Meeting with My Former Boss

Met up with my former big boss J last Thursday and had a super long talk with him. He had wanted to see me, to exchange perspectives, and I saw this as a opportunity to clear things up, so I complied.

Basically, they were very upset because they felt the work I had left behind (based on what they thought I did) was just terrible, and from the way I denied their claims, they felt that I did not even want to take responsibility for the mistakes I've made. They found my tone offensive, for someone who "needed help from them" (was asking them for money). They felt that I took their good will to let me go for granted, and felt that I did not deserve to get paid the rest of my dues.

I told him I was upset because I felt that after agreeing on my departure terms, they had chosen to go back on their word and refused to pay me what they had agreed to pay me. I felt that they still did not take responsibility to get their accounts right, and on top of that, they did not think and evaluate why people left, and kept pinning the blame on the people who left. I found their tone offensive for someone who owed me money (for a couple of months already). I felt they took my good will to wait for them to sort out their accounts for granted, and were acting like big bullies.

I think you can notice the similarities in the emotions experienced by both sides. It's really quite interesting how both parties can feel the same thing about the same situation albeit from two jarringly different perspectives. The differences did not just stop there.

He told me that the management had protected us from a lot of nonsense from the clients. I told them that we, the workers had protected the management from a lot of rubbish from the customers and from a lot of rude people looking for them.

He told me that they had taken a risk and were doing me a favour by allowing me to do sales. I told him I was doing them the favour, and they had told me they needed someone to do sales.

He told me they had not grumbled when they let June and I go for our long leave during our wedding. I told him we did not grumble during the times when we did not go on leave just to finish up the projects that we were doing.

He told me they had not grumbled when we came late and left early. I told them we had not grumbled when we stayed late into the nights and even overnight to meet a deadline.

There were more. I just highlighted these few to show the similarities, and how things were more or less balanced from God's point of view (since He knows all things).

It was a fruitful meeting I suppose. Although I felt it was a petty squabble from pent up frustration (very much like lovers who had just broken off and went blaming one another for the split), we both had the opportunity to lay out all our cards on the table. Being able to voice everything out was a release for the both of us.

After the meeting, I can appreciate why they are acting like this. However, it still did not change my perspective on who's right or wrong. I guess we all are biased towards ourselves in some way or another. We all have a fallen nature, and being self-centered and selfish comes to us naturally I suppose.