The Definition of Insanity

The definition insanity is when you keep doing what you’ve always done and expect a different result. If you are capable of getting a job but you get fired from the jobs, something is wrong. Period. And it’s not about the people firing you. Stop for a moment and go take a look in the mirror. You are responsible for the results you get from jobs you’ve worked.

Before you get frustrated with my opening and click off the page, keep reading. Don’t get mad at me. I am attempting to get you to take a look at what is going on in your world. I have the opportunity to speak to countless job seekers and people who are employed hanging on the edge, about to get fired. Many of you invest so much time blaming the organization, your boss, the people you work with, the stupid policies and the list goes on. It is a rare occasion that I hear a job seeker take responsibility for what is happening or what actually happened on the job. Own your part. I am not suggesting you take responsibility for what the organization has done or is doing or what people have done. Take a look a little closer to home.

If you have been terminated from more than one job, you have to step back and look at what happened. Go backwards. What happened just before you got let go? What happened before that? And keep asking the question until you get to the place and situation that led up to your termination. Trust me, there is a genesis. Something happened in a series of events that led up to the termination. What could you do differently in the future given what happened so that you don’t repeat history?

If you find yourself on the short end of the stick and losing your job, take responsibility for your part in what happened. Don’t worry about whether the organization takes responsibility for their part. The bottom line is that you have some level of accountability in what happened.

I got an email today from a lady whose son lost his job. I don’t have all the details, only the note she sent. But based on the information he lost his job for not calling in to work. Mom is very upset for her son. In her opinion he was unjustly let go, because he has a doctor’s note. Apparently he called, spoke to someone and he let them know he wasn’t coming because of the doctor’s note, however he didn’t call for two days and when he returned to work, he was let go. My only question is, what is the policy for no call/no shows? If the policy is that you call daily, than termination is the consequence. I don’t know if her son has ever lost his job before, however I know that if he doesn’t take responsibility for what happened with this job, he will find that he is “victimized” at every job going forward. It will be everyone else’s fault and he will miss his growth opportunity.

The definition of insanity is when you keep doing the same thing and expecting a different result. That is what I typically get when working with job seekers.