Firing and being fired –by vibhu norby

source form Firing and being fired I remember every detail from the day I was fired from my first post-college job. My manager pulled me into a meeting with the engineering director at the end of the day: “We have some tough news for you. We are letting you go. From the start, it wasn’t a good cultural fit. It’s not that you aren’t a good programmer. It’s just that this is not the right place for you. I’m sorry.” In 30 seconds, all of my fears of failure and not being good enough to be a software engineer in Silicon Valley had come rushing back. And all of the work I had done in the past 7 months, the unfinished projects, the users I had connected with, the friendships with my colleagues – it all seemed wasted. I wasn’t allowed to go back into the office and I fought tears as I was escorted out of the building. I sat in the parking lot for a long time and considered going somewhere else, doing something easier, working for a bigger company where there would be less pressure. I remember working on my résumé that night and thinking that it was going to kill my chances of finding a new job if potential employers found out that I had been fired. Like many people who find themselves in my position, I mentally decided to answer the question of why I was only there for 7 months, if it arose, by....