What should you not tell your employer when quitting a job?

You should not let your emotions run away with you.

Your communication should be insightful and instructive, not just a venting opportunity for you.

There are a number of reasons you may decide to quit your job…

Minoo Jha

 · 5y

How do you know it’s time to quit your job and find something different?

Hi, You asked, How do you know it’s time to quit your job and find something different? Here are some signs you should leave a job: * When you find yourself getting subversive * When you feel you are not getting anywhere * When you experience repeated mental shutdowns * When you are spending more time arguing or defending yourself than doing your work * When you stop feeling appreciated * When a sense of dread comes over you as you enter the door at work * When you start being sidelined * When your manager changes, and it is clear the new manager doesn’t really appreciate you * When you start feeling continually dumped on * When it becomes a drag to be on the team you are on * When your compensation, or the fact you’ve been passed up for opportunities, or a promotion, begins to rankle you * When you are being asked to do things that conflict with your values These are signs its time to say ta ta.

A better opportunity is a good reason.

And an ideal reason.

But we often quit for other reasons, like the ones I listed.

I myself have left jobs, because of being frustrated by one thing, or another:

Minoo Jha

 · 6y

What was your biggest "I need to leave" moment?

Hi Isabella, You asked, What was your “I need to leave right now” moment? Omg, I have walked out of 5 jobs in my life. I spilled the beans about that in answer to the Quora question, What’s Something You Have Done That Most People Haven’t? So, I have had 5 professional “I need to leave right now” moments, Isabella. I became a freelance consultant in 2010 and the histrionics stopped. But here’s the most recent of those 5 “I need to leave right now” moments… My last full time employment quit story… I reported to two levels of Manager at the company, my Manager and my Manager’s Manager. When the 2nd level manager changed, the new chap and me just couldn’t get along. The fact that I worked mostly from home was a big part of it. But it seemed I couldn’t do anything right. As I narrated in my answer to Quora question, What small, non-verbal thing makes you judge someone instantly?, I even managed to rub him up the wrong way with my hand gestures. My non verbal gaffe: I waved my hand at my manager at a meeting at which my manager’s manager was present and said, “Oh so you will take care of that,” just before I headed out the door. My manager’s manager turned on her as soon as I left the room, and said, “How can you take such disrespectful behavior from her? I wouldn’t have tolerated the way she waved her hand at you, and said ‘Oh, so you’ll take care of that.’” He instructed my manager to address it with me the next morning. Things were already bad between me and my manager’s manager, and it got worse with finding out that he was bothered even about the way I moved my hands. Eventually,it got to where I went home one Friday evening and decided not to return to work on Monday. I was done. I don’t recommend my way of quitting, as it burns bridges. But that was my “I need to leave right now” moment. Here’s the proper way to leave a job: * Schedule time with your boss to let them know * Give two weeks notice * Make sure the hand over is smooth, don’t leave a mess for them to sort out after you are gone * Show gratitude - express your thanks for all the different benefits that you got out of the job * Promise to keep in touch * If they want to take you to lunch or have a going away of some kind for you, attend, do not decline * Exchange personal information, so people have your contact information * Tell them they can contact you after you leave if they need help. They will rarely do this, but it is a nice gesture

Has anyone ever quit their job because of me?

Yes, I was a source of frustration (or more like despair) to someone I employed. I regret it to this day:

Minoo Jha

 · 5y

Has anyone ever quit their job because of you? What happened?

Hello, You asked, Has anyone ever quit their job because of you? What happened? Yes, I was a monster in my younger days, and a maid servant whom I liked very much quit because of me. I would like to share the story with you. The Gold Chain When I got married, I moved into the home where my husband lived with his brother and his dad. Working for them was Pushpa, their maid, who had been with the family for a long time. I knew Pushpa from before I got married, because she had been doing part time housecleaning and cooking for me at my bachelorette pad. Like all maids in India at the time, Pushpa was poor and lived a hard-scrabble life. Her home was a thatched hut in a slum, and everything - from food to clothes to medicines, to keeping her hut from collapsing when it rained - was a challenge. Pushpa's pay wasn't sufficient for all her expenses, so she would ask my father-in-law for additional money during the month. When my husband came home from work, my father in law would say to him, "Pushpa needs x rupees for medicine. Can you give me that to give to her." I felt sorry for Pushpa and decided to reach out to her secretly. When she and I were alone, I said to her, "Pushpa, I would like to give you some additional money on the side, so you don't have to ask Sir (my father in law) for money every other week. This can be just between you and me – Sir or Rakesh or Shreekant needn’t know about it.Can you tell me an amount that would be helpful for you to get." Now Pushpa was not a greedy soul, and she didn't know what amount to propose. She shyly replied, "I don't know Ma". So I made the decision for both of us. I said, "I'll tell you what. You are getting 2000 rupees every month from Sir. How about I give you another 2000 rupees? Here, take this." And with that, I gave Pushpa 2000 rupees, effectively doubling her pay. (I was earning a good income and I can assure you this was not financially difficult for me at all, so please don't think I was anyone great for doing this.) A month went by. One day, my husband and me arrived home from work together. As we entered the door, my father in law said, "Ah, Shreekant…..can you give me 400 rupees to give to Pushpa for medicine." I felt a flash of anger. I had expected that once Pushpa started getting the extra 2000 rupees from me, she would stop asking my father-in-law for money during the month. “How dare she ask for this money after I have doubled her pay!” I thought to myself. Of course I couldn't talk to anyone about this, since I was giving her the money in secret. At the first opportunity I could get her alone, I confronted her about it, "Why are you still asking Sir for extra money? I doubled your pay. You should not be needing to ask for 300 rupees here, 300 rupees there anymore." She looked embarrassed and never replied. I felt a great need to solve the situation once in for all, thinking mightily of my powers to do so. "Ok, I will tell you what, Pushpa," I said, "I will give you 3000 rupees instead of 2000 rupees every month secretly from my own pocket. This should cover you for anything and everything that comes up during the month. Agreed?" She nodded her head and I handed her an additional 1000 rupees which she gratefully accepted. A month went by. And, oh no. Yes, you guessed right. I hear my father in law say to my husband, "Ah, Shreekant…..give me 400 rupees to give to Pushpa. She needs to buy something for her family." It was like waving a red flag to a bull. I had expected that the extra 3000 rupees would have put a full stop to this. I could not understand what was going on. Things were not going as planned. Though Pushpa was getting two and a half times her pay, nothing had changed. She was still asking for extra money, as if the extra 3000 rupees did not exist. I couldn't wait for her to come in to work the next day to tackle her. As soon as she got in, and I got her alone, I demanded an answer. "Pushpa, your pay is two and a half times what it used to be. Whatever are you spending the extra money on? " I was taken aback when she sheepishly pointed to a thin gold chain round her neck. She explained..... Apparently she had always wanted a gold chain, but could never afford to buy one. When I started giving her the extra 3000 every month, she was able to enroll in a chit fund and take out a loan to buy a gold chain. Now she was using the money I was giving her every month to pay the loan off. All the extra money was going to pay off the debt she had incurred to buy the gold chain, and none of it to improve her everyday life. Which was why she still had to ask for 300 rupees here and 300 rupees there. I was horribly upset. There was nothing I could do and my hands were tied. I had expected to improve Pushpa's lot in life, but she was at square one, struggling to keep body and soul together, except she now had a gold chain she was really happy and proud to possess which I had made possible. Because of my expectations, it took me several years to come to terms with this. Over the next year, I gradually grew into an expectations monster, and a tyrant with Pushpa, nagging her about everything. Eventually Pushpa left the job because of my nagging and demands. Starting out as a kind, generous person to her, I had turned into a monster. And I didn’t realize it. It was many years later when remorse struck and I regretted what I had done. I had been inexcusably harsh. Pushpa was such a good soul, and didn’t deserve my harshness. Today, I understand that kindness is superior to generosity, and expectancy is superior to expectations. My kinder attitude has brought perspective as well, and I think about Pushpa’s gold chain purchase differently. It is human to have needs beyond food, clothing and shelter. Even someone in tough circumstances may prefer the beauty and pride of a gold chain to a marginal improvement in comfort. How I wish I had known that kindness was more important than generosity earlier in life.

Your job can lose its luster, if a manager becomes unreasonable about something they seemed okay with before, including your breaks, and your time-off:

Minoo Jha

 · 5y

If your boss declines your request for a personal leave of absence, what can you do other than quit?

Hi, You asked, If your boss declines your request for a personal leave of absence, what can you do other than quit? I am going to give you some broad, general advice about requesting a leave of absence. “Leave” is something which, if you don’t do correctly, can become a source of dissatisfaction for you in your job. I have met scores of people who were upset about some leave issue. Both when they were at a company. And after they left that company. How do these “leave issues” arise? It is because, instead of looking at data, managers often fly by the seat of the pants when they respond to leave requests. In one company where I worked at, one of my coworkers took great pains to apply for his DTO, well in advance. He included comp time as part of his DTO, because he worked on several weekends and holidays, including the July 4th weekend. Not long after, the manager scheduled a meeting with him. When I saw him go off to that meeting, I assumed it was to be recognized for all his hard work, because I had personally observed how hard the guy was working. And commissions is a hard job, especially as the deadline approaches, when long hours are typically required. Instead, the manager called the meeting to bring up what the manager thought was this guy’s “excessive leave taking.” The fellow was miffed (pissed, as some people would say). He came out of the meeting and vented to me. I was completely on his side, realizing the manager was just flying by the seat of the pants, and not looking at the record of this guy’s actual time-off. Further, in response to the guy telling the manager that some of it was comp time, the manager questioned him about why he had worked both days of the July 4 weekend, saying, “We were all to work only on the Saturday. Why were you here on Sunday as well?” As if to say, the guy had deliberately gone slow on the work, so he could come in on Sunday, and then take comp time. BTW, though us commissions analysts reported to him, the manager had never actually done commissions himself. Otherwise, he would have known it is pretty common to have to work the whole weekend before payroll is due. So based on my observations, here is my advice to you, which you can use for future leave takings, even if you can’t use with your present leave request. Keep a record of the data - meaning the dates of all your leave takings. When you want to apply for leave, open the conversation with your manager by showing the record, and asking if it is within the norm, or whether it is excessive. Then ask how many more vacation days would you be able to safely take that year? And also what, if anything, could be done about worked weekends and holidays in terms of comp time? Then only make your travel or time-off plans. After you have made your travel plans, tell your boss, I have made my travel plans and I will be out of office from so and so date to so and so date. Request him to make a note of it on his calendar, so there won’t be any issues. Ask him if he would like a reminder the week before. If he has a lot going on, he will say yes. If he is one of those super-organized people, he will say, “not necessary.” So do be super-organized about your leave, so there are no issues. Good luck! If you regularly check in with your manager about your leave-taking, you should have no leave issues. Don’t overlook the importance of keeping good leave taking records, and sharing these records with your manager regularly. This way, they will have a record to show any other people who may have the perception you are taking too much leave. Unfortunately, this happens. P.S. The guy in my story - he left the job for greener pastures within a few months of the incident. The rap on the knuckles for excessive leave-taking was the cherry on top of the dissatisfaction pie for him.

Whatever the reason you decide to leave your job, try to leave with a good last impression:

The proper way to leave a job:

• Schedule time with your boss to let them know
• Give two weeks notice
• Make sure the hand over is smooth, don’t leave a mess for them to sort out after you are gone
• Show gratitude - express your thanks for all the different benefits that you got out of the job
• If you are leaving to attend to personal priorities, say you are leaving to attend to personal priorities. There is no need to go into details.
• Promise to keep in touch
• If they want to take you to lunch or have a going away of some kind for you, attend, do not decline
• Exchange personal information, so people have your contact information
• Tell them they can contact you after you leave if they need help. They will rarely do this, but it is a nice gesture

What if I want to vent?

Write an imaginary letter that you do not plan to send, but may be fun for family and friends to read.

Like this one. Not written by me, but fun to read:

Minoo Jha

 · Just now

What’s the most epic way you’ve seen someone quit or be fired?

Hi, You asked, What’s the most awesome way you’ve seen someone quit or be fired? I don’t know the answer to that question. But here’s an awesome tongue-in-cheek goodbye I read on Chris Kula’s blog… Chris Kula’s goodbye e-mail to his co-workers: Dear Co-Workers, As many of you probably know, today is my last day. But before I leave, I wanted to take this opportunity to let you know what a great and distinct pleasure it has been to type “Today is my last day.” For nearly as long as I’ve worked here, I’ve hoped that I might one day leave this company. And now that this dream has become a reality, please know that I could not have reached this goal without your unending lack of support. Words cannot express my gratitude for the words of gratitude you did not express. I would especially like to thank all of my managers: in an age where miscommunication is all too common, you consistently impressed and inspired me with the sheer magnitude of your misinformation. It takes a strong man to admit his mistake – it takes a stronger man to attribute his mistake to me. Over the past three years, you have taught me more than I could ever ask for and, in most cases, ever did ask for. I have been fortunate enough to work with some absolutely interchangeable supervisors on a wide variety of seemingly identical projects – an invaluable lesson in overcoming daily tedium in overcoming daily tedium in overcoming daily tedium. Your demands were high and your patience short, but I take great solace knowing that my work was, as stated on my annual review, “mostly satisfactory.” That is the type of praise that sends a man home happy after even a 10 hour day, smiling his way through half a bottle of mostly satisfactory scotch. And to most of my peers: even though we barely acknowledged each other within these office walls, I hope that in the future, should we pass on the street, you will regard me the same way as I regard you: sans eye contact. But to those few souls with whom I’ve actually interacted, here are my personalized notes of farewell: To Rudy: I will always remember sharing lunch with you, despite having clearly labeled it with my name. To Steven : I will miss detecting your flatulence as much as you will clearly miss walking past my cubicle to deliver it. To Eileen: Best wishes on your ongoing campaign to popularize these “email forwards.” I sincerely hope you receive that weekend full of good luck, that hug from an old friend, and that baby for your dusty womb. To Felix: I left a new wristwatch on your desk. It is so that you might be able to still tell time even without your hourly phone call to let me know the copier is jammed. (Call Steven – he`ll come by.) And finally, to Kat: you were right – I tested positive. We`ll talk later. So, in parting, if I could pass on any word of advice to the individual who will soon be filling my position, it would be to cherish this experience like a sponge and soak it up like a good woman , because a job opportunity like this comes along only once in a lifetime. Meaning: if I had to work here again in this lifetime, I would sooner kill myself. Very truly yours, Chris Kula