If you wanted to quit your job, how would you go about doing so?
It’s been a minute since I worked for a company (currently about the self-employed life), but am thinking back to times I resigned from a position. For the most part, I kept things expected and a bit traditional with a typed letter of resignation that included my signature at the bottom. Not fancy or out of the ordinary–just a thanks but I’m moving on.
My how times have changed.
In case you missed it, newscast director Mark Herman decided it was time to quit his job, but resigned in a very sweet way. “Today I handed in the most delicious letter of resignation ever,” Mark wrote on Reddit. Rather than do the expected, he had his resignation letter printed on a cake. I guess you could say this is a great way to save the trees and soften the blow considering most of us enjoy a yummy piece of cake.
Apparently his boss enjoyed the gesture and sugar fix which begs the question, is there a proper way to resign from a job?
Obviously the answer is not to act crazy or immature. Those who are ready to curse folks out and flip tables tend to see their actions backfire–in the event a new employer calls for a reference (you can kiss a letter of recommendation goodbye) or to verify your time there.
Want to hear something funny? Years ago I worked with a male co-worker who always seemed like he was two seconds away from punching out our boss. Lord only knows what he was dealing with at home or around the workplace, but this guy was heated. One day he had enough, marched into our boss’ office and yelled, “F*** y’all for real, I’ve had enough!” In efforts to keep things somewhat “professional” he had the “decency” of putting his intentions in writing. Too bad he wrote “I quit” in huge letters and left it on his desk.
Now if you’re laughing at his less-than-tasteful departure you haven’t heard the funny part. My former boss was very good friends with the owner of the company he tried to work for after the debacle. Needless to say he didn’t get the position and unfortunately found himself unemployed for some time.
The moral of this story is to think about your actions. You just never know how people are connected and ways it can affect your future endeavors. I’m a big believer in tact and trying to be as tasteful as possible in every situation. Yes, folks and jobs will test your patience without end, but it’s important to keep your composure so you can take the high road–even if others don’t.
At the end of the day, you’re leaving your job, and when you stop and think about it, there’s no reason to get too upset as you’ve freed yourself from the shackles of a horrible position. Hopefully you’ll do bigger and better things with your new employer, so why concentrate on all the bad that happened? It’s now in the past. Celebrate your future and rise above wasting unnecessary emotions on a person or situation.
main image via reddit
