"[Dedicated to former Kansas City Chiefs players who were cut and are playing in today’s Super Bowl. Congratulations! Clear proof that getting fired was a gift.]"
When you lose your job, you feel crushed. And if you don’t find a new job quickly, the idea that your plight is anything short of a life disaster may seem even more ridiculous. Losing a job, and especially with the prospect of being out of work for an extended time period, wrecks your pocketbook and your sense of self-worth.
In short, losing your job is one of the worst experiences of your life. I agree.
Yet what I believe has really happened to you is that you have been set free. Free from going tomorrow to a job where you wonder if you’ll be there another day or a month. Free from the headaches of a project, chasing new jobs for the firm’s marketing efforts, and fearing disturbing discussions behind-closed-doors.
Your time is now your own. And that is quite a gift.
In December of 1931, as the
Great Depression took hold, a young man by the name of Richard Crews wrote to a number of prominent architecture firms in the city of Chicago. Soon to enter the profession himself, Crews was curious to learn about an established architect’s typical working day, and so sent letters to local masters of the trade to find out from the best possible source. Four incredibly gracious responses arrived, including the one below; a letter filled with honest, sage and extremely quotable advice from
Charles Morgan, a highly regarded architectural artist who in the ’20s and ’30s provided
renderings for a number of large firms such as
Frank Lloyd Wright. Had he written it today, I’m sure much of the advice would remain.
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