Hand in your notice and quit your job gracefully!
There are many reasons that you might quit your job. Particularly at the start of a new year and a fresh outlook on the year ahead. But whether you fancy a change or your current role no longer feels right for you, resigning from your job in 2019 is a big move.
Before you hand over your letter of resignation, take a moment to think through your options. You need to be 100% sure that you’re doing the right thing. If you decide that it’s time to leave, then you’ll need to start thinking about your letter of resignation and having a chat with your boss.
This can often feel uncomfortable, but try not to let it make you feel too nervous; you need to do what’s best for you and your career.
But it’s not as simple as handing in your letter and saying goodbye. You don’t want to leave your job on a bad note, so make sure you follow the proper channels and stay out your notice period.
You should also do all you can to aid the company in finding and supporting your replacement. If you’ve never resigned before, or if it’s been a while, here’s all you need to know about handing in your notice and leaving your job gracefully.
Handing in your notice and leaving on good terms
Now you’ve decided it’s time to quit your job in 2019 there are a few things you need to do to prepare for leaving.
If you’re unsure about the process of handing in your notice, you could always double check the staff handbook and look into your contract to confirm your notice period.
Next, you’ll need to think about writing your formal letter and whether or not you want to request an exit interview. You should also prepare yourself for all possible outcomes
Writing your resignation
First and foremost you have to write your letter of resignation. This doesn’t have to be long, and you don’t have to go into detail about your reasons for leaving. You should set your letter out as a formal letter as it’s usually a formality for HR and will go on your employment records.
Book your meeting
Once you feel completely ready to quit your job, book a meeting with your boss. It’s time to hand in your letter. Explain this situation to them and find out what the next steps are. You can also take this opportunity to find out what they’d like you to do in the way of handing over your responsibilities.
Prepare for any outcome, including a counter offer
Even if you get on well with your boss and they’re usually friendly, you should still prepare yourself for a negative reaction. Though hopefully, they’ll be accepting, you need to remember that they are losing a member of staff and now have to begin preparing for your departure.
This is especially true if your resignation has come quite suddenly. So don’t take it personally if they are uncharacteristically quiet or don’t react as you’d hoped – they’ll come round.
If you have a notice period, generally you’ll be expected to work as normal for the duration of this.
However, you should prepare for all eventualities
Some employers may ask you to leave with immediate effect (although hopefully, this won’t happen!). If it does, you can ask for the reason behind your immediate dismissal. But try not to let it get personal and cause a dispute. Instead, leave gracefully as requested. It’s useful to be aware that if this happens, the company will still have to pay you for your contractual notice period as normal.
You should also prepare yourself for a counter offer. If your current employers really want to keep you, they might approach you with a counter offer in an attempt to get you to stay.
Prepare for this situation by thinking about why you’re leaving – is a pay rise or better benefits enough to make you stay? Or, is it time to move on? You may not be able to make a final decision until you’ve seen the counter offer. But, just be aware that this could happen.
Tell your boss in person
Once you know you’re leaving, don’t tell anyone else until your boss knows. Even if you think you can trust your colleagues, office gossip is inevitable and these things always seem to have a way of getting out.
Your boss will be much happier to hear that you’ve decided to leave directly from you, rather than hearing it through the grapevine before you’ve had a chance to tell them.
Stay strong
It can be an uncomfortable conversation to have, but once you’ve decided to leave, it’s going to have to happen at some point. Don’t put off handing your notice in, get the ball rolling as soon as you can.
During the conversation with your boss, be sure to stay strong! It’s difficult for any boss to hear that a member of their staff wants to leave, particularly because they now have to find a replacement for your position.
Courtesy of CV Library