heidikins.com

I was not fired yesterday.

Whoosh!

We have known for a couple of weeks that my department was being dissolved in 2009.  We were supposed to know what was happening to us leftover sales reps by the beginning of January.  So on Friday (January 2, for those of you keeping track), our team showed up expecting to have some kind of answer.  All we got was a punched square in the face…or rather, slapped upside the head.  The rumor was that on Monday (that was yesterday) we would each be taken into a small conference room and told if we were being layed off, or if we were staying.

Talk about an awesome way to start off the weekend.

So, this morning my boss was called into the conference room with the Vice President.  We were all worried because his job is on the line as well.  Forty-five minutes later, he came out and called in the first victim, thirty minutes later The Rock came out, packed up his desk, and left.  Then Jay was called in, thirty minutes later he came out, packed up his desk, and left.  Then Tattoo-Face was called in and while he was being fired the rest of us started packing up our desks.  Tattoo-Face came out, packed up his desk, and left.  At this point we were going crazy…some of you may have seen my updated gchat status as one after another my team walked out the door.  Sadly, the firing blitz was not over, next was the Sassy Puerto Rican, thirty minutes later and she began to pack up her desk.

In case you have not experienced this kind of a situation–it is HORRIBLE!  It felt like a real-life version of Survivor.  Or a firing squad.  Or something.

The three remaining people on my team couldn’t do anything but pace up and down the aisle, popping our heads up over the walls of Cubiville, just like gopher’s, every time the door to the conference room opened.  I could feel my heart beat in my wrist, my neck, my thumb.

I was next…my remaining teammates gave me a hug and I walked towards the conference room with my heart in my throat.  Another manager from my company met me at the door and said, very quickly “I know this isn’t the best way to handle this but….”

[Um, I'm dying at this point, imagining the worst possible scenario.]

“…you will be joining my team as of today.  We have our first team meeting right now to discuss our plan for 2009.”

And I walked into my new team.  And tried really hard not to cry.  Or double-punch the air.  Or do a happy dance on the conference room table.

And that’s it.  That was how I got promoted.  I have a new team, a new manager, a new desk, new responsibilities, and because my previous department–the Grunt Department–has been sent to an off-shore location, even with a promotion I am still a Grunt.  But a Promoted Grunt.

And now, back to your regularly scheduled programming.