How To Respectfully Resign From Your Job

It’s rare for workers to stay with one organization through their entire career in the modern job climate, especially in the wake of the pandemic. The Great Resignation is still ongoing as new opportunities evolve and employees seek value from their employers. Regardless of the reason, at some point, it’s likely that you’ll resign from your current job.

Even if you’re choosing to leave because your boss or your current job is a nightmare, you’ll still want to follow the proper etiquette when quitting. You don’t want to burn any bridges you may need down the road or provide your new employer with any red flags! Leave on the best possible terms by embracing these guidelines.

Gather anything you may need

Before you set things in motion, make sure you have everything you need from your current job before resigning. Once things are set in motion, you’ll never know how things could play out. Even when giving advanced notice, you may be asked to leave or be terminated before that final proposed date.

Alison Doyle suggests saving any files you may need access to on a flash drive, the cloud, or through an email copy. You may have lists of contacts or projects you have the rights to that you could lose access to. You’ll also want to clear out any personal details or emails on any work-owned devices.

While doing this, don’t give any indication otherwise you’ll be quitting, such as taking down personal photos.

Don’t tell your coworkers first

You don’t want anyone to know you’re quitting before you’re able to give the official notice to your boss, which is why you keep your personal photos and such up. Even if your trust your coworkers, there’s a high chance the information will get leaked.

If your boss hears you’re quitting from a third party, it can sour their mood and have the exit process take a turn for the worse. They may not respect how they heard this and take it personally, and you’ll lose them as a reference in the future. In fact, you might turn them into an obstacle down the road.

Give advanced notice (in person if possible)

Not only should you let your boss be the first to know you’re leaving, but the notice should be delivered in a formal resignation letter.

“If you hate your job, you likely want to get out as soon as possible. However, leaving before giving two weeks’ notice could potentially hurt your reputation and your chances of getting hired in the future. Plus, during that time, your employer will need at least two weeks to ensure that your duties get distributed to other employees until they hire a replacement.” –Dillon Price, Monster.com

A short but detailed letter is the way to go, according to Ian Taylor. It doesn’t need to be a novella, but it should be more formal and explanatory than “smell ya later.” Ian says to clearly state your boss’s name, your position, and your expected final day. Take him to thank them for the opportunities you were granted, and try to list some positives and things you’ve learned. Finally, end by offering to make the transition as smooth as possible. For more details and examples, check out Ladders’ Ashley Jones’ excellent guide.

If you’re able to deliver this in person, do so, recommends Allison Doyle. Set up a formal meeting time to deliver your resignation and discuss related manners in a distraction-free setting. They may try to talk you out of it, but if your mind is made up, stay strong but polite.

Be careful with your wording

Even if you’re leaving because of a toxic environment, you’ll want to stay professional. Don’t mention the toxicity or things you hate about your job in your resignation letter or exit conversations, even if your internal voice is screaming for it.

Forbes’ Jennifer Landis-Santos says to consider your legacy. What words do you want to define your tenure with the organization? Not only will this be good for your future endeavors, but it will help you keep perspective when choosing your words. You want to stay classy and take the high road! You may still get mixed reactions, but that’s business.

“Focus on the skills you have learned, the friendships you have made and the positive experiences you have had when talking to people in your current and new place of employment.” –Indeed

Say goodbye

Even if you’re leaving the job behind, you probably won’t want to cut ties with every relationship you made.

Forbes’ Julia Wuench says to send a goodbye email to your team on your last day to bid your good wishes and thank those that have assisted you. You’ll likely want to stay in touch with some coworkers as friends or as networking partners, and this act shows that you view your colleagues as fellow people.

Keep communication open with your valued colleagues, and, if possible, be there for your replacement during the transition phase. These small acts of kindness could pay off in the long run, even if you hated your job.

Wrap up

Even if you’ve already got an amazing offer lined up, don’t leave your previous job on negative terms. Be respectful, be direct, give notice, and be prepared for extra complications like being asked to leave before your final date happens or being asked to complete an exit interview. If nothing else, you’ll leave on terms you can feel good about, and you may have valuable contacts down the road!

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Conducting A SWOT Analysis To Find The Right Career

Only you can decide the right career path for yourself, but there are a myriad of tools available to help you self-evaluate and guide yourself to the best decision. Whether you’re a fresh graduate, a former athlete entering the workforce, or an experienced professional seeking a new path, there are tools to help you find the right path.

One of these valuable tools is the SWOT analysis. This strategic planning technique is used to identify Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. SWOT is used in many industries to make important decisions, and you can adapt it to your personal needs to paint the path to a truly rewarding career! We’ll analyze each letter and how you can conduct a rewarding analysis for yourself!

Strengths

Strength is what it sounds like on the tin—what are you good at? This is where you can kick modesty to the curb and really hype yourself up. What sets you apart from others? If you do have trouble celebrating your own accomplishments, don’t hesitate to ask for feedback. Your inner circle might see things in a different light.

Job Hunt’s Don Goodman suggests the start with the strengths you have, especially ones you particularly enjoy, and then relating them to demand in the marketplace. Modern job descriptions commonly list the skills needed to thrive in that position, giving you an easy way to see what is in demand.

Look at the experiences you’ve had and categorize your skills into hard and soft categories. Many of these skills will be transferable in many industries, but this should overall position you towards finding industries suited to your personal strengths.

Weaknesses

While it’s easier to hype ourselves up, it can be challenging to name our weaknesses. But knowing what your weaknesses are is crucial in learning to overcome them or to know what career paths you may not be suited to. Again, be honest with yourself!

Comparison is the thief of joy, but Forbes’ Trinity Aikens believes comparing yourself to your peers in this case can answer some tough questions. What do you struggle with compared to your peers, or what takes you much longer than your peers is a good way to gauge if something is a weakness.

“Do other people see weaknesses that you don’t see? Do co-workers consistently outperform you in key areas? Be realistic – it’s best to face any unpleasant truths as soon as possible.” –Mind Tools

Opportunities

When you know your strengths and weaknesses, you can apply them to the grand scheme of things. What opportunities are out there for someone with your strengths and weaknesses? Indeed views opportunities as the external options available to you.

When you look at the things you excel at, what career opportunities come to mind? Is there a niche that you can fill? Because you took the time to list out your skills, new ideas you hadn’t considered previously may manifest.

Consider how technology keeps evolving and creating new opportunities. My position writing weekly blog posts catering to job seekers wouldn’t have been something fathomable in my childhood. Always be willing to reevaluate the current market to look for new and emerging trends.

“Like the people, mostly women, who were excellent typists in the 1990s saw the need for typing skills disappear as computers and word processing software became much more common and reliable, look at where the demand for your strengths may be increasing.” –Don Goodman

Threats

The inverse to opportunities, what outside circumstances could hamper your ability to seek out these new opportunities? The nagging voice in your head telling you what could go wrong is annoying, but in this case, hear it out and write what comes to mind.

Is there anything that could keep this potential career path from being viable in the near future? Look at things like the strength of the market, the amount of competition, and the necessity of the niche. Monster’s Dawn Papandrea suggests researching potential threats or trends you may need to contend with so you can start countering them.

“Moving outside your comfort zone will keep you from simply reinforcing your existing beliefs. Be unflinching in revealing faults and weaknesses, but also in celebrating your personal strengths.” –Marci Martin

Wrap up

With the list done, you can create a plan of action based on your data and begin the journey to career happiness. Remember to be honest with yourself during this process. The personal SWOT analysis is meant to answer questions about yourself and guide you to a promised career. You aren’t trying to impress anyone, and you won’t get the results you seek unless you’re truly introspective. Don’t be afraid to get feedback if necessary. With luck, the results of this analysis will paint a clearer picture and steer you toward the career you deserve.

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Job Search Behaviors To Avoid

A job search can be challenging in today’s climate. You need to commit time to do the proper research, prepare your resume and cover letters carefully in a way that makes them readable by both humans and tracking systems, and learn the best networking practices in order to find the job of your dreams. This is difficult enough, but it can be even worse if don’t mind your behavior during the process!

Even if everything else is going well, certain behaviors can harm your chances of getting the job before you even sit down for an interview. While some practices like watching the language you use or not being rude should be obvious, not every faux pas is intuitive or obvious to a job seeker.

During your next job search, don’t shoot yourself in the foot by making these common behavioral mistakes:

Being unprofessional

Obviously, you shouldn’t be swearing at or insulting hiring managers. I highly doubt any of you are engaging in knowingly rude behaviors during your job search, but this does need to be said. But being unprofessional comes down to more than just obvious rudeness.

One of the easiest ways to get rejected is to appear unprofessional before even speaking with a recruiter or very early in the process. If your resume, cover letter, LinkedIn, or email are riddled with typos, you’ll already appear to be massively unprepared for the job. This can quickly turn the hiring manager against you, even if you’re otherwise an ideal candidate. Make sure to proofread carefully and use tools like Grammarly to assist.

“Almost every job description includes “excellent communication skills” as a requirement. If your communications with the HR manager include spelling or grammatical errors, you’re shooting yourself in the foot.” -Recruiter.com

Recruiter.com also says to make sure your social media posts are up to par. Remove any unflattering photos, edgy posts, controversial opinions, and even negative posts about your current/old position. Refer to our social media guide for further details.

Finally, LinkedIn says not to beg for a job or expect others to help you for free. Not only will you appear unprofessional, but you’ll reek of desperation, another trait recruiters detest.

Being insincere

Even the most professional-looking recruits can still annoy hiring managers with their bad behaviors. Employers are seeking someone that adds value to their organization, and it’s hard to look valuable if you’re insincere or disinterested.

If it sounds like you’ll take the first job you’re offered, it’s going to be hard for a company to be excited about hiring you. Judith Humphrey lists authenticity as the most important quality a job seeker can possess. Recruiters don’t want canned responses or to be pandered to.

“I want to find out more about the candidate personally, and I find there is often this wall, and people are not letting me see who they really are.” –Amanda Luthra, recruiter

One of the quickest ways to appear insincere is by embracing the common “spray-and-pray” technique used by many inexperienced job seekers. Forbes’ Jack Kelly writes that while job seekers think a numbers approach will work in their favor, it does the opposite. Your generic resume will make you appear insincere.

Fight this by tailoring your approach to each specific job. Find a reason why you’d be excited to work for the company. Otherwise, you’re wasting their time and yours.

Being arrogant

Employers want an employee who wants to work for them and is confident about their skills, but don’t let that confidence become arrogance!

Reporter Morgan Smith cites Microsoft head of global talent acquisition Lauren Gardner, who said the number one red flag she looks out for on resumes is being a know-it-all. “We’re looking for folks that are motivated to constantly learn and grow.”

It’s good to demonstrate knowledge, but how you communicate is crucial. A candidate who talks down to others or acts pretentious is likely to be looking for a job elsewhere. Often this type of behavior shows a lack of confidence in your abilities and that you need to be pretentious to appear more successful than you actually are.

“No one wants to subject their staff to having to deal with an arrogant, self-aggrandizing windbag.” –Jack Kelly

Passion and humility are two traits hiring managers want to see, so express your desire to learn and grow and acknowledge that the people in the room can assist in that growth. Be confident while showing respect, and you’ll stand a much better chance of getting the job.

Wrap up

Self-awareness is one of the most valuable qualities a job seeker can possess. Some of these poor behaviors may seem like no-brainers. But sometimes we might not realize our small actions may be unprofessional, insincere, or arrogant. Take some time to really reflect on how hiring managers will see your communications, and it will go a long way towards finding a job you can be excited about.

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Four Reasons Not To Take The Job

Not every job you’ll get an offer for will be your dream job, unfortunately. We can’t always be picky about every opportunity that comes our way. Sometimes we need the money, and sometimes we need to gain experience so we can get that dream job down the road. But even with these truths, there are plenty of good reasons to decline a job offer.

We’ve previously covered red flags to watch out for in job descriptions, but things won’t always be readily apparent, and a good interview won’t always mean a good workplace. With any job offer, you’ll need to trust your gut on whether it’s the right fit for you. With a little help from the experts, we look into four of the most common and powerful reasons to decline a job offer.

The offering isn’t good

Ultimately, we work so that we can live our lives. We hope you can find a job that feels like a calling, but even the people with the best work-life balance need to eat. Generally, if a job is paying below market value or not willing to provide what you’re worth, you won’t want that job.

Monster’s Mark Swartz says that although there are sometimes good reasons to take a pay cut, it isn’t ideal. And it isn’t just salary, but the job title, the benefits package, and potential vacation time all fall under this category. If you feel you didn’t get what you deserved, it might be a while before you can schedule a change. This can lead to anger and resentment, making the position even worse.

Thankfully, this is something that can be fixed or acknowledged early in your interview process according to Indeed. Despite what others might say, don’t be afraid to ask about salary early in the process. If it’s not to your liking, you have options to fix things before declining the offer, including:

  • Try to negotiate the compensation package with the prospective employer
  • Request that a salary review is done a few months into the job potentially after probation
  • Decide if the employee benefits on offer compensate for the lack of salary

The people aren’t great

But money isn’t a cure-all for everything, and plenty have left jobs that paid well that were otherwise unpleasant. If your bosses or coworkers don’t seem up to par, you may want to save yourself the headache and decline.

Jen Hubley Luckwaldt mentions the old adage “Workers don’t quit companies. They quit managers.” Studies consistently back this up, with bad bosses being a common reason for employee departures. Your direct supervisor should be one of the people in your interviews, so pay close attention to them. What are they like, and how do they describe their work style? Luckwaldt says that while you won’t be able to tell everything about them in one quick meeting, you should be able to get a good picture of whether you can work with them or not.

Your potential coworkers can be a great clue as well. What is the energy like in the office? Do people seem engaged with one another? Pay attention to body language and try to pick up on any clues you can.

“If the job is in Engineering, for example, it matters who is running Manufacturing and who is running Sales. If these latter managers are not competent, what the Engineering team designs may not be fully realized as viable products, and Sales may not be able to sell them.” Nick Corcodilos

The company isn’t a good fit

Most companies have good people, but if the culture isn’t great, it will trickle down. People want value in their jobs, and if a culture seems off or the company appears to be failing, you’ll be hard-pressed to find any value.

If you found yourself getting ghosted or the communication felt poor during the interview process, that’s a bad sign. The mission statement might not be something you agree with, or you might have different priorities. And sometimes, what works for one person doesn’t for another. A fast-paced office might be the dream to some and a nightmare to others. The company might not be bad—just not right for you. And that’s okay!

Beyond culture, there are many other signs a company might not be right for you. Beth Braccio Hering lists a revolving door of employees, a bad reputation, and no clear path to advancements as signs the company isn’t doing things right. Meanwhile, Ask The Headhunter’s Nick Corcodilos suggests looking up the company’s finances and trying to talk about them in the interview. It won’t do you much good to accept an offer if the company is close to bankruptcy!

The quality of life is poor

Sometimes a job might look fine on paper, but enough little things add up, and the job might be a poor fit for your lifestyle.

One of the most common reasons to decline a job is because of the commute. Maybe the job is amazing, but it’s just too far away to reliably get there or your kid’s school is in the complete opposite direction. You’ll have to ask yourself if it’s worth it.

“Getting to and from work should not be the most exhausting part of your day. If it is, you’ll arrive to your job with frayed nerves and get home in a bad mood.” Mark Swartz

Another example is if you can’t agree on remote or hybrid work model. If you’re looking for some sort of balance and the employer isn’t offering what you need, it’s okay to look elsewhere.

Wrap up

In the long run, it’s better to decline a bad job offer than to accept and quit shortly after. Constant quitting can affect your pay grade and career trajectory down the road. If the money, the coworkers, the company culture, and the effects to your quality of life seem poor, don’t feel bad about declining an offer. We hope that knowing there are good reasons not to accept a job and knowing your worth as an employee can help steer you to a job you’re excited about, not just one that pays the bills!

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Curating Your Social Media As A Job Seeker

Whether for business or pleasure, social media usage is on the rise. We’ve come a long way from the MySpace days, and now a social media presence is an expectation rather than a hobby. We’ve previously stressed how vital a strong LinkedIn existence is, but even your personal accounts across the web are relevant to your job search.

Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, and even Facebook make up your digital footprint, and this is something all job seekers must be aware of. A 2018 CareerBuilder survey found that 70% of employers use social media sites to vet candidates, and that number has surely risen since then.

“70% of employers use social networking sites to research job candidates (on par with last year), while 7% plan to start… And that review matters: Of those that do social research, 57% have found content that caused them not to hire candidates.” –CareerBuilder

Make sure your profiles are helping rather than hurting your job aspirations. Keep your social media profiles safe for work by following these strategies!

Avoid anything unprofessional

Some of the basics should be fairly obvious. You might not be actively trying to generate “content” on every platform, but be wary of what you post. Even on accounts that are completely personal, you don’t want to share anything offensive, overly risque, divisive, or overly argumentative.

Your personal pages are your personal pages, but employers are wary about hiring a candidate that might make them look bad down the road, and the previous study mentioned that over 50% of employers that have researched candidates’ social profiles found something that caused them to look elsewhere.

Google yourself

If you want to see what your potential employers can see, throw your name into Google, or your preferred search engine, and see what comes up. You can use Incognito mode or a different computer if you’re afraid of your regular system’s biases.

From there, you’ll be able to see how an outsider will view you. What pops up first? And is it flattering? By Googling yourself, you may find questionable profiles or posts you don’t even remember, and you can take necessary action. If nothing else, you can see which accounts need to be made private.

If you want to be really thorough, David Cotriss recommends setting up a Google alert on yourself to regulatory see if anything comes up.

“If you appear on an undesirable website, try reaching out to the webmaster to remove you. Ask people who have tagged you in inappropriate posts on social media to remove you as well. You can be sure employers will do a Google search on you, so why not be one step ahead?” –Michael Moran, recruiter

Look into privacy options

Every major social media platform has some sort of privacy settings, so you’ll want to learn what they are and curate them to your needs.

For example, if you only use Facebook to keep track of birthdays and keep up with what your high school friends are up to, it may not matter. But if you regularly post pictures of nights on the town, you may want to keep an eye on who can see that content.

It can be worth having both a private and public profile on the same site, depending on your needs. A public-facing Instagram and a personal one can have completely different content, and only the public one will be viewable to employers.

Keep an online presence

Even if you have a few less-than-professional things pop up during your self-scout, your first instinct shouldn’t be to put everything on private and delete every account. David Cotriss writes that 1-in-5 employers won’t hire a candidate that has zero online presence. This can make it seem like you have something to hide. Cotriss also says that deleting a profile won’t always hide all offending content, and employers may be able to see cached versions.

Instead, keep some accounts active and engaged. Make sure all of your contact information is up to date Keep your LinkedIn profile updated regularly, have nice conversations on Twitter, and keep telling your friends happy birthday on Facebook. You’ll be able to connect with people that can help you, and you’ll seem like a real person.

Engage carefully

“The good news is you can leverage social media to build your image as much as to wreck it.” –Jeff Lipschultz

Now that you’ve curated what you’ve already put into the digital world, make sure you continue good habits by making your engagements worthwhile. Alessandro Biascioli says to be choosey about your likes and follows, especially on public profiles. It’s not hard to see what posts you’ve liked and who you engage with. If you’re liking divisive content, you’ll scare employers aware, but if you’re engaging with professionally relevant content, this can be viewed as a plus.

Meanwhile, Alison Doyle says that you don’t need to connect with everyone. Quality is better than quantity, and you’ll be much more likely to find value or offer value to others in a more curated network.

“Put aside all the trash talking and trolling on Twitter and consider using it to your advantage. Look for your tribe on the site. Seek out trending topics that align with your skills and background. Then, weigh in with your comment, offering your unique perspective.” –Jack Kelly, Forbes

Wrap up

Social media is an endlessly valuable tool that needs to be used correctly. At its best, you’ll show off your personal brand and make valuable connections. At worst, you’ll frighten potential employers. Google yourself to see what employers can see, and clean up as necessary. Avoid posting anything vulgar or unprofessional and familiarize yourself with different platforms’ privacy options. Keep an online prescience, and make your engagements count!

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