I was once part of a company that eventually went out of business. The process was a quick one, from changing key leadership personnel to total liquidation in a span of roughly three years. As part of the management team, I was made privy to the stories coming out of the corporate office, but was told not to tell anyone under me, who were full and part-time hourly employees. It was a little surreal because I had just helped open a new branch of our company out in California. The new staff there was pretty thrilled and anxious, and we all had a pretty wild and fun time bonding while transforming an empty warehouse-size building into something amazing. Alas, the excitement of that new location would be very short-lived. The first real instance where some of us in management realized something fishy was going on was the sudden end of a marketing partnership with, at the time, a budding online organization helping sell our products. That same company just last year enjoyed a ...