Leaving a Job with Grace

Beyond the obvious of not shouting “I quit!” in the boss’s face, there are several things to do to leave a job on good terms:

1. Make sure everyone knows where your projects stand.
2. Leave detailed instructions on how to perform your essential tasks, especially if there are not many people cross-trained into your job.
3. Don’t leave a mess at your desk. Have everything neat and obviously don’t clean out the supply closet!
4. When you announce your change on your social media platforms, be very gracious to the company you just left and let them know you appreciated your time there.
5. Connect with and write LinkedIn recommendations for your former co-workers and supervisor.
6. If you know of someone in your network that would be a good match for the company, introduce them to the manager.

In my own history, I left a job in 2007 and was brought back in 2012 for some contract work. Even though this was an extremely toxic work environment, I managed to keep good relations with the owner over the years. A lot of this is because I tried to leave on good terms and then did not smear them publicly afterwards – either in social media or in interviews.