Ask Liz Ryan HR: Human Resources for the new millennium
Transcribed from another blog
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Today
So what can I say about today. I saved someone today and that restored my faith in what I do. Sometimes it's so hard to do what I do, to not let the cynicism overtake me, to not succumb to the temptation not to truly care anymore and just "do the job". I've been doing this for over 23 years now and I've seen, investigated and taken action on the worst of the worst....from the everyday "they said something mean to me" to the most abhorent acts possible, workplace violence, stalking, sexual assault. I've had coworkers and people in my charge kill themselves, I held one of my employees in my arms in the hospital the day before he died and he told me if he'd had another son...he'd want him to be just like me. I've seen the worst that there is. Though in every case I took the appropriate action, swiftly and with surety. It sometime's bears down on the soul and sometimes it feels as if you can't bear to see one more person be victmized and sitting in your office crying and not give up and go find another occupation. It overwhelms.
Then there's the times when your hand is forced because no one listens to what you know to be right and you wind up having to layoff 5 people right before the holidays, all because someone higher up in the food chain wouldn't listen to your recommendations as to what you KNEW to be right. This happened today and it tears me up. I have no problem firing some miscreant who committs abhorrent acts or just doesn't care about doing their job....it's when you have to let people go who do care about their job and it's not their fault.
Then you get that one time...every so often that you tuck in your chin...tilt at the windmills, battle your way through and you actually can help someone who needs it, and deserves it...and when you do, they look at you and the tears in their eyes aren't ones of sorrow, but one's that are thanking you because someone actually gave a damn enough about them to help....this is what redeems this job for me. Those moments when I can make someone's life better, when I can battle the goliaths and win...for those who can't fight them for themselves.
Sometimes I just have to remember what my first platoon commander told me about the injustices of the world..."you can't change the world, only your little part of it."
I am still haunted by what I have to do in the coming days with laying off those people....I can still sleep knowing that in the course of this day....I made a difference in one person's life.
Today
So what can I say about today. I saved someone today and that restored my faith in what I do. Sometimes it's so hard to do what I do, to not let the cynicism overtake me, to not succumb to the temptation not to truly care anymore and just "do the job". I've been doing this for over 23 years now and I've seen, investigated and taken action on the worst of the worst....from the everyday "they said something mean to me" to the most abhorent acts possible, workplace violence, stalking, sexual assault. I've had coworkers and people in my charge kill themselves, I held one of my employees in my arms in the hospital the day before he died and he told me if he'd had another son...he'd want him to be just like me. I've seen the worst that there is. Though in every case I took the appropriate action, swiftly and with surety. It sometime's bears down on the soul and sometimes it feels as if you can't bear to see one more person be victmized and sitting in your office crying and not give up and go find another occupation. It overwhelms.
Then there's the times when your hand is forced because no one listens to what you know to be right and you wind up having to layoff 5 people right before the holidays, all because someone higher up in the food chain wouldn't listen to your recommendations as to what you KNEW to be right. This happened today and it tears me up. I have no problem firing some miscreant who committs abhorrent acts or just doesn't care about doing their job....it's when you have to let people go who do care about their job and it's not their fault.
Then you get that one time...every so often that you tuck in your chin...tilt at the windmills, battle your way through and you actually can help someone who needs it, and deserves it...and when you do, they look at you and the tears in their eyes aren't ones of sorrow, but one's that are thanking you because someone actually gave a damn enough about them to help....this is what redeems this job for me. Those moments when I can make someone's life better, when I can battle the goliaths and win...for those who can't fight them for themselves.
Sometimes I just have to remember what my first platoon commander told me about the injustices of the world..."you can't change the world, only your little part of it."
I am still haunted by what I have to do in the coming days with laying off those people....I can still sleep knowing that in the course of this day....I made a difference in one person's life.
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