How long to stay after quitting?

[RoseRelish]

I told my boss last week that I no longer wanted to work for the company. I also said I'd be willing to stick around for a "reasonable" period of time to ensure a smooth transition. We spoke this week and he mentioned me sticking around through the end of summer and part-time through the Holidays. I had been thinking a month was pretty reasonable.

I am on good terms with my boss, and truly want to make sure everything goes smoothly once I'm gone.

My wife (a teacher) and I had hoped to spend this summer testing the FIRE waters. My wife will be returning to work at least one more year, so it's not that big of a deal to work part-time for a while...but it's not what I had envisioned when I went to quit. A bit more money never hurts. And part-time work will allow me to spend way more time with our young child, which was the reason for quitting.

Am I letting my loyalty get in the way of my life? Or is this a blessing to transition to FIRE while my wife wraps up her career?

[Jeremy E.]

I think 2 weeks is standard, while I don't think it's good to burn bridges, I think working 7 more months seems like an unreasonable request. If you have a big enough stache and don't want to work anymore, choose a time at least 2 weeks from now to end your full time work and tell him that date, if you want to work part time afterwards then tell him that as well and how long you're willing to do it.

[Spork]

I think anything longer than 2 weeks is "up to you."

I did 6 months.  But I was very up front with boss (who is also a good friend) about my FIRE plans.  I asked him "how long do you want?" a year or more before I pulled the trigger.  Since there was a long lead in planning... I didn't have any issues giving him 6 months.  (I also knew how slowly my company moved, how poorly they paid and how tiny the market was for what I did.  I knew it would take them 6 months to find/hire someone, and it did.)

[forummm]

Yeah--up to you. It's nice that they want you. But do you want them? Your time, your life, your call.

[AlwaysBeenASaver]

It sounds like you don't really want to work through the summer and holidays, so why don't you offer to your boss that you'll work another 2 weeks full time, then offer to be available to come in periodically (whatever works for you) for consulting and/or to train someone else. They have ample time to figure out how to get through the holidays without you.

[MsRichLife]

I'm doing an extra 6 months from when I notified my boss that I intended to leave. At this stage I feel like I have unfinished business at work and professional pride dictates that I have systems sorted and in place before I leave. I came into the job when it was an absolute s$3t fight, and I refuse to leave it in that state for my mentee and successor.

[jim555]

I don't get it.  Why care about a smooth transition?  That is not your problem any more.  I think you are being too accommodative.

[pbkmaine]

I would tell them that you are taking the summer off to spend with your wife, and you are willing to talk in the fall if you both feel that there's a need. You have no obligation. Do not be guilted into feeling one.

[G-dog]

Serve your goals first - the company has never and will never put your needs first, that is on you.
From my experience - the standards of 2 weeks versus a month notice tend to be hourly versus salaried position standards. So, if you are salaried, then a month may be a more standard notice.

I agree with pbkmaine - though it sounds like maybe your wife is not working over the summer so childcare is covered?

Working through the holidays would be off the table for me. The goal is spending time with your kid, keep that foremost (and any other goal) in mind when negotiating this work transition.

Congratulations! You will soon be free and all this will be a speck in your rear view mirror. Don't spend a lot of time fretting about this, your boss and you will quickly forget all this once you leave!

[Financial.Velociraptor]

You them two weeks.  They owe you the summer.  The rest is negotiable.

[RoseRelish]

Thanks for all of the thoughts and input. I get that I don't "owe" the company anything, but I do feel that I owe my boss. He hired me out of college and has been something of a mentor for me through the years. I've been treated more than fairly, so staying on longer than 2 weeks is sort of a way of paying him back - a personal favor, not any company loyalty.

I'll see how finding a replacement progresses. He has admitted nothing is set and he'd understand if I didn't like the terms he proposed. He gets that staying for any period of time is up to me, so is being very accommodative. Besides the different thoughts on timeline, we're on the same page in terms of me being in the driver's seat.

[Arktinkerer]

I gave them a heads up months before I left.  They didn't get serious about a replacement until I was gone.  I think most companies are the same.  They don't do transitions well at all.

[AlwaysBeenASaver]

When I left my company, they told me they couldn't advertise the position without a requisition #, and they couldn't get a requisition # until I was actually gone and there was an open headcount.

[RoseRelish]

When I left my company, they told me they couldn't advertise the position without a requisition #, and they couldn't get a requisition # until I was actually gone and there was an open headcount.

Isn't it funny how bureaucracy works? At my company, they can't order a computer install until the new employee starts work and has an employee profile. Thus, the first few days are a total waste of time for the new employee. And probably puts a bad taste in their mouth from the get-go.

[LAGuy]

It sounds like you don't mind the idea of part-time for awhile. I'd maneuver them into staying a month full-time, which was your original thinking, and then offer to stay on part-time after that for whatever amount of time you feel you want to stay. They can take it or leave it. My guess is they take it.

[Basenji]

I gave them a heads up months before I left.  They didn't get serious about a replacement until I was gone.  I think most companies are the same.  They don't do transitions well at all.

I've told this story before on some other thread, but...

When DH was in the Navy we would mostly know about 6 months in advance when we were transferring. One time I gave my job what seemed to me the extraordinarily long advance notice of 3 months. I was imagining a smooth turnover with my replacement. Of course, they did nothing to start hiring someone. The day I left my supervisor in front of the whole team semi-jokingly said, "I can't believe you are leaving us in the lurch." I said, "I gave you 3 months notice!" He mumbled stuff. OP just do what works for you, but do try to let go of some of that feeling of obligation so you can make a rational choice.

[Dan_Breakfree]

I also wanted to give the right amount of time as I respected my boss and wanted to leave my organization in good shape. I gave six weeks, and it ended up feeling about right. There were times when people were like - "you're still here?!?" and times I asked myself the same, but as today is my last day... it was a good amount of time.

[FIRE4Science]

This leads into why American society does not accept STEM professional part time jobs as "real" jobs. It's either 40+hours or nothing at all unless you have 30 years of experience when 8+ will suffice for contract office work projects.

People would frown when a 30 year old wants to work 8hrs only 3 days a week as an engineer, lawyer, or doctor. He/She would have to become an entrepreneur and make their own hours in order to avoid all the conflicting mindsets of the norm.

[RoseRelish]

I gave them a heads up months before I left.  They didn't get serious about a replacement until I was gone.  I think most companies are the same.  They don't do transitions well at all.

I've told this story before on some other thread, but...

When DH was in the Navy we would mostly know about 6 months in advance when we were transferring. One time I gave my job what seemed to me the extraordinarily long advance notice of 3 months. I was imagining a smooth turnover with my replacement. Of course, they did nothing to start hiring someone. The day I left my supervisor in front of the whole team semi-jokingly said, "I can't believe you are leaving us in the lurch." I said, "I gave you 3 months notice!" He mumbled stuff. OP just do what works for you, but do try to let go of some of that feeling of obligation so you can make a rational choice.

Thanks for the story. I can definitely see this happening.

[RoseRelish]

This leads into why American society does not accept STEM professional part time jobs as "real" jobs. It's either 40+hours or nothing at all unless you have 30 years of experience when 8+ will suffice for contract office work projects.

People would frown when a 30 year old wants to work 8hrs only 3 days a week as an engineer, lawyer, or doctor. He/She would have to become an entrepreneur and make their own hours in order to avoid all the conflicting mindsets of the norm.

I agree with you about part-time STEM jobs not being in existence for youngish workers. I think we need more seasonality to office life, not the same slog of 40+ hours/week all year, every year. There isn't enough ebb and flow. Maybe that's why FIRE is so attractive to those career types.

For example, my wife is a teacher. And while she sometimes would love to retire, by the end of her summer break she's ready to go back to work. Teaching has that ebb and flow because of the long summer breaks.

[asauer]

Here's what a co-worker did that I thought was genius.  Her boss asked her to stay at half time for 6 months.  She said she would stay full-time for 3 weeks and then switch to "consultant" status for the remainder of time at an hourly rate that was 1.5x what she was making on salary.  This not only allowed her to pick projects, and get a little more $, but it also solidified that 'yes, I am in fact not an employee' to her boss.

[risky4me]

   I gave several months notice as I was involved in projects(project manager) where replacing me mid-project could reflect badly for the company. I did give a specific date, as I know how projects can get delayed, and offered my services as a consultant for any remaining duties after I left.
   I worked for a company that had treated me very well and did not want to cause them any hardship. Another factor was where I live(frozen North) companies often keep their key employees on through the less than busy winter months and it didn't seem fair to hang through the winter and then bail in the spring- so I picked August as a suitable time just as my last project was ending. I feel it worked well for everyone involved and left the door open for future consulting.
Some companies barely deserve the two weeks notice....

[Trudie]

Serve your goals first - the company has never and will never put your needs first, that is on you.
From my experience - the standards of 2 weeks versus a month notice tend to be hourly versus salaried position standards. So, if you are salaried, then a month may be a more standard notice.

I agree with pbkmaine - though it sounds like maybe your wife is not working over the summer so childcare is covered?

Working through the holidays would be off the table for me. The goal is spending time with your kid, keep that foremost (and any other goal) in mind when negotiating this work transition.

Congratulations! You will soon be free and all this will be a speck in your rear view mirror. Don't spend a lot of time fretting about this, your boss and you will quickly forget all this once you leave!

++!!1  Serve your goals first.  And plan some things with your family that you want to do right after a more reasonable quit date.  Then, if they come calling, you can just say, "I have plans made that cannot be changed."  In this way, you're being polite and not going nuclear, but still creating a boundary that needs to be respected.  It's really none of their business whether you're leaving the county, the country, or just staying put in your humble abode.  Polite but firm works best.

[rothnroll]

I would look at it as a blessing. Continue to pad all accounts until wife is ready.

[deborah]

I'd work out with the boss what specific things he wants you to do over the time period. That way you can work together to sort out when is the best time to leave, and it manages expectations.