the role of your employment?
Maybe there’s a character flaw you need to fix. Or maybe, in my case, you’ll find out your entrepreneurial spirit makes you tough to manage. Maybe you have too much energy and most employers don’t have the energy to control that. You might find out you need to be self-employed or that you need a certain type of employer to be able to truly thrive in your position.
This is seriously the best time to find out.
3. Resist the Urge to Damage Relationships
Believe it or not, you can come out of the other end of getting fired maintaining all of your friendships from your former job—even your ex-bosses. It’s tempting to yell and accuse and despise. Because no matter how perfectly you’re getting fired, there’s a good change your boss is somewhat in the wrong. I had accusations I could level at my former boss. But that wouldn’t have benefited me in any way. And it would have destroyed our friendship.
Instead, I thanked my boss for the opportunity and left the friendship open. I can actually see the guy at conferences and hug him. We can hang out if we want. But more than that, he’s happy to help me whenever I ask. My old company was actually one of my biggest advertisers for the next months after I’d been fired, because I refused to burn relationships.
Who knows? Your next job, connection, or client might be the company that just fired you. Imagine that!
So those are my three essentials. What would you add to the list? Have you ever been fired? Did you respond well? Negatively? What did you do?