thestoryofjory.com

Little-known Jory fact: I was fired from my very first job after only one month.

That’s because, hands down, I was the worst delivery girl to ever work at Pizza Hut in Noble, OK.  On my first day of pizza-delivery work, I lost my car keys for nearly two hours.  My dad had to come bring a spare set so that I could make my second delivery.  And I was far too slow at moving a pizza from Pizza Hut to peoples’ homes.  Once, I delivered a pizza to the wrong apartment in Noble, and a little old man pulled a gun on me.  The people who actually ordered the pizza lived in an apartment a block away, and they called my manager to complain when I finally showed up.

Eventually, my manager sat me down to ask how I thought my first month of work was going. I don’t remember what I said, but I know I was thinking something along the lines of, Are you kidding?  I suck at this! Thankfully, the manager agreed with that line of thinking.  I remember that he said he liked my enthusiasm and attitude, but I just wasn’t cut out to be a pizza delivery girl.  We were in complete agreement, and I was relieved.

Ten years later, I’m now on the other side of the equation.  Since January, 2007, I’ve been in charge of hiring and managing other people. When I find myself in a situation of having to fire someone, I find myself thinking back to my first job and the experience of being fired.  It certainly wasn’t a pleasant, proud experience, but I really appreciate now how my manager handled the situation.  I try to imagine myself in the future ex-employee’s shoes, and how the news might affect him or her.  I try to be as honest as possible (without being too blunt) about the reasons they’re being fired.  I also tell them the things I appreciated about their work, because I don’t think being fired from a job should preclude them from listing their time in my company on future job applications.

I’ve managed about 25 different people so far, and I’ve had to fire five for varying reasons.  It makes me very happy that I am still on friendly terms with those people.  A few have even listed me as a reference for other jobs.  The bottom line is that they are good people who just weren’t good fits for the job at the time.   Getting fired never feels good, so I think it’s really important for managers to have empathy and maybe some experience being fired.  At any point, my boss could decide to fire me, and I’d be in the same boat as those I’ve fired.  I just want to make sure I’m welcomed on the boat if I ever end up there.

So, about a year ago, I was in the local Mail Boxes, Etc. store mailing off one of my key-art projects when I was approached by a woman standing in line next to me.  She introduced herself as Jeretta Horn Nord, and she asked lots of questions about my key art.  I was happy to talk to her about it, and she seemed really interested.  Nord told me that she was editing a book series about entrepreneurship and would like me to contribute my story.  So I went home and wrote a short one or two page summary of my key-art story and emailed it to her.  I didn’t figure I’d ever hear anything about it again because 1) I didn’t think the series had a publisher yet and 2) the title of the series is kind of lame in my opinion: A Cup of Cappuccino for the Entrepreneur’s Spirit.

I figured the story would end there.  Wrong.  In January, Nord emailed me to tell me that my story would be published in her upcoming book, A Cup of Cappuccino for the Entrepreneur’s Spirit: Women Entrepreneurs’ Edition.

And, to top it off, there will be a book launch event on June 10 at the Barnes & Noble on 66th & Broadway in New York City. Nord emailed me again yesterday to pass along more information about the event, which I have re-posted below:

The Women Entrepreneurs’ Edition of A Cup of Cappuccino for the Entrepreneur’s Spirit will be launched at the largest Barnes and Noble in the nation on Thursday, June 10 at 7:30 p.m. (66th and Broadway–Lincoln Triangle, New York City).  Lou Kerr and I would love for you to join us in the celebration of the publication of 58 phenomenal stories from extraordinary women entrepreneurs from five countries and eighteen states.

We will have a panel of  eight featured women entrepreneurs who will tell their stories and answer questions.  If you are an entrepreneur featured in one of the books, you will have an opportunity to ’sign’ your story and meet other like minded individuals.  It’s truly an opportunity of a lifetime to have people ask for your ‘autograph’ on Broadway in NYC.  J A flier is attached with all of the details.

Volumes I and II of A Cup of Cappuccino for the Entrepreneur’s Spirit will also be available at this event.

Just in case you need more encouragement–we will have free bookmarks, pens, door hangers and a drawing to give away a Barnes and Noble nook e-reader valued at $250.

Jeretta Horn Nord
CEO, Entrepreneur Enterprises LLC

Consider this flyer for the event:

It’s kind of crazy, considering that I never even thought anything would ever come of this.  No, I won’t be going to New York City for the book event.  I can’t really afford to. For my participation in this book, I believe I will be receiving… a free copy of the book.  However, if you purchase this book, I will be more than happy to sign it for you.  Also, if you buy the book, I encourage you to go write a review of it on Amazon.com for me.

Despite my evident sarcasm in this particular post, I have to admit that I do think this cool.  I secretly wish I could go to NYC to this event, just to see what it would be like.  It’s kind of exciting to think that Jorydotcom’s Epic Key Emporium will be saved forever in a book.  Even if it doesn’t result in extra traffic at ye olde shoppe, at the very least, it’s a cool story to tell my kids one day.

Edited: Sarcasm removed.

photo from www.waynokasnakehunt.org

Long story short – yours truly will be assisting a small production crew in Waynoka this weekend, and we’ll be documenting the Waynoka rattlesnake hunt. If you’re in the area, come see me :)

Also, today is my 5 year anniversary of employment at Stan Clark Companies.  It’s been a very fun, short 5 years!  Can’t wait to see what the next year has in store.