Sep 14, 2021
What can you expect, and how should you prepare, when leaving your current position?
Most of you will be in the following situation:
You may envision the following scenario:
Unfortunately, that is not how it usually goes. If not fully prepared, what follows are a series of unexpected financial, legal, and/or psychosocial consequences that can slow or complicate your departure.
Financial Issues
Any pivot will have financial consequences. If there is a gap between jobs, you’ll need a nest egg to get you through the time when income temporarily stops. This is ameliorated if you have passive income from other sources or a spouse’s income can cover expenses while you’re in the process of transitioning.
Legal Issues
This leads us right into the legal ramifications. An employment contract is typically a long and complicated document, with many provisions that are forgotten until separation is imminent. And some of them will prevent, postpone or complicate your departure.
Psychosocial Issues
You may observe a common behavioral pattern in colleagues and employers when leaving.
That pattern is Kubler-Ross’s 5 Stages of Death and Dying. You may go through the stages of denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance once you come to the realization that you can no longer tolerate working in the current healthcare environment. But you may not be prepared for those very same steps occurring in your colleagues and employer. The denial and anger of those around you can be particularly disconcerting.
You may intend to be completely professional and deliberate as you wrap things up. But prepare yourself for others to be oppositional, upset, angry, or in denial. This may manifest as passive-aggressive or overtly hostile behavior.
Your managers may avoid you, even though there are issues to take care of. They may try to involve you in matters that are no longer of your concern. And they may attempt to burden you with more than your share of on-call duties.
Oftentimes, you’re leaving an employer because it is dysfunctional. It may not be run like a business: no regular meetings, problems are ignored, strategic planning is nonexistent. It is naïve to think that a business that is dysfunctional is going to respond to your departure in a functional way.
Listen to the complete episode to learn how to prepare for these challenges. Remain calm, deal with the chaos logically, follow the advice of your accountant and attorney, and move on.
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