It was our last night before heading home from a sales conference in Orlando. Just a 2-hour meeting in the morning, and we’d be on our way to the airport. The company gave us a night out. The hotel was a short walk away from Universal Studios. To our surprise, the company rented a section of Universal Studios just for us. It was a night of good food, good times, and unlimited adult beverages.
When you offer unlimited adult beverages to people that have not had a night out for a while, trouble is bound to happen.
First Mistake
The company was smart and decided to end the night at 10:00. I decided to stay out longer with a couple of friends to check out the local bars. We were having so much fun that we lost track of time. If I remember correctly, we got back to the hotel at about 4 AM. We had a group meeting that morning at 8:00. I set the alarm for 7:00. When I woke up, I knew right away I was in trouble. Maybe you know the feeling.
Next Mistake
I hit snooze a couple of times and then finally got up. My head was pounding, and the feeling of nausea came over me. I got dressed and laid in bed until the last minute. As I was on my way out the door, I received a call from a new customer that had an emergency. I decided to help them instead of going to the meeting. While I genuinely wanted to help my customer, in the back of my mind I figured this call is justification for missing the meeting.
Last Mistake
When my boss saw that I was not at the meeting, he was fuming. He knew I was out the night before because I kept texting him, like an idiot, and trying to convince him to join us. We exchanged a few text messages that morning, and I tried to explain. I wasn’t hiding the fact that I was sick, but I also used the customer emergency as an excuse for missing the meeting.
At the airport later that day, my boss confronted me. It was bad. He told me later that he almost fired me right there. Here I was, I had been getting sales awards just two days ago, and now I was about to be fired. I was summoned to his office the next morning at 7 AM.
No More Mistakes
Meeting with my boss the next morning, I told him how disappointed I was in myself. How disappointed I was that I let him down. He was considering me for a promotion and I’d let him down. When I took responsibility for my actions, my boss had sympathy for me. It saved my job.
Lessons Learned
These days when I’m at a company event, I don’t drink alcohol after dinner. If I’m going to drink, I do it during cocktail hour before dinner. I go to bed after dinner. Nothing good happens after 10:00.
