top of page
Search
Writer's pictureJohn Brandt

even great employees get fired

I’m writing this in December 2023. Since it’s possible that you’re not reading this until many years later, I reserve the right to get the “story” aspect wrong for today’s email. However, even if time proves me wrong—and to be clear, I don’t think it will, but anything’s possible—the lesson and message behind the story still rings true. 


With that outta the way… 


Bill Belichick will probably be fired after the NFL season this year. His claim to fame is winning 6 Super Bowl rings as the coach and GM for the New England Patriots, alongside Tom Brady as his QB. 


But since Brady left for Tampa Bay (and since retired after a couple seasons there), ol’ Bill hasn’t been able to build a winning team in the ruins Tom left him. 


To make you fully understand how impressive 6 Super Bowl victories is (which also include 3 Super Bowl losses, which isn’t as impressive as a victory, but is still pretty damn impressive), the Patriots are only one of two franchises to have 6 Super Bowl wins—the other is my Pittsburgh Steelers, whose 6 wins spans over 40 years compared to Bill’s 20-or-so years. 


And yet, the rumor around the league is that he’ll be fired after this season ends (which is only a few weeks away as I patter this on my keyboard). 


Let me put this into an even clearer perspective for you too… 


Thanks to the 6 Super Bowl wins, the countless division titles, playoff home games, maintaining a winning record for most of the time Brady was there (and making the playoffs every damn year it seemed), and when you factor in that Bill not only coaches the team but is also the GM of team and is notorious for cutting great players a year early instead of a year late, as well as a bunch of other reasons I can’t fit (nor do I want to, as someone who respects, yet despises Bill Belichick because of what his team has done to my Steelers when we had Ben Roethlisberger) into this long-ass sentence-turned-paragraph… 


Bill is also one of the most (if not, THE most) profitable “employees” the NFL (which is a multibillion dollar corporation, mind you) has ever seen. 


And yet, he’s (probably) gonna get fired. 


Now, if Bill wants to coach, I’m sure that another team will scoop him up quicker than Joe Biden scoops up a young’uns hair to get a whiff. 


But my point remains: 


Even good… scratch that, even great… wait, scratch that too: Even the best employees of literal all-time can get fired. 


Some food for thought for ya today. 


The solution? 


Well, there are plenty: 


If’n you’re an employee, it’s not a bad idea to steal a page of Bill’s book and add more value to your company by taking on more responsibility. Bill’s been New England’s head coach for 24 years, in a league where the average lifespan for a head coach is a meager 2.3 years. Alas, Bill’s (probably) gonna get fired in spite of all this. 


But he will find another job—assuming he wants one—quickfast.


Another point here before we move on: 


In football, business, and life, the universe and everything itself… 


It don’t matter what you’ve done. It matters what you’ve done lately. 


As of lately, Bill hasn’t performed. And that’s why he’s on the chopping block. 


But the most important thing you can do? 


Build your own business. 


When you have your own business, you can’t get “fired.” 


You become uncancellable. 


And, after a few years of hard work, your revenue vastly exceeds your effort (assuming you’re good at what you do, know how to sell, and have a bunch of other tangible and intangible skills that aren’t so hard to learn). 


Lose a client or customer? 


There are millions of eligible prospects who can fill their shoes. And in my experience, each time you lose a client, a better client replaces them. 


Moral of the story? 


Ain’t nobody gonna save you.


Your boss don’t care about you. Even if you generate an absurd amount of revenue and Lombardi trophies. 


But you can save yourself. 


And you know what? 


If you need help growing your revenue with emails, then hit reply, and let’s talk shop. 


John

6 views0 comments

Recent Posts

See All

How to lose complete faith in your audience

Behold a cautionary tale about one of the most powerful and influential production companies in the world who has become a complete and...

Comments


bottom of page