Perhaps our workplace has become less than ideal, thanks to the long hours, the constant backbiting, the drab decor, the bossy boss, the fickle clientele, or a hundred and one other factors that might drag us down on a daily basis. We may have spent the last few years daydreaming of the moment we can finally march into our manager's office and announce: "I quit!"
But it's our co-worker who is walking around the office today with a huge, relieved smile on her face. I just gave my notice, I'm so out of here, I'm moving on, we'll have to stay in touch! Perhaps she has a new job lined up, perhaps not. Either way, we're watching her live the dream.
Of quitting.
But how should we deal with our own emotions as this work colleague prepares to walk out the door? Here are five tips for making our own transition when a co-worker quits:
1. It's okay to feel shaken. The initial news of a co-worker's impending exit can jolt us to the core. If we like this co-worker, we might feel emotional pain at the thought of a work day without them. We might even feel oddly pained at the exit of a co-worker we've sparred with since Day One. It's normal to feel this way. Change is hard.
2. Spot the opportunities. A quitting co-worker makes us examine our own reasons for staying. It might not feel fair that our colleague "gets" to leave, but his or her departure can also present new opportunities for us at work. It could be an opening to delve into new projects, to volunteer in the void to take on a new task we've coveted from afar, to befriend a new co-worker, and so on. How can we harness the change in the air to make this workplace work a little better for us?
3. Make a new pact. We may feel overwhelmed in the face of this news and all of its unknowns. How will the work get done in the short run without this colleague? How will his or her exit change the playing field around here? How will the rest of us pick up the slack in the meantime? Will this co-worker really stay in touch? Watching a colleague leave, however, can provide us with a sense of motivation to reinvent ourselves in small ways. What will we do to keep ourselves motivated though this transitional time?
4. Re-align and self-reward. We may feel down as we realize quitting simply isn't in the cards for us right now. It's important to be kind to ourselves, and think about the One Thing (for extra credit, Three Things) we like about our jobs. It might be a great clientele, an upcoming project that utilizes our best skills, a fully-stocked break room, a flexible schedule, a fair and fairly understanding boss, and/or good pay and benefits. We might also treat ourselves to something we don't normally do during work hours as a reward for working through the chaos of a colleague's impending exit. Splurging on a designer latte, taking a drop-in fitness class, or going out for a nice lunch are small pick-me-ups that can energize us and put a smile back on our face.
5. Get excited -- for our colleague. It can take anywhere from a few days to a few weeks to wrap our heads around the news that a colleague is really leaving. At the same time, workloads are being re-assigned as co-workers jockey for position. When we feel a sense of inner calmness at work, we'll know we're turning the corner. The initial shock has worn off, and we're adjusting to a new normal. We can wish our exiting co-worker all the best at the goodbye lunch, and really mean it this time.
Use a colleague's impending exit as a powerful learning opportunity, too. How did the employee break the news to everyone, and is this how we would go about it ourselves? What would we do differently, based on what we're seeing and experiencing?
We can pick up some valuable insights as a work colleague goes about the messy business of exiting the company. We'll know what to do (and what not to do, ahem) when it's our turn to leave with humility, grace, and a sense of professionalism. The rest of us promise not to feel too jealous.
This is dummy text. It is not meant to be read. Accordingly, it is difficult to figure out when to end it. But then, this is dummy text. It is not meant to be read. Period.
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