Five questions to ask yourself before you resign
Resignation letters usually wait in a drawer for months. Before you send yours, ask yourself the five questions that work best in my sessions.
Many of my clients arrive at the first call with their resignation letter already written. Sometimes it waits in the notes on their phone, sometimes in an email draft. I kept my own letter in a drawer for two years. What I learned in those two years: the right time to send the letter is when you can write what you want, not what you are running from.
The questions below are the ones I ask in the first two sessions of the Crossroads programme. I suggest writing the answers by hand on a sheet of paper.
Do I want to go, or to get away?
"Going" means moving towards something; "getting away" means moving away from something. Both begin with the same letter but end in very different places. For a week, note the moments at work that wear you down. If one person, one project or one meeting stands out, the problem may not be the whole job.
What will I miss?
I have seen many people skip this question. A team, a manager's trust, the street you walk at lunchtime, the salary arriving on the same day each month. Knowing what you will miss also tells you what to look for in the next job.
How many months can I manage?
The longer the money conversation is postponed, the more it turns into fear. Write down your fixed monthly costs and divide your savings by that figure. The result tells you how long you can afford to experiment. If it is under three, first look at what you can try without leaving.
Have I talked to someone who does this job?
Talk to at least two people who do the job you imagine, over a coffee each. Do not ask how much they earn; ask about an ordinary Tuesday. Many jobs that look attractive from outside look very different on a Tuesday.
Can I run a small experiment?
A weekend project, the first class of a course, volunteering, a freelance job. What is the smallest step you could take within two weeks without leaving your job? Career change is told as a big leap, but it is usually the sum of these small steps.
Your answers may still lead you to resign. That is fine; this time you will go knowing what you are going towards.
