....and then there were NONE!

Posted on 2006/06/15 13:35:22 (June 2006).

[15th June 2006]

I borrowed this quote from my favourite Aghata Christie's novel (ten Little Indians), but I need to paraphrase it a bit...

".... and then there were TOO MANY!!!"

Yep. In my experience, life tend to give you either too little or too much, there is hardly a way in the middle. I have been craving for a job offer in the past two years, finally something better than bread and butter lands on my table, and what happens?

Let's start the tale from yesterday, my agent calls me and tells me that he's going to write a very strong mail to my boss to avert my future exit from the company. It's all good for me, I think that it's ok to do something like that, after all he has to protect his business as well.
The mail was quite nice for me, it had a lot of good things said about me and the work that we did, and basically it hit square to the point that it wanted to strike... FEAR.

My boss is now scared at loosing me. After showing me the mail (which I had seen before anyways), I told him that maybe it would have been good to make a trip to Japan to do a bit of "PR" and try to smoothen the change as much as possible. He accepted (of course), but he kept telling me that he wanted to discuss me leaving again...

Then today my agent calls me and... SHOCKER!! One of our biggest clients clients (a HUGE well known corporation), said that if I leave they will loose all the business with their clients, so they immediately called the people at their offices here in Italy to try to work out something so that I can go back to Florence and work FOR THEM !!!
Shame that my current wage is too high for what they were thinking, so once again they insisted with my agent to tell my present company to give me the agency for the collections, on the top of which they will give me their mandate to control and arrange all their fabric business in Italy...

So now I have contacted this Japanese guy in Italy, the head of the Italian branch, to go and speak to him to see what he has to tell me...

OH BOY, what can I say?

I shall speak to my bosses soon, about the trip and about this agency idea, I am not sure that they will accept my points though, as if I go and work for my own company I will need some insurances that a normal employee normally has. Well, after all I am the person who has the upper hand in this negotiation, as they should try to keep me here rather than seeing me leave (if they want to keep me here is something that needs to be seen though)...
If my employer refuses then it leaves me little chances to work for the Japanese too, I might be able to ask the new employer to become an agent anyways, but it's going to be a bit of a problem I think...

Did I say I was scared one week ago?

Well imagine me now, considering to start my own business and to work for a Japanese mega-corporation too !!!

I didn't understand everything, but if you were to become an executive yourself, would you employ me and teach me the business ?

Posted by Sheri at 2006/06/15 14:05:44.

I mean, a higly ranked executive with a fat pay cheque !

Posted by Sheri at 2006/06/15 14:08:47.

Sheri: No actually I will have to start my OWN business, become an agent for my present company... I can teach you the business but I would advise against wanting to enter the textile world, it's a dead end... (career and money-wise)

Posted by Lox at 2006/06/15 14:09:31.

Mmmm... Too bad ! I thought I could bring the French *touch*...

But if it's a dead end, what's the point of starting your own business ?

Posted by Sheri at 2006/06/15 14:16:44.

Sheri: Good point. Well, it's the easiste thing to get out of here (I still need a wage) then life might have other surprises for me at the horizon, the main point is to go back to Florence, what happens there is a different story... If this thing goes well I might end up earining a lot more money, live in Florence and still travel to Asia... Dream job? Surely a good deal, better than the one that I have now...

Posted by Lox at 2006/06/15 14:28:23.

Despite all the confusion and uncertainty it creates, it must be really nice to have people clamouring over you like that!

I certainly don't feel like I'm being loved enough right now, career wise! If there's any going spare, please send some my way! My self esteem has taken a real bashing over the last few months...

So I say drink it in Lorenzo, enjoy the fact that everyone seems to want a piece of the Loxy action.

At the same time though, don't try and carry the world on your shoulders - don't let anyone "guilt trip" you into working for them just because they flap their arms about, run around panicking, and tell you their whole business is doomed without you.

At the end of the day, it isn't your problem - if they'd shown you a bit more love in the first place, appropriate for how vital you are to everything, then you wouldn't now be so unhappy that you've decided to resign.

It's just like having a girlfriend who treats you like crap constantly, then the day you leave her she says she can't live without you.

A lot of this flapping about you're getting now is just reactionary bullshit - people running about and panicking. Offers based on this sort of reaction do not sound like they will bring stability in the long run.

My feeling is, unless something you simply can't refuse comes along, you're probably going to be better just sticking to the original plan. Don't go having sleepless nights over a million "what if...?" scenarios.

The most important thing is to get back to Firenze, and do so in a way that you'll have some stability there You don't want to take a position that disappears into nothing after two months, leaving you with no option but to return to the North.

Posted by John at 2006/06/15 14:58:35.

John: Very true. The original plan is to go back to Florence. And that is a "conditio sine qua non" (a condition that is not negotiable). Becoming an agent has good sides and bad sides. I have to fly solo, so what I sell is what I earn, but I can also improve my gains considerably.

At the moment I will accept an agency only if: the perchentage lets me earn (after tax) at least what I am making now, including travel and company expenses. The contract must be guaranteed for the first 3 years, after which if they want to get rid of me they will have to pay me 2 years worth of commisison as severance.

If they can accept these conditions or make some similar, then it's like having the job that I have at the moment.

The plus side is that I will be able to work with other companies too, or with this big Japanese corporation (trying to get a contract that will ensure at least 2/3 years of collaboration there as well)...

If it all falls to pieces I will simply take the offer that I have at hand, nothing more nothing less.

It's shakey ground for me, as I am venturing into something new, but it might be worth exploring it to simply milk the cow 'till it's still alive...

Posted by Lox at 2006/06/15 15:17:31.

About the girlfiend, John, ça sent le "vécu"...!

Posted by Sheri at 2006/06/15 15:17:33.

Sheri: Babel fish translates it to "it feel "live"".. .what does it mean exactely?

Posted by Lox at 2006/06/15 15:20:02.

Sheri: girlfriend...? I don't think I mentioned anything about any girlfriend in my post did I? I'm a bit confused...

Posted by John at 2006/06/15 15:23:37.

Ah sorry, I've just read my post back - yes I did mention a girlfriend as a metpahor.

Sorry I'm an idiot!

Posted by John at 2006/06/15 15:26:02.

"Vécu" is a conjugated form (past participle) of the verb "vivre" (to live). You say for instance: j'ai vécu - I (have) lived. But in this context it is used as a substantive (i. e. a noun). "Le vécu" refers to what you have experienced in your past life.
In other words, "ça sent le vécu" means "you must surely have experienced it in your life to talk about it the way you do".

Posted by Sheri at 2006/06/15 15:31:24.

Capito ?

Posted by Sheri at 2006/06/15 15:32:52.

Sheri: NICE! I like this phrase now I have to remember it, nice stuff! :)

Posted by Lox at 2006/06/15 15:34:31.

Oh wow Lox!! It's good to be wanted. I agree with every word John said. I also agreed with your own comments and Sheri's humour! Nothing more I can add!!!

Well, except, look after number one - this is what all the other parties to these discussions are doing.

Posted by Nigel Alefounder at 2006/06/15 22:24:29.

... and I'd like to add I think Agatha Christie is great too!! :))

Posted by Nigel at 2006/06/16 13:27:03.

Agatha Christie rocks! I quote you on that! :)

Posted by Lox at 2006/06/16 13:47:47.

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