Moving On

After four (FOUR!) interviews, several email exchanges and multiple phones calls, I sat down to craft a resignation letter to my current employer.

The downside of staying employed at various places for extended periods of time is that I had no idea what kind of resignation letter to write. Eager for advice, I looked up some examples. And, interestingly enough, most of the advice offered suggested saying nothing except “I resign, effective X date from Y position. Thank you”.

I can't explain why I find this to be revolutionary, but I do. Perhaps it is because after years of listening to others tell me that I must elaborate, finally someone, multiple someones, suggest that I get straight to the point.

As I perused the examples, I came across an article and three year long thread on giving immediate (as opposed to two weeks) notice. As I have fantasized quite often over the past year of walking out without notice, the thought that an employment expert would advocate giving same-day notice is tantalizing. I went for the standard two weeks instead.

And promptly walked into the situation described in the article. While my lab manager is surprised, he is very willing to let me work out the two weeks. However, he warned me that I may be leaving sooner than planned once my resignation reaches the upper levels of management.