The truth about resignation
“Well that was a slap in the face,” my boss said, shifting his gaze awkwardly.
“C’mon, it wasn’t a slap!”
“Well no, it was a … it’s fine … it’s just unfortunate … it’s fine.” Usually, when he spoke, it was like a freight train with the breaks worn out. This is the first time he stammered. Helpless. I was leaving. It was done. Nothing to change. Nothing to influence. No control.
I’d imagined so many times what it would feel like to resign. The past 3 years have been filled with disappointment after disappointment. A relationship with your corporate employer is defined by expectations. We talk a lot about the expectations employers have from professionals. But we easily forget that the professionals also have expectations from their employers.
I held up my end of the expectations. In this case, every performance review was at max. Every discretionary bonus at max. I delivered projects on time. I changed hearts and minds on new business lines and products. I overcame resistance. I pitched $100M+ deals. I worked on M&A transactions that revolutioned our business. I worked on a critical renegotiations with the worst partners on the books. (“They’re coming for blood” territory.) I built models and found new ways to make money. I did it all.
But what about my expectations? There were people that were junior to me in rank when I started that were now 1 or 2 layers above me. I was in the role for 5 years…and having direct discussions about promotions for the previous 3. There was a career plan with HR that was outperformed over a year ago and was supposed to lead to promotion…but was instead followed up by excuses. I was told promotions aren’t happening because of Covid-19, then I watch a whole slew of people get promoted. Global Chief HR officer states on a town hall “Promotions are absolutely still happening,” I flag this and the CFO of my region says “You should be grateful you have a job.”
Expectations.
They run two ways.
Mine weren’t met for too long.
I had three offers for a new role. And I was accepting one of them.
When it came time to send that resignation email it felt surprisingly flat. “This was a difficult decision, I’ve decided to go in a different direction. This is formal notice of my resignation.”
I always thought I’d have all these things to say. You know, that script where you finally let it all out. In reality, the simple word “resignation” says it all. Susicntly. Without any opacity.
It says someone else out there values you. It says you did the hard work to show them who you are and what you’re capable of. It says you’ve been bored. It says you’ve had enough. It says your expectations weren’t met. It says there’s nothing they can do. It says it’s over.
Resignation.
It says it all for you.
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