Art print hanging in my office.
I love this art print so damn much I think I want to be cremated with it. First, I want to be laid out in my casket clutching this framed picture in my cold, dead hands (middle fingers probably tucked in). It’ll be an open-casket affair for full effect, with rosary beads and prayer cards. (Although I didn’t live my life as one, I’ll die an ostentatious Catholic.)
I have an unusual sense of humor.
But to live life fully, you can’t be afraid of burning bridges — and death is a great time to remind other people of this fact.
Yet in many places, especially LinkedIn, it feels like “burning bridges” is an all-consuming fear.
I’m on LinkedIn quite a bit. There, I see lots of #opentowotk posts that make me feel truly sad for the poster.
The basic gist is always some version of the following:
Today I was let go from [INSERT COMPANY NAME] after [x] years. Unfortunately revenue had been down for several quarters due to market challenges. I know tough decisions had to be made and [INSERT COMPANY NAME] will come out stronger; I’m pulling for them in this difficult chapter.
Thank you [INSERT COMPANY NAME] for an amazing opportunity and transformative professional experience. I learned so much. Thank you [INSERT & TAG 3 COWORKER NAMES] and [INSERT INSIDE JOKE AND EMOJI].
I’m excited to see what the next chapter holds for me. If you know of anyone hiring for [INSERT JOB ROLE], I’d be grateful if you passed along my name.
For now, I’m looking forward to spending more time with [INSERT NAMES OF KIDS OR FUR BABIES], tackling [INSERT HOUSE CHORE], and seeing what life has in store for me. Feeling grateful and hopeful as I look back on the journey — behind me and ahead.
You can copy that speech if you want to
But please don’t. It won’t help you. It’s fluff. And it’s not sincere. Who is feeling grateful for being terminated and wants to give their ex-employer a shout-out? Seriously?
“I’d like to thank the Academy”
It has major award-speech energy. I’d like to thank the Academy for this lay-off! I was in a strong field of contenders, and oh wow, I just can’t believe it. You picked me to lay off! You dislike me! You really, really, dislike me!
Or maybe likening it to a concession speech is more a propos.
It was a tough fight, y’all, and I’m proud of the campaign we ran. Hats off to my ex-boss; he ran a great campaign and will be a strong leader for The Company.
You don’t need to thank someone for firing you
You don’t owe them loyalty. There’s no need to go scorched earth either, but you thanking your old employer isn’t necessary.
Why should you give free PR to the company who just canned you? It doesn’t help your future career prospects.
Gracious concession speeches aren’t required when someone has taken away your livelihood. Just move on.
Who says it’s burning bridges? Or that you can’t burn them?
People feel compelled to speak well of their old job so they don’t burn bridges.
Why? Do you want to work there again? Do you want the same boss again at a different job? Do you think they are going to warn everyone against you?
They won’t.
Not publicly thanking your ex-job burns no bridges.
And really, they already burned bridges when they terminated your employment.
You can say nothing.
You don’t have to publicly defame your old employer. But you can state, in neutral language, you were let go from X due to lay-offs and are looking for your next job opportunity.
Sell yourself, not your “no hard feelings” vibe
Effective posts I’ve seen on LinkedIn — ones that get shared hundreds of times and garner comments from recruiters and hiring managers — take a different approach.
Here’s an example:
I was laid off today at work, ending X tenure with XYZ. The layoff was due to [merger, reorganization, budget cuts, etc.]
Now, I need your help. I’m looking for my next role in [insert career].
Here’s what I loved about my last job:
- Launching new products X,Y,Z with these great teams…
-Hackathons where some of my ideas to….
- Working with super-talented people to re-brand..
- Being surrounded by talented people who…m
- Developing my skills in….
- Mentoring junior employees and interns…
These were major wins:
- Increased X by Y saving the company $X million in annual X costs.
- Onboarded X accounts which drove $X annual revenue.
- Nurtured relationships with XYZ, resulting in vendor/affiliate/client becoming a key partner that drove X% of all revenue for…
- Improved [thing] by [action] for…
Here’s what I’m passionate about and would love to explore:
- Enhancing knowledge of AI for [insert thing], building on my X hours of personal training and development through…
- Building products with a focus on…
- Supporting a mission tied to…
I would be grateful if you would share this post for reach and let me know of any job leads you come across.
Lay it out there. Sell yourself. Make it easy for your friends and contacts to sell you. Let them know what you do and what you’re good at. Give them the crib notes that they can easily share with recruiters.
No one knows what you do
I cringe every time I see a job post that says “I was laid off. Please let me know if you or any of your friends are hiring. Or if you see a job lead that looks like a good fit, please let me know.”
Ummm… You’ve given me nothing to work with. I have 800 contacts on LinkedIn. Most people I’ve never met in real life. And even if you and I went to college together, or you worked down the hall from me five years ago, I still don’t know what you do.
Tell people what you do and why you’re good at it
Tell me what you do. Tell me what someone would want to hire you. Ask for me to share the post and comments for reach.
You don’t have to talk up your old employer to show how gracious and non-bitter you are.
If not giving them kudos and kissing up is burning bridges… Well burn, baby, burn. And let the fire blaze your next path.
