The days of the company cult following are over. Its a job, not a cult, not a way of life, and certainly not your family. Just move on to the next job. Forget all the feels good and warm fuzzy thoughts of drinking coco with BillG by the fireplace snuggled up in a blanket, talking about the days of yore.
You have skills and talent, just move on to the next chapter in your life.
I think some of the biggest mistakes that people make is:
) expect a company to bend to their will
) expect a company to stay the same
They often forget about option 3 which is to move on. With every single layoff there is a talent vacuum that needs to be filled. Seek out those vacuums in other companies. Right now in light of every company laying off. There’s not much panic when it comes to hiring people. When the recession is over there will be a hiring spree across the board. Tow the company line right now and make your move then.
It’s just a way to pay the bills and nothing more.
Company ideals are great, but leadership is bad at interpreting them. Favoritism for almost every job posting and all the people who over hired causing people to lose jobs get to keep theirs, but others have to go, like VP Travis W.
I think you’ll find that not all companies work you like MS.
They don’t all “goal you” on working more than 40 hrs per week to prove that you are loyal. They don’t all demand that you compete against each other to retain your job. They don’t all make it a habit that you work until you drop from exhaustion.
I found a job outside of MS making more $, working just 40 hour per week. Instead of competition against your colleagues, they instead require you work with them.
bump
Well said.
My sister asked me if Microsoft offered good insurance. I said yes, why do you ask? Her reply was, “Good, because they are f***ing ki-ling you”.
2 years later I opted for another job making more money and get this, only required you to work 40 hours per week. Crazy, right?
A colleague of mine put in the extremely long hours every day. He told me once that “all I can remember is work”. He came in early, stayed late, worked weekends, developed, drove all the above and beyond initiative.
I did just enough and no more to be considered average. Just like a line from the move “Office Space”, work just hard enough to keep from getting fired.
He got laid off whereas I was not. Well at least he can walk away knowing he gave it his all so that the company can succeed more.
Microsoft falls in line with the rest of the corp world in how they view their people. You are an asset, something to be leveraged, traded or discarded at will as they see fit.
AND you as an employee, YOU should view the company as nothing more than a means to pay your bills. The whole everybody do a thumbs up pose in front of the Microsoft sign while wearing the same polo shirt, only goes so far.
I completely agree with what you say and the problem might be that I didn't live that there at MSFT. There was always a fight to be the one who showed the group how great you were and how you lived the virtue of the MSFT way. When I joined MSFT, I didn't expect it to be that way because I knew Amazon spouted their 10 commandments (virtues or whatever) but MSFT didnt.