As I’m sure is the case with any layoff, one spends a lot of time thinking about why it happened, what could have been different, and all that mumbo jumbo. I’ve decided it doesn’t matter, any thought towards trying to fix the unfixable is greatly unproductive, unless it teaches some profound lesson that might be useful in the future.
It’s interesting to be out on my own again, it seems like it was just a little while ago that I was in the same position. I spent a lot of time being bitter about the collapse
of Price.com the last time, and it really did me no good. This time, I’m simply focused on providing for my family. With a child coming it’s almost like I have this insane, nearly frantic, motivation to provide security for the future. Being bitter and angst ridden simply weighs me down.
I truly enjoyed my experience with Autobytel. I’ve stepped foot in a lot of companies, and none were as thorough as Autobytel. The people there were warm and friendly. Everyone I worked with was very talented, and had no doubt been hired because of their talent and experience. The CEO was approachable, and offered individual praise to each of the 300+ employees. It is a good company, and like all companies it hits some rough spots. But the quality of this company compared to others will make the difference of whether or not it can ride out the rough spots. I have a feeling Autobytel will easily ride out spots rougher than laying off 40 employees. It just seems to be their nature.
It’s not fair to call it a collapse. It felt like one at the time. Price.com is still around, but barely. A little over a year ago, nearly all the staff was asked to take paycuts or to resign so that the company could ride out the rough weather. It was painful to see, especially after investing so much time and effort and sweat equity into the business. But, if the reality was ignored, meaning, if jobs weren’t cut back, it would surely be dead today. Today it still has the potential of making a return. It runs lean, and stays right where it needs to in order to ride out any rough spots. It’s the reality of business that sometimes layoffs must happen. Even family and quality of life orientend businesses like Autobytel and Price.com have to make these sacrifices sometimes.