Last week hit a nerve with a lot of our readers. People are weighing the pros and cons of making a job switch and trying to figure out should they stay or go from their current job. 65% of Gen Z’s plan to quit their jobs in 2022. We wanted to dig into this topic a bit more this week and give some more tactical tools to quit your job. ?
First, let us hit you with more stats because we love them [1]
- The US has regained over 19 million jobs of the 22 million jobs that were lost in the early weeks of the pandemic.
- January 2022 saw employers adding over 467,000 jobs when adjusted for seasonality which was much stronger than what economists had predicted. Think 150,000 more jobs than estimated.
- Long-term unemployed individuals declined from 4 million a year ago to 1.7 million. This group indicates those who have been out of the workforce for more than 6 months.
- There are still roughly 5.7 million individuals who are not currently seeking employment opportunities and are not counted as unemployed.
While we love a good U.S. Bureau of Labor Statics reports as much as the next person, there is more to the numbers. From where we sit a lot of our client consultations, frantic phone calls from friends, and happy hour topics all stem from people who openly hate their jobs and want to quit. A little louder for our friends with poor hearing. A LOT OF PEOPLE REALLY, REALLY HATE THEIR CURRENT JOB.
So what? Now what? We created a plan to guide those who are ready to quit and understand the risks. While it helps to have another gig lined up already, it is not required. Here is our tactical checklist for quitting your job quickly.
- Budget: We hope you have a budget and possibly a financial planner already. It would be a good time to use both. If not, you need to look at your bills and understand exactly the minimum amount is you need to pay each month. Next is figuring out how long your savings will last and how fast you need to find another job. It is also helpful to understand when your last paycheck will hit. If the numbers look grim, consider trying to calculate a date you can exit with a bit more comfort.
- Benefits: Evaluate where you are from a health perspective. Can you go without health insurance, join onto a partner’s benefits, or survive on COBRA for a few months? If you have major prescriptions or overdue doctors’ appointments, utilize the benefits that you have now to put yourself in the best situation. Cash out those FSAs, utilize dependent care accounts up to the current value prior to departure, and make sure you know your next steps to roll over your 401k. Also, recognize that you may lose those extraordinary benefits like life insurance for this gap period.
- Boujee Perks: This category lumps together those benefits like banked PTO or sick leave, bonuses, paid training opportunities, stock options, computer or phone assets, etc. Know before you go. Here we want you to see what benefits you may have overlooked or undervalued. Determine if your company will pay out for banked PTO or if you lose it immediately upon resigning. If you primarily use your work computer, do you have another computer to use for job searching? Do you need to reach a certain date for a bonus payout or stock option? ?Spend some time mapping out these benefits. It may be worthwhile to give yourself a 4 day work week for a few weeks to build up those savings. ??
- Business Etiquette. We love a good Tik-Tok or work meme poking fun at how much everyone seems to hate their job and over top melt downs. However, save those ideas for daydreams and close circles of friends. As much as possible try and leave your current employer on as good of terms. Consider trying to wrap up major projects, organize your files, or prepare some exit guidance on your current role. While someone may not grant you this courtesy, we are sure you would appreciate it if someone did.
- Be the Bigger Person: We get you may really hate your job right now and it is making you see red. Professional courtesy and kindness need to win out in this battle. Ensure that you are telling your manager and HR before you are telling colleagues. Take the time to inform those with whom you have built relationships and those whose day-to-day work may be temporarily impacted by your departure. Too often we forget that our worlds often collide and do our best to leave with a humble, but confident departure.
Here is our final “food for thought” about quitting your job. The above checklist is a good reflection of where you are today even if you aren’t yet ready to leave your job right now. Think about it this way: if you were laid off today, how would you react and what would you do? As always let us know how we can support you on this journey.
