Class means knowing when to bow out...

Well, ladies and gentlemen, given my love of college football, you knew I would have to say something about the issues at Penn State University from this past week. Now, I am not going to make a judgment on whether or not Joe Pa and former University of Nebraska Chancellor Graham Spanier (yes, I met him a few times) should have been fired or whether they SHOULD have contacted the police. Because this blog is not meant for that type of controversy. SORRY I digress.

However, the topic is really about knowing when to bow out. I will contend that Joe Pa SHOULD have retired QUITE some time ago. And it is really unfortunate that while chasing that record of being the winningest college football coach in history, he has tarnished his legacy with this situation. My beloved Tom Osborne knew when to leave...after his third national championship. Dean Smith, the classy coach from North Carolina, knew when it was time to leave, what a legend. Think about the TV shows that you loved, weren't they the ones that knew when it was time...and they haven't "jumped the shark"...think UM, Seinfeld (which went out well, I think) vs. ER (which I stopped watching because everyone was gone)... And Sex in the City ended GREAT and then they ruined it with those MOVIES...SIGH. I am scared they are going to ruin Entourage the same way, although the last few seasons of that show were pretty bad as well.

And while I know all of my readers have opinions on this, I think that being a lady or a gentlemen with class means knowing when you are at your limit. And everyone's limit is different, but isn't it better to leave when things are still good? You have been intelligent and put together an exit strategy, you have trained your successor and therefore, the program or the business is set up to continue to be successful. As I think about the exit strategy of my business, I certainly want to provide that for my team. And even if that means, I have to admit I wasn't as successful as I had planned or hoped, it is still about the people and the legacy that you leave behind, not you personally.

And for my collegiate readers out there who are in my sorority, think about how you leave your collegiate years. Don't you want to make sure that the new members coming into the organization have the same positive experience that you did? What are you doing to make sure that happens, are you leaving the chapter in capable hands? Are thinking about volunteering as an alumnae to help guide them? And while this is a specific sorority reference, it can be applied to any organization that you are involved in.

So the message today, ladies and gentlemen seriously, is this, being classy means exiting with same integrity that you entered with. Because let's face it, life changes and we move on from a job, an organization, heck, even a BF or GF (yep, that means when you want to break up with someone you should probably do it with the same level of class that you used when asked that person out to begin with...JUST SAYING), and doesn't it say a lot about your level of class and intelligence if you leave the situation and perhaps that organization, job, person, etc is better because of you...

Yes, I know....DEEP THOUGHTS from JZZRGRL today! Well, the weekend is upon us again. So keep it classy ladies and gentlemen.

BONSOIR, CHEERS AND CIAO BELLAS.