Harvard Business Review’s Post

A few years ago an acquaintance quit his toxic role without anything in hand, albeit he had enough saved to last a few months. Through determination and patience he landed something much better within weeks of quitting, which offered autonomous working before it became a thing and a salary that matched his competence. If the workplace is unethical or doesn't favour dignity, then there's plenty of jobs in the market. It's simply a matter of patience before finding the right offer that suits ones competence and experience.

I just went through this 7 months ago. My demanding job and certain toxic personalities around me had taken a significant toll on my mental well being and started affecting my physical health. It was also impacting my family. I didn’t want to talk to my wife nor my child after work. I had no energy on weekends to see family and friends. I had become a shell of myself. I tried searching for another job while still employed, but I tanked a screening call for the first time in my life… along with a second and third. This led me to realize that I had to make the difficult decision to leave my job without another lined up. I made a plan with my wife on how we could live off her income and our emergency savings for at least 6 months. Two months later, I landed a great job and even took a step forward in my career goals. More importantly, my health has improved and my wife and daughter have their husband/dad back.

This four-point plan says nothing about the transition - it is only up to and including the first day after you resign. Whilst the current market of low unemployment in many countries makes it a worker's market, some significant issues can hurt some demographics badly if they are unprepared. Since it is an area of expertise, I'll focus on one area - mature people over 50 and three key statistics. 1) In Australia, people over 50 can take twice as long to find a new job than other age groups - up to TWO YEARS 2) 60% of organisations in Australia are reluctant to hire people over 50 3) 80% of organisations in the US say their workforce is going to be more 'gig' based in the future All these trends mean that mature people need to plan better and be prepared for any career or work transition as they risk falling through the cracks if they leave a 'secure' role with no plan in place. Cheers Hunter

Been there, done that.. No regrets. 💪 

Very good counsel on not being specific about the issue. Go out with you head up and don’t use a resignation letter to make a point. Cut ties and move on.

I know I'm repeating myself, but... it's time to quit your job when you have a job. Become self-employed. Develop a side activity. Find a way to earn passive income. Work from where you want, when you want. Build a life where you have complete control over your time and choices. It's never too early to do it.

It's not a failure; it's the pressure of something illegal or unethical going on at work, and you're worried it will reflect poorly on your personality and your current job is negatively affecting your life. It is essential to let go.

Quite often it takes someone else to notice and confront you with the situation you are in the middle of. Rarely does it happen overnight, but over time. Watch out for what creeps up on you.

Did this nearly 9 years ago and had an amazing thing happen. Clients I had been supporting and helping started to ask me if I would consider setting up on my own as they would have work for me. I set up my own business and the rest is history. I had been at my previous employer for nearly 15 years but the way they treated me at a very challenging time in my life was unforgivable.