Pete Hanson’s Daily Blog: Up In The Air

I watched the movie Up In The Air this weekend starring (much to my wife’s delight) George Clooney. In the movie ol’ George plays a corporate terminator, who other companies hire to come in and fire employees during downsizing. Much of the movie is Clooney’s character sitting down in front of workers and letting them go. We are shown the emotional and financial impact on the terminated, and their reactions to the news. Some of it funny, some of it sad, all of it much too real. Unfortunately, there has been a lot of this going on in the world lately.

Every person portrayed in the movie was shocked, angry, and feeling helpless at their release from duty. “How can you do this to me after seventeen years?” Or, “What am I supposed to tell my family?” Everyone in the movie was a surprised victim. Would be easy for any of us to be.

Now here’s the headline; It could happen to any of us today. Unless you own your business, someone could walk in the door and let you go today. Think about that. No, really think about it for a minute. And believe it. Because when you do, you can take the “surprise” out of the above scenario. It also sets you down the path of not being a victim in it either. Think, plan, prepare. And not just about your career. Most things in life deserve this kind of attention.

One of my favorite life equations is LUCK=PREPARATION+OPPORTUNITY. The people who appear to have “all the luck,” likely go about their life preparing (and that is something different for everyone), so that when the opportunities come along in life, they are the ones ready to pluck the fruit from the tree.

I guess the movie just reminded me that there are no guarantees in life. Just ask the people being fired in the movie. So decide not to be a victim. The rules of the game say that what we have today may be gone tomorrow. Be prepared. (I was a boy scout. What can I say?)