An Unhappy Loss
There's a big range of reactions you can get when you find out someone's leaving (or left) your workplace.
One one end of the scale you can have "it's about damn time" reaction. I have to admit I've felt that way more than a few times over the past years. You can also feel fairly indifferent if the person's absence isn't hugely impactful and they're nice enough folk that you can just wish well.
On the other end of the scale, are those announcements that just hit you like a punch in the stomach. It could be that the person is so important to the organization that you're left worrying about the who and how of picking up the slack until they're replaced. It could aslo be that the person is just someone you care about and you're sad that you won't be seeing them every day any more.
The worst is when the person is a key player, great employee and you do really care about them and will miss having them around. That makes it feel like a punch in the stomach along with a punch in the head.
That's how I felt when, at the airport on our way to Calgary, my boss told me that our Database Administrator was leaving. My heart just sank. Not only is he a hugely competent team member, he's a sincerely good person. You know the type, the one who always volunteers to help people (sometimes too much so), never brings a bad attitude to the workplace and is always smiling even when we were picking on him. Which we did, being who we are.
He has offered to help us out on an hourly basis, which is fantastic, but I think his last day truly exemplifies who he is as a person. It was Friday and, as I headed out at 5 PM, I realized that he was the last one still working. I'm not sure when he left but he wanted to finish up some documentation before he left. I certainly appreciate that because I'm the fill-in DBA until we get a new person place.
We all wish him well in his new job; I hope it's a fantastic success. He was a great employee who gave a lot to the company and our team while he worked with us. I'm just really, really, really sad to see him go.
One one end of the scale you can have "it's about damn time" reaction. I have to admit I've felt that way more than a few times over the past years. You can also feel fairly indifferent if the person's absence isn't hugely impactful and they're nice enough folk that you can just wish well.
On the other end of the scale, are those announcements that just hit you like a punch in the stomach. It could be that the person is so important to the organization that you're left worrying about the who and how of picking up the slack until they're replaced. It could aslo be that the person is just someone you care about and you're sad that you won't be seeing them every day any more.
The worst is when the person is a key player, great employee and you do really care about them and will miss having them around. That makes it feel like a punch in the stomach along with a punch in the head.
That's how I felt when, at the airport on our way to Calgary, my boss told me that our Database Administrator was leaving. My heart just sank. Not only is he a hugely competent team member, he's a sincerely good person. You know the type, the one who always volunteers to help people (sometimes too much so), never brings a bad attitude to the workplace and is always smiling even when we were picking on him. Which we did, being who we are.
He has offered to help us out on an hourly basis, which is fantastic, but I think his last day truly exemplifies who he is as a person. It was Friday and, as I headed out at 5 PM, I realized that he was the last one still working. I'm not sure when he left but he wanted to finish up some documentation before he left. I certainly appreciate that because I'm the fill-in DBA until we get a new person place.
We all wish him well in his new job; I hope it's a fantastic success. He was a great employee who gave a lot to the company and our team while he worked with us. I'm just really, really, really sad to see him go.
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