Just because you have one foot out the door doesn’t mean you won’t get turned around in the future, so make sure you exit the right way.
While leaving your current role and moving on to the next step of your professional life is a major change and a whole new experience, it does not necessarily mean cutting all ties with your previous network or place of employment. Such is the nature of the working world that we can often end up collaborating with similar people and connected organisations many times throughout our lives.
For that reason, when you make the decision to embark upon a new career it is important that you leave on a good note and in a position to leverage the time that you spent there. That is where expert communication and interpersonal skills come into play.
By taking the time to truly consider your words before you leave, you give yourself the opportunity to exit having made a positive and professional impact, that could well aid you throughout the rest of your career, wherever that may be.
So, what should you avoid saying when you have decided to move on professionally?
I am sorry
Manners are important, however, don’t get into the habit of apologising unnecessarily. You are well within your rights to give your notice and move on to the next opportunity. Apologising, however, gives the impression that you are working against the company in some capacity, or that you aren’t entirely sure you are making the right decision.
Rather than feeling guilty about leaving your job, instead make sure that you make it easy for your replacement to transition into the role. This can be achieved by communicating the change in responsibility to everyone it pertains to, completing your work up to a reasonable point, updating co-workers on what remains to be done and giving a clear leaving date.
I can’t wait to go
While of course you are going to be excited about your new role and the change to your routine, it is important to express that excitement in a professional manner. By counting down the days to your departure and saying you can’t wait to go, you could give internal and external stakeholders the impression that you have mentally checked out and are no longer reliable, despite the fact that you are still in the employment of your current organisation.
Instead, you could discuss the new skills you are looking forward to building upon, or how it will be an opportunity to expand your existing network. Expressing excitement at future prospects should never be discouraged, but should always be professional when discussed in the workplace.
So and so is a nightmare
An exit interview, despite it being your last chance to truly relay your experiences, should not be an opportunity to overly or unfairly criticise other employees. You should always be honest and upfront about negative interactions or incidents that crossed a line, however try to avoid airing petty or personal grievances that are unrelated to the overall experience.
Also, be careful not to accidentally throw anyone under the bus. It can be tempting to bring in other people’s experiences to back up what you are saying, however, this only serves to trivialise your own perspective, as well as put the employee who is staying at the company in a potentially vulnerable position.
Despite the fact that you never know who you might end up working with again down the line, or who you might need as a reference, by being overly critical of your co-workers and upper management, you can damage friendships, strong working relationships and potential future opportunities.
Everything is wrong
In the same way that an exit interview shouldn’t be used to air personal grievances, it is also not an ideal space in which to levy heavy criticisms against the organisation as a whole. It is, however, a great opportunity to provide honest, helpful feedback, so company leaders can identify problem areas and work to build a more efficient and cohesive working environment.
Also, if you bring up an issue that you had not previously mentioned, be prepared to defend your reasoning. Dredging up historical issues, while still useful to how a company will manage problems in the future, may not be immediately helpful as the timeframe in which the issue could have been resolved has since passed.
Essentially, when offering feedback, be prepared for a little push back, keep it relevant, clear and above all, employee-focused, as it is a perfect chance to improve working conditions for your friends and colleagues.
Everything, everywhere, all at once
Whether it is small talk, natural curiosity or digging for information, it is likely that current co-workers and organisational leaders will ask you about your plans for the future. While it is entirely at your own discretion, don’t feel pressured into revealing too much about your new organisation, salary, job title or overall career plans.
If you don’t want to divulge this information, all you really need to say is, “while I appreciate your interest, I am hesitant to share details until I have started in the role”, or something to that effect. You aren’t obligated to share personal information with anyone, the rule of thumb is always just be polite about how you shut them down.
At the end of the day, we all leave a job at some point to move on to the next phase of our careers. How you choose to communicate that exit will say a lot about who you are as an individual and a professional, so make sure that you can stand over your choices happily.
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