Just How Important Do You Think You Are?

Does your employer think well of you? Do you feel valued and treasured, or at least in some way, minorly appreciated? Or perhaps you work for a large corporation, where no one even knows you exist? Feel like a fifth century galley slave most days? You’re probably envious of the people who work at the places on those lists of Great Places To Work aren’t you?

Well you may work for one of those great places, but listen up; when the economy gets bad enough, or they put some bright boy with a Harvard MBA in charge, you’ll go under the bus like anyone working for a crappy company! Think not? Then you’re overly optamistic! The sad fact of life in the modern age is this: when you get too old, too highly paid, some weasel middle manager will notice, and fire you, replacing you with a know nothing kid for half your pay. He gets a nice bonus for saving the company lots of cash, and you go to eat Alpo or be a greeter at Wal Mart.

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but unless you’ve got some nice photos of the board of directors gang raping a six year old, you are expendable. You need to be a lot less loyal and devoted to the company, and a whole lot more devoted to developing plan B. Sorry, I know that violates what your parents told you, but go to your basement and ask them if they still feel that way, after they got screwed.

Look, once upon a time, you were devoted to your employer, and they were devoted to you. That Mayberry sort of thing sure was nice, but it died in the seventies.  The company you work for is run by a bunch of godless heathens, who only care about how much money they can make in the next three quarters. As long as they can bail out and cash in their stock options, you can die in the collapse of the business for all they care. If they’re willing to do business without God, why would they give a crap about you? If you can’t answer that, then get working on that other plan. Now.

Jack