When you hand in your resignation at your workplace, you come face to face with a plethora of emotions. If you were working in a toxic space, chances are that you cannot wait for your notice period to end and run out of the place and never see it again. However, if you were working in a healthy environment, you feel sad about leaving your colleagues and the organization. Whatever the feeling you might feel, surviving the notice period is difficult.
In order to make the switch between jobs/careers extremely smooth, here are eight things you should not do when you are on your notice period.
1. Treating the notice period like a holiday.
Some organizations follow a 30-day notice period, while some follow the agonizing 90-day rule. Whatever your notice period duration might be, don’t treat it like a holiday. You might think work is off your shoulders, but lazing around at your desk and indulging in personal tasks is unprofessional.
2. Being lackadaisical at your job.
Some professionals start showing a lack of interest or care in their job once they have handed in their papers. The notice period should be the time when you wrap up all the pending assignments you have so that your team can have a smooth progression without you. Complete and hand over all the work that is expected from you. You are still a part of the organization when you are serving the notice period.
3. Bad-mouthing your organization while you are at your job.
You might be working in a toxic space and you might have negative feelings about certain aspects of your organization. But the notice period is not the time when you bad mouth the organization to the current employees. You can have this conversation with the human resource personnel at the exit interview where you can put in your honest review.
4. Bad-mouthing your teammates/colleagues while you are serving your notice period.
Your teammates might refuse to make you a part of important meetings, especially if you are joining a competing organization. However, this does not give you a pass to bad mouth them. However, if they end up othering you at informal events such as lunches and parties, then that’s a red flag.
5. Bragging about your new role.
You might have received the raise and the role you wanted at your new job, but bragging about the next step of your professional journey at your current organization is unethical. It can only disrupt the workflow and the work environment.
6. Leaving the organization without settling the dues.
You might have borrowed something from a colleague, or might have dues with the office cafeteria and stationery person. Make sure to clear all pending dues before you leave the organization. Similarly, you should sort out the reimbursements you are due to receive from accounts without fail.
7. Leaving the organization without returning the company’s assets on the last day.
If you work in an IT company, this will be seen as a violation of IP rules and laws and even a criminal offence. Hand over the company laptop, SIM cards, pen drives, data, and confidential documents on your last day. Get those receipts signed and put them on record. You don’t want to go through this hassle after you have left the organization.
8. Leaving without serving your notice period
Your organization can serve you a legal notice if you leave your job without serving the notice period. Go through all the clauses in your contract and serve your notice period. Don’t do this at any cost as it can jeopardize your career.
Tell us what other tips you would add to this list.
