Sometimes it’s hard to start a post. This is one of those posts. I figure that the best I can do is just to start writing and see how the post turns out to be.
I have been missing in action lately. I was missing for a reason, and it was a direct result from a decision I made right after I decided I needed to talk to a lawyer. I needed a lawyer to make sure that my employer, or rather my former employer, was following proper procedure in laying me off. They wanted me out of the company, and they thought we had already agreed upon that. Needless to say, we were in disagreement on that matter. Things weren’t very pleasant and I felt I needed a lawyer to assist me. Without going into detail, the way things evolved only firmed my belief that I made the right choice.
At the same time I knew about the many stories of people blogging or twittering about their job affairs on the internet and all the unwanted side effects to them, and to the companies they worked for. I did not know how things would evolve, but I knew that the potential of saying things I might regret later was a lot higher than usual. Better safe than sorry. So I decided that I would not take part in any online conversations as long as things were not in the clear. They are now, so I can lift that self-imposed restraint.
In short, I’m out of a job.
That sucks big time. Especially in these difficult economic times and with a baby coming within a month. I will have a lot more private time when the baby is born. I would never have been able to spend so much time with my family as I will be able to now. Always look on the bright side!
The past couple of weeks have taken a lot of mental energy from me, as soon as you’re in a conflict that changes the nature of your energy. I thrive on creative energy, and this was not a creative conflict. The conflict has been resolved for almost two weeks now (the paperwork took some time though), and in those two weeks I have been rethinking a lot of things. This is a turning point, and I can now see that the past year was a transition year. Although that insight can only be made in hindsight. There’s much more to be said about that, but that’s for later posts.
I know that the blogging pros say that it’s bad practice to apologize for not writing in a while, or even to mention it in a blog post. I learned a lot from the pros, but that doesn’t mean that I have to mindlessly mimic their opinions in my behavior. This is me explaining why I have been missing in action. And that does not only go for the online world. I have been missing in action for a lot of the offline world as well. I’m not sorry for that, because it was the result of a conscious decision. It does mean that I have to spend some time calling and explaining things to people that have been affected by this decision.
So from now on, I’m no longer MIA.
I’m back, alive and kicking (and looking for a job and other ways to make money).
Photo by fontplaydotcom
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
Good luck and have fun with a newborn in your family.
Sterkte en succes de komende tijd.
Lodewijk, I’m sad to hear that you lost your job. But let’s hope this is for the best and you can build something great from the situation. It’s great to see how you take this as a turning point to something new!
Looking forward to what life brings and what happens next! Good luck, we’re cheering on you!
Good to see you back, from what I’ve learnt about you on this blog I’m sure you will come out of this better & stronger.
Best
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Sorry to hear you lost your job. There is a lot of wisdom in not saying anything at times where you are concerned you might say the wrong thing.
Mark – Productivity501´s last blog post..Interview: Technology Investments
That’s unfortunate about your job. I’m sure things will work out for the best. It is a good time to be around your family more. Perhaps you should be looking into ways of making money online. With your blogging, you could easily start several niche product blogs. If they get much traffic you could make some decent money through affiliate programs and Google AdSense. Another option is to write a ebook to promote through sites like clickbank. Good luck.