In most walks of life, getting the sack means clearing up your desk, desperately circling newspaper ads for a new job and locking horns with your former employers for some compensation.
But as we know, Premier League football works differently. Andre Villas-Boas' sacking as Tottenham Hotspur boss on Monday is set to earn him £4million, just under two years after receiving a £12million pay-off from Chelsea.
He supposedly waived part of that when joining Spurs, but like no other, the Premier League pays, and it pays big. Or rather, the top of the Premier League pays, and it pays often.
VIDEO: Scroll down to see Andre Villas-Boas' final press conference as Spurs boss
Tough times: Villas-Boas was sacked as Tottenham boss on Monday morning after the 5-0 defeat to Tottenham
The cost of spending: Roberto Soldado cost Spurs £26million from Valencia, but has scored just four Premier League goals... so is a £4million pay-off nothing compared to money thrown away by managers?
Villas-Boas' former employers from the Kings Road are the worst 'offenders' when it comes to the golden handshake.
Roberto Di Matteo, the man who led Chelsea to their first ever European Cup success, is still being paid his full wage - £130,000-a-week - by the club.
The Italian did not agree a pay-off settlement when he was axed last season, and will continue to be paid that amount
A £2m vintage Ferrari, bought for the Portuguese boss by the Russian owner in 2008, may have acted as a sweetener to any settlement arranged the year previous.
A fee for such a talismanic manager could be excused, but Chelsea then got excessive.
Luiz Felipe Scolari and his coaching staff, in charge for just eight months at the Bridge, received a pay-off of £12.6million despite managing just 36 games.
Big things: Mourinho had three successful years at Chelsea, and the reported pay-off recognised that
Didn't last long: Scolari's tenure was less successful, but the compensation was equally as hefty
Repeat offenders: Add Ranieri (above) and Grant to the equation, and Chelsea's bill has been huge
Add Claudio Ranieri and Avram Grant to the compensation receipt, and you're looking at nearly £50million handed to sacked managers since 2003. In playing terms, that's one Fernando Torres. So perhaps not too much.
Outside of SW6, the situation hasn't been much better. Kenny Dalglish, out of management for nearly 11 years before taking over at Liverpool in 2011, was reportedly paid £8.25million after being replaced by Brendan Rodgers at the beginning of last term. However, it is unknown as to whether Dalglish took the payment.
Roy Hodgson was given an astonishing £7.3million pay-off by Liverpool after his six month reign at Anfield.
The England boss may not feel he had a chance to shine with Dalglish in the background at the time, but he was compensated handsomely.
All smiles: 'The King' Daliglish returned to Anfield in January 2011, but it didn't last as long as he'd hoped
In and out: The £35million signing of Andy Carroll didn't help Dalglish's cause after the sale of Fernando Torres
Who? Hodgson's signings did not help results, and he was ultimately sacked to be replaced by Dalglish
Roberto Mancini was sacked as Manchester City manager a year to the day after winning the Premier League, and with four years left on a five-year contract, the pay-off would have been monstrous. Instead, the Italian was paid off £7million.
The question is, can these clubs afford it? Yes.
Mancini's remaining four-year wage would have cost the club the same as a Sergio Aguero, a Yaya Toure or six Scott Sinclairs. The trend is at the top of the division, bar two sides who do it right. No prizes for guessing who.
Since Arsene Wenger was appointed Arsenal manager on September 30, 1996, over 800 managers in the top four divisions have succumbed. The total compensation figures for sacked managers during this time reaches £450million.
Chopped: Mancini was sacked a year to the day after winning Manchester City's first league title in decades
Drop in the ocean: The price of paying off a manager is nothing compared to the money spent on playing staff
Though the biggest issue here is not the cost, but the lack of continuity.
It comes as little surprise that the two English establishments who have consistently challenged at the top of the Premier League have had the longest-serving managers during that time.
Opportunities to sack or offer resignation came on numerous occasions at Arsenal and Manchester United, but were always ignored and ultimately forgotten. Wenger's episode this summer serves as a prime example.
It's about time all clubs locked the exit door when situations get a little hairy.
Chances: Wenger would have been in for a huge pay-off if Arsenal had sacked him in the last decade
Continuity: But Arsenal have stood by their man, often with little resources, and could reap the rewards this season
