Miranda had just finished the worst week of her advertising career. Having always been the company's "go to girl," this week's failure was particularly difficult. She had been working on a major account proposal and had put together three possible campaigns…sure to please even this client – the most difficult one.
The presentation day had finally arrived and donning her best "game face," she headed into the conference room to begin the meeting. She presented all three campaigns and tried to gauge the client's reaction. He sat there in silence for a few seconds before asking, "Ok…where is the real proposal?" Completely taken aback at his total disregard for her work, all she could do was stand there, speechless, with her mouth gaping open.
Not knowing exactly what to do since nothing like that had ever happened to her before, she flopped into her chair and just sat there, wondering what had just happened. Her boss came in…obviously aggravated at her performance….and began to lay into her about her having lost a potentially lucrative account. Still at a loss for words, she just sat there and stared at him. He asked if she had anything to say on her behalf before he and the other partners met to discuss how to handle the situation. All she could do was shake her head no….still in total disbelief.
Her boss suggested that she take a leave of absence while they decided whether she would still have a job with the firm. She gathered herself, trying to fight back the tears that were wanting to emerge against her will and decided to head home.