Need help taking the plunge to quit your job? Take the advice of the expert who accidentally coined the term ‘The Great Resignation’.

Pre-pandemic, the idea of quitting your job may have sent you into a nervous tailspin. 

Slate’s resident Ask a Manager columnist, Alison Green, said that based on a decade of writing her column, one of the most common queries she came across was how to push through the nerves of resigning. People want advice on how to say it, when to do it and whether or not the risks outweigh the rewards. Some people even admitted to lying about the true reason for their departure.

It makes sense, right? Good managers have usually invested a decent amount of time and money into their employees’ development, so announcing a resignation could feel like you’re being ungrateful or disrespectful.

However, Anthony Klotz, Associate Professor of Organisational Behaviour at UCL School of Management in London, thinks the pandemic has changed the way we think about resignations – at least for some people. 

The prolific nature of the ‘The Great Resignation’ – a term Klotz accidentally coined during a 2021 interview with Bloomberg – has given a voice to a lot of employees who were feeling that the pandemic had fundamentally changed how they felt about work, life and the boundaries between the two.

“It was sort of taboo to talk about quitting and resignations before this,” says Klotz. “I think the reason it became so popular is because it gave a voice to individuals who felt like, ‘I don’t want to go back to how things used to be because I feel I’ve changed.’”

But just because the motivators for quitting your job might feel stronger now than in previous years, that doesn’t mean it’s not still an uncomfortable and sometimes clunky process to wade through.

Klotz has been studying the ways in which employees resign and the effects of different resignation styles for years now, so if there’s anyone to take advice from on this topic, it’s him.

If you feel at your wits end with a job, or have been enticed by an attractive offer from another employer, Klotz recommends keeping the following things in mind.

1. Consider what’s motivating you

In an episode of Adam Grant’s podcast Work Life, Klotz and Grant talk about three important things to consider before pulling the plug on a job: voice, loyalty and alternatives.

Ask yourself questions, such as: Am I aligned with this organisation’s mission? Do I feel my voice would be heard if I spoke out about the aspects of my job that I’m not enjoying?

For example, if you’re getting bored or disengaged with the kind of work you’re doing, Klotz says now is the time to speak up.

“People often leave a job because they don’t like 20 per cent of it. This might be a relationship they have or a task they need to spend time on. At the moment, bosses are really keen to talk about how to retain people, so this is a great time to engage in what’s known as ‘job crafting’. 

“This is when employees proactively go to their boss and say, ‘Can you help me turn the job I have into my dream job? To do that, it would mean getting someone else to do these reports because they’re draining the life out of me and ruining my day.'”

Consider if you could re-design aspects of your role to better suit your personal passions.

Read HRM’s guide to job crafting here.

2. Consider what you’re losing

As well as weighing up the benefits of taking a new employer up on their job offer, Klotz suggests weighing up the pros of staying in your existing job.

“When people make those pros and cons lists, there are some benefits that they [overlook]. And one of them would be social capital. 

“If you’re at a job where you have some friends and a good reputation – if you need to get something done, you know who to go to, or you make a mistake and you know who can bail you out – remember that won’t follow you to your next job.

“In fact, you’ll start at zero in terms of your social capital in the next job. And there’s no guarantee that you’ll be able to build it back up to the level you currently have.”

“You’ll start at zero in terms of your social capital in the next job. And there’s no guarantee that you’ll be able to build it back up to the level you currently have.” – Anthony Klotz

You should also consider the special skills you have that are specific to that company, he adds.

“This is expertise you’ve developed during your time at the company; it’s what people know you for. You can’t expect that it will follow you into the next job. You might mess up in your first week, and therefore your reputation as an expert in that area might be hard-earned from then on.”

Weigh expertise and social capital into the equation in the same way you would pay and benefit differences, he suggests.

3. Keep wellbeing front of mind

Next, consider the alternatives you have on offer and make sure you’re not viewing a new job opportunity through rose-coloured glasses.

“Quitting a job voluntarily often results in regret,” says Klotz. “It’s not unlike leaving any relationship in your life.

“Quitting your job is an emotional decision, and emotions get in the way of us making rational decisions. So you have this emotional decision to leave and then this other decision where you have to figure out what to do next. And whether that’s another job, another career or taking a career break, you don’t know what that’s going to be like. 

“Often we see that through a very positive lens – it’s that, ‘the grass is greener’ thinking. We’re often making these decisions with incomplete information, which often leads people to regret the decision they’ve made.

“I’ve seen that regret kick in almost instantly during people’s notice period because all those annoying things that led them to quit melt away.”

And there’s solid reason to believe that this regret is justified.

In his podcast, Adam Grant quoted recent research, published in the Journal of Applied Psychology earlier this year, which used the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia data to determine the relationship between quitting your job and your wellbeing.

“Even though people left because they were dissatisfied, they actually became more dissatisfied in their new jobs for several years afterward,” Grant said.

Klotz applauds this research for its comprehensiveness, tracking 2565 employees over multiple years.

The researchers found that people who quit their jobs were more likely to experience decreased job satisfaction and vitality in the future, and were more likely to experience work-family conflict. These risks were most pertinent within the first five years of moving to a new job.

“The findings surprised me a little, just because of the prevalence of the negative wellbeing effects,” says Klotz. “But the reality is that transitions are difficult. People tend to undervalue their social capital and expertise – things that can take years and years to build back up.

“Quitting a job voluntarily often results in regret. It’s not unlike leaving any relationship in your life.” – Anthony Klotz

“We often go into new jobs with very high expectations and are disappointed when they don’t live up to our expected reality – and disappointment is a feeling that can linger.”

The takeaway here is to carefully consider the realities of your options before quitting.

“You’re going to have bad days, you’re going to have bad weeks, you’re probably going to have bad months at work. But take into account the whole time that you’ve been working at this organisation and take your time to decide if you want to quit or not.”

4. Be helpful as you leave, but know when to cut the cord

During his interview with Grant, Klotz told the story of resigning from a job he really loved and  how he mismanaged the process because he was overly conscious of other people’s feelings.

“I felt really guilty when I resigned,” Klotz said in the interview. “And so I gave three months’ notice, which is way too long for that context. And after about two weeks, my employees had moved on. My boss had moved on.”

There’s no secret formula for the right length of a notice period, says Klotz. It should always happen on a case-by-case basis.

“Two weeks’ notice might be too much in some circumstances, but it could be an insulting amount of time in others. You need to consider the industry norms.”

After you’ve ripped off the Band-Aid and made the announcement that you’re leaving, Klotz suggests taking time to think about all the ways you could minimise disruption to the rest of your team.

“List all those different ways and then consider what you could reasonably do to minimise that disruption. Perhaps you could stay on to train your replacement or make yourself available, within reason, after you leave?”

You also want to avoid leaving a bad taste in your employer’s mouth by airing your dirty laundry on your way out. Even if you’ve had a not-so-great experience with the company, that’s not to say that’s everyone’s experience. If you make people question the culture on your way out, all you’re doing is leaving behind a mess that others have to continue working in.

“Be a cheerleader for the company when you leave to prevent turnover contagion from happening. You might say, ‘I’m just leaving because I want to move overseas. It has nothing to do with this organisation.’ That’s how you resign in a positive way.”

Stay tuned for part two of this article next week, where Klotz will share his advice for HR managers and employers for effective ways to respond to an employee’s resignation.

Learn how to manage an employee who wants to quit their job by mastering the art of difficult conversations. This short course from AHRI will equip you with the skills you need.