Most folks have heard the phrase “don’t burn bridges”. That aspect of resignation is still pretty good guidance in most situations. Be polite and professional, give them the two weeks notice everyone seems to think is required (tip: it’s not. You can leave with zero notice). It’s a small price to pay for increasing the likelihood you can come back if need be.
Before any of that happens, how do you get to the inflection point? How do you decide it’s time to go?
First think through the main causes of wanting out. That’ll help determine the speed with which you depart.
Health
What if you’re chronically overworked, or subjected to rampant toxicity? If you ask for a break, do you get it? Not like, “I’m taking a week of PTO.” I mean “I need 1-3 months away from work to at least start recovering from burnout.” Here in the US there are no social safety nets in place to allow that. It’ll only happen by special arrangement with your employer, especially if you want to a) keep your job, and b) continue to receive any amount of pay during your recovery. If you’re in such a situation and the environment isn’t likely to improve and the company won’t make arrangements for you, you need to make a change quickly. Don’t play games with your well-being. I’m not saying this is simple or easy. But fast forward 6 months when your health has degraded even further and you have no choice but to find new employment. Job hunting in that scenario would be even worse.
Security
It’s different in most truly developed countries (the US doesn’t qualify), but in the States very few people can safely exist without employment. So you have to have a job. And by extension, you need to seriously and quickly look for alternatives if your current employer is showing signs of instability. If there have been layoffs, loss of clients, loss of contracts, profits trending downward, problems retaining team members, lack of competitiveness compared to industry standards…you need to have some sort of option in place. There are numerous factors to consider when you think of the security of your job, and some will require action more quickly than others.
Values
When you joined, the organization seemed in sync with what’s important to you. Or at least, it wasn’t actively opposed to your interests. But 12 months in and the place has taken a contract with the Defense Department or aligned itself with seedy business partners or pivoted to puppy kicking. This will impact your well-being in ways that may not be clear to you, so you’re back in the Health discussion from two paragraphs ago.
Growth
Unless you’re proving to be unteachable as a team member, it’s reasonable to expect early- and possibly mid-career promotions to occur within 18-24 months. Longer if you’re trying to advance from Senior to something else. If you’re not seeing growth opportunities actually come to fruition with acceptable frequency (“you’ll be up for promotion after this next project” doesn’t count), that’s an indication you should look elsewhere. Your career is timeboxed. Out of a completely misplaced sense of loyalty, I stayed at a company for 11 years and only experienced about 3 years of professional growth. Don’t be me.
Plenty of other reasons exist. Moving to be closer to family. Rare opportunities to join or start a new business. The point in listing these is to get you to think about the speed with which you need to depart. That’s a factor in how you leave. If it’s your health – especially if you’re physically threatened – you can leave before lunch. Email your boss. Most places in the US are “at will” employment, meaning you can leave at any time. Barring something written into your employment contract (if you signed one), you don’t have to give two weeks notice. Or any notice.
Assuming you’re not at immediate risk, think about the folks who aren’t leaving. If every single one of them is a spite-fueled heartless golem, then maybe you don’t care. But if any of those who remain are deserving of humane treatment, think about their perspective. If you were staying and they were leaving, you’d want them to give you as much heads up as possible, right? You’d want them to tie off loose ends, take care of final responsibilities, etc. Afford them the kindness you would want.
I’ve talked before about the general uselessness of exit interviews. But you don’t have to wait for one of those. If your concern is that your manager isn’t taking good care of their people because no one tells them how they’re doing as a leader, maybe this is a chance. But don’t misunderstand. It’s not your responsibility. You don’t owe it to your manager to give them feedback on your way out. But if it’s something that could help those who remain, consider how you could empathically deliver a message they aren’t hearing from anyone else.
Feel free to share – in an exit interview or via 1:1 talks – if you think the company could do more to offer growth opportunities or improve their compensation. So long as you’re professional in your delivery there’s nothing inherently wrong with sharing these things. Maybe it’ll land, maybe it won’t. But at least you tried. Just remember you don’t have to share anything. You aren’t required to participate in an exit interview and if you do, you aren’t required to say anything.
Keep in mind there may be coworkers who’ll be harder to contact once your company email and Slack credentials go away. If there’s anyone you want to stay in touch with, share some communication details before your last day. It may be important to you to get LinkedIn recommendations or referrals. If you think some of those may help in your job search, ask for them sooner than later while you’re still fresh in everyone’s minds.
If you’re leaving on “good terms”, turning in your two weeks notice, etc, let HR handle broader notifications about your departure. If you’re at a smaller company with no HR, ask your boss how they’d like to handle it. Don’t assume it’s a good idea for you to take it upon yourself to post in the #general channel or email everyone. Tell the folks you care about 1:1 and let the org handle broader comms. If it’s genuine, it might be worth considering a personal note to special folks. Your CEO, your manager. Certainly not required, but if you want someone to really understand they had a meaningful impact on you, write them something. The 15 minutes it takes you will likely be vastly more significant to them.
image courtesy of Alex Knight via unsplash