Addition by Subtraction: When Letting Someone Go is Good
Build your team by letting the ones that don’t fit go
One day an employee walked into my office and said they were done. Flat, monotone, direct. There was no inflection. No context. No recent interaction with this individual made me even suspect something was coming.
I asked, “What do you mean you’re done?” They responded with circular hand gestures and all, “with this.”
Still a bit lost, I followed up with “What do you mean this?” The employee then pointed all around the office and said they were done with the job.
At first, I was perplexed because most employees give notice in a bit more professional manner. Or they simply stop showing up. Or you get a neat email one morning saying they’re out.
This individual felt it was important to make a demonstration of how they were screwing me over by quitting or so they believed.
I was surprised this individual was approaching their impending departure in such a dramatic fashion. Then I paused and remembered this individual was all about drama.
Since the day I first took over, this individual was at the root of all office gossip and negativity. The behavior was so bad, that they would openly mock another employee…
