Adjourning Phase

While I have been a part of several different groups over the years, I have yet to experience a real high performing group.  I’ve been in a couple that were close but still not quite out of the norming stage.  Leaving these groups was bitter-sweet.  On the one hand there were several great relationships forms over the weeks and it is always sad to say goodbye, but on the other hand we knew that we would get a chance to come together on other things again.  We knew what we had accomplished was good and had laid the ground work for future projects and that was good enough for now. 

One of the hardest adjourning phases I have been through took place this last year.  This particular exit was especially difficult because of the lack of communication, professionalism and closure.  The actions of others had made is clear that my participation in this particular group was no longer wanted.  In short I was being pushed.  Another employee had found favor with the leader of this group and was slowly very calculatedly taking over my responsibilities and position within the group.  Instead of the leader of the group come directly to me and discussing the vision for the future of the group, there was a great deal of talk behind my back with several other members.  There was little to no explanation given to the rest of the group as these changes were made and no closure for me or those within the group who actually supported me.  This was a difficult group to leave mostly because I feel as if I have been wronged and betrayed.  Those who I felt were there to support me, did not.  While getting out of the group was the best thing for me, the way in which it happened has scared me. 

It is hard to imagine how we will adjourn from one another as we move forward to complete our education.  For some of us this could be our last class together as the next step in this phase begins our individual focus within the Master’s degree.  I have learned a great deal from many of the interactions we have had and will continue to use many of your insights in my daily work.  So I guess in reality we will never really be apart from one another as long as we keep the knowledge we learned from our time together.