How Getting Fired Was My Best Career Move

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So.

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A couple of weeks ago, I teased you that being, let go from my high

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paying job, ended up being the best thing that happened to my career.

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And I wasn't kidding.

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Welcome to episode 1 28 of this shit works podcasts dedicated to

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all things, networking, relationship building and business development.

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I'm your host, Julie Brown speaker.

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Author and networking coach.

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And today I'm discussing how I turned being, let go, and

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just starting my dream company.

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I remember almost every moment of that meeting.

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Being called into my boss's office under the guise that we were going to be

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going over my end of the year numbers.

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And discussing my end of the year bonus.

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I was pretty excited about that.

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The idea that I was going to be like, go ahead and even entered my mind.

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I mean, it had only been a few months since my latest review, where I was told

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how amazing I was doing and actually given a raise that I didn't even ask for.

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So to say I was blindsided when my boss told me that we were actually meeting

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because the company was, and I quote.

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Going in a different direction and that I was being replaced.

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Quickly followed up by.

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And I quote.

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This decision is not based on performance.

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No fucking shit.

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It wasn't.

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I was one of the best business developers in all of Boston and I was fucking

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killing it for them, by the way.

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But the decision had been made.

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Aye.

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Was officially shit canned.

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I was in a daze.

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I didn't know how this could happen, how you could be so good at your job

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and still get thrown out on your ass.

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The first call I made was to my husband.

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He's my partner and everything.

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And I needed to hear his voice, which in typical fashion was calm and reassuring.

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And then made a flurry of other phone calls to find out

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what the fuck was going on.

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People were shocked.

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Almost as shocked as me.

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After the severance negotiation was completed the next day, I

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needed time to lick my wounds.

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Time to heal.

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Time to figure out how the fuck this could have happened to me.

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Time to figure out what was next.

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So I took a couple of months off.

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I didn't know what I wanted to do, but I knew I didn't want to jump back into the

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kind of role I was just like, go from.

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I ended up taking a job at a small startup, more closely related to

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the work my husband does on the residential side of the industry.

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And while I was at this firm, I continued to nurture my relationships,

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but also spent the next year building new relationships.

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And really increasing my network.

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I did this because something in me had stirred.

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I realized I never wanted to be in that position again.

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I never wanted someone to be able to let me go because they

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were going in a new direction.

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I knew I was too good at the job had too many connections and had worked.

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Too fucking hard to ever let that happen again.

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And he only way to guarantee that.

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Was to start my own company.

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And because of the years I spent building relationships and a

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reputation in the industry.

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When I incorporated my business, I already had all of my client

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signed on with yearly contracts.

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Being an entrepreneur and starting your own firm is always going to be scary, but

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it's a lot easier to do when you know, you have all of your clients lined up.

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Reoccurring revenue guaranteed for a year.

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And the people in your network.

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Really wanting you to succeed.

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Fast forward seven years.

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And every day I get to do what I love.

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And I couldn't imagine doing anything else, but it never would have

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happened if I hadn't been fired.

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Lots of people find their true calling after being shitcan.

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At hand.

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Let's.

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Look at a few.

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Oprah Winfrey.

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Yeah, Oprah was fired very early on in her career.

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A producer at Baltimore's w J Z T V.

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Told Winfrey.

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Then an evening news reporter.

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Quarter that she was quote unquote unfit for television news.

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He did offer.

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Offer her a constellation price.

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However, a place on.

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People are talking.

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I used to watch that show.

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It was a daytime TV show.

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And that was.

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Was initially like a demotion for Winfrey, but it's where

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her career took off in earnest.

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And like the rest is history.

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Like.

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She's Oprah.

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J K rallying, the woman who invented Harry Potter was once a secretary

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until she lost her job for writing fiction on the company time.

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Rallying survived on welfare writing in Edinburgh coffee houses until her first

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book Harry Potter and the philosopher's stone sold for get this $4,000 in 1997.

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By 2000, the first three books in the Potter series had sold 35

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million copies in 35 languages and earned $480 million worldwide.

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Walt Disney was fired from the Kansas city star in his early twenties.

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He then went on to start a company called Lafa gram studios,

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which went bankrupt in 1923.

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Only when Disney moved to Hollywood with his brother, Roy and founded

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the Disney brothers cartoon studio.

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Did he find success with a new character?

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Mickey mouse.

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Anna Wintour, you know, the devil.

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Devil wears Prada was fired from her job as a junior fashion editor at

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Harper's bizarre, due to creative differences with the editor in chief.

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Bill Belicheck was fired from the NFL's Cleveland rounds before becoming one of

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the world's most successful head coaches.

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Although he's not looking like it right now, if you know what I mean.

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Howard stern was fired from his job as a radio personality on NBC.

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When management finally got fed up with his off-color humor.

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Lady Gaga was fired from her first record label, which wasn't prepared

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to wait another six months for her to create her debut album.

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What a dumb decision.

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The list goes on and on.

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Yeah, getting fired sucks.

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But sometimes it's exactly what you need.

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If I hadn't been let go from that company, I'd still be working there.

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I never would have started this business.

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I never would have written a book.

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I never would have created this podcast and I certainly never would

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have become a professional speaker.

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And all of those things I just mentioned, I absolutely love doing,

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and I get to do them for me and for you and not for anyone else.

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And that's pretty fucking awesome.

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So.

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Sometimes being, let go.

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It's exactly what you need.

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Sometimes being Waco is the catalyst for change that will

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change your entire career.

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Okay.

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Now onto the drink of the week, which is aptly named the boss lady.

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Here's what you're going to need.

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One ounce of cognac.

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One half ounce of ginger liquor, like domain Kenton.

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Three forest ounce of grapefruit juice, three, four ounce of lemon

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juice, a half an ounce of honey.

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Two dashes of bitters, two ounces of dry sparkling wine, like cava.

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And if you want a garnish shit, you could use a grapefruit twist for a cart garnish.

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All you're gonna do is you're going to add all the ingredients

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except the sparkling wine to a cocktail shaker, shaker, over ice.

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And then strain into a champagne, flute, and top of sparkling wine and

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that grapefruit chest, if you want.

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All right friends.

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That's all for this week.

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If you like what you heard today, please leave a review

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and subscribe to the podcast.

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Also, please remember to share the podcast to help it reach a larger audience.

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If you want more, Julie Brown, you can find my book.

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This shit works on Amazon or Barnes and noble.

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You can find me on LinkedIn at Julie Brown BD.

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Just make sure you let me know where you found me when you reach out.

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I am Julie Brown underscore BD on the Instagram, or you can just pop on

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over to my website, Julie Brown BD.

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Dot com until next week.