If you’ve been in the workforce for any length of time, you may have had dreams of handing in our resignation and giving your supervisor the big F-you. Well, an employee in the UK found a way to do just that and go viral at the same time.
According to a Gallup State of the American Workplace Report which analyzed data from more than 195,000 U.S. employees, 51 percent of American workers are actively looking for a different job or watching for openings right now. [1]
The only thing stopping some people from handing in their notices at work, regardless of whether the job in question is great or rubbish, is the fear of creating an awkward situation.
You may have probably fantasized about quitting your job, trying to decide between a dramatic resigning-in-front-of-the-whole-office scene like Harvey Specter did in Suits and just doing a disappearing act.
Unsurprisingly, most people end up doing the proper thing and politely hand in their notice before quietly shuffling out the door.
Taking things a step further
However, one employee has taken this tried and trusted method a step further and really stuck it to his boss by handing in a ‘sorry for your loss’ card, with his notice written inside.
The front of the card in question reads “So very sorry for your loss,” while the inside of the card reads “Thinking of you at this difficult time” with a handwritten note that says “My last day at work is the 28th July.” [2]
The card was handed in by 22-year-old Sam Baines who was resigning from his job at a call center in Sheffield, in the north of England. He had this to say:
“I’ve been working here for almost a year now and had to hand my notice in as I’m going back to university this September.
“We are a really close team and have a fantastic manager so we’re always joking around and having fun. I knew I had to do something a little more creative when giving my notice to try and get one more joke in before I left!
“I knew my boss would find it funny so I wasn’t worried about how they’d take it. I came up with the idea because I was always joking about how much they’d miss me when I was gone, then thought a condolences card would be the perfect way to finish it off.
“It went down great and helped make a positive from an otherwise sad situation.”
His unique attempt at resigning was shared by colleague Hannah who posted pics of the card on Twitter on June 27. The tweet has since gone viral with over 438,000 likes and 79,000 retweets.
She also confirmed that the card was received in good spirits by the company’s management.
“Everyone was laughing and pretty amused with the card,” she said. “It was done in good spirit and not as a petty reaction as some people think.”
Creating a new wave?
The tweet has sparked a new wave of unique resignation stories from people all across the world as several people have responded with their own creative ways of quitting their jobs.
These stories range from cases involving cards like Baines’ and baked goods to other more bizarre ones that involve drawings of dinosaurs and even Krispy Kreme doughnuts.
Surprisingly, a woman named Zoe also shared pictures of how her former colleague Danny resigned using, wait for it, the exact same card. But we don’t advise doing the same thing as some people may see quitting a job using a card, box of doughnuts or even a dinosaur as downright unprofessional.
The Cut has a good report titled How to Quit Your Job — 10 Ways to Do It Gracefully that gives some useful tips on how to gracefully resign from a job. They recommend breaking the news in person, not being overtly negative about your reasons for leaving, and giving your employer at least two weeks’ notice. [3]
We don’t all have such easy going employers, but It’s good to hear that Baines actually got along with his boss and that the card was given in good faith. It did what it was supposed to, give everyone a good chuckle.
Sources:
- Inc.: https://www.inc.com/marcel-schwantes/why-are-so-many-people-quitting-their-jobs-right-now-research-says-entire-reason-comes-down-to-1-sentence.html
- Simple Most: https://www.simplemost.com/man-resigns-from-job-with-condolence-card/
- The Cut: https://www.thecut.com/article/how-to-quit-your-job.html