How to Resign (Part 3 of 3)

Hi guys, I am a carpenter and I work

Hi guys,
I am a carpenter and I work for a non-profit.I listen to your show while I work on houses. I love your work (I am trying to think how a high I and C would best be complemented) I have been using things you teach in all aspects of life. Including some friends marital problems. Keep up the good work. I just voted for you. I hope you get rich from this.
Darius Hardwick
CBR Northwest Education Director

Darius (Sorry if that name is

Darius (Sorry if that name is wrong)-

Gee, now THAT's a nice note! Thanks for the kind words.

We really don't want to be rich, we just want to serve folks. If we get to serve and don't become rich, we're fine with that. If we get rich and have to stop serving others, we'll stop what we're doing - that's not us.

And, sure, if we do well WHILE serving... we'll put our heads on our pillows.

Because... it's a PRIVILEGE to serve you.

Mark

Mike - I tried to download today's

Mike -
I tried to download today's show, but I find that the MT podcasts are now blocked by my company's internet filters. Until today, I have never had this problem. I am trying to figure out if you guys have changed anything on your end, or if it is the local Gestapo that I need to talk to. Thanks.
Craig.

Craig, Well, that's not encouraging.

Craig,

Well, that's not encouraging. Yes, we did make a change to the RSS feed. We moved the podcast files served on the RSS feed from our servers to SwitchPod. SwitchPod is a hosting service specifically targeted for the podcasting community. We've reduced our costs significantly and, as far as I can tell, folks have been getting downloads significantly faster.

I think you'll need to talk to the local powers-that-be, but at least we can understand what's changed. For some reason, they're blocking SwitchPod.

The files are still on our main server, so I could walk you through modifying the RSS feed appropriately. But that's probably not a long term solution.

If your IT/network folks won't loosen the reigns for you, let me know and we'll figure something out (even if I have to create a custom RSS feed for you). Heck, you're an old-timer around here ... can't leave YOU hanging! ;-)

Let me know how it goes.

thanks,
Mike

P.S. By the way, I'd love to hear from anyone else out there having similar issues ... this is the first I've heard of this, but if SwitchPod is blocked by more than a couple of companies, I need to look at other alternatives. I'd hate to do it, because they're treating us very well right now and they were a large factor in getting through our bandwidth issues last week. Hopefully this is an isolated case!

As someone that used to run the, er,

As someone that used to run the, er, "Gestapo" within my compamy, a quick viewpoint on:

"I think you’ll need to talk to the local powers-that-be, but at least we can understand what’s changed. For some reason, they’re blocking SwitchPod."

Odds are, because Switchpod hosts "lots of stuff", some of which would be business related, or at least "OK", and some of which might be "less than optimal", it gets blocked. Prior to the change, manager-tools.com provided feeds would have gone through as "obviously OK". (Sorry for all the double-quotes; I am, obviously, taking a guess at the underlying thinking based on my experiences).

It's an element of managing to the lowest common denominator, unfortunately.

Sorry guys, my company here in the UK

Sorry guys, my company here in the UK also blocks the downloading page.

Chris

Mike - Thanks for the reply on this.

Mike -
Thanks for the reply on this. I am going to speak to my friends in IT, I may be getting back with you if I can't get it resolved on this end. On a lighter note, I did download the show at home last night. Haven't listened to it yet, but now I should have all of the tools that I need to resign from my current company if they continue to block your content - which is definitely a deal breaker!
Craig.

Craig, Ha! Now THAT is a dedicated

Craig,

Ha! Now THAT is a dedicated listener!

Well, I've heard from a half-dozen folks about this being an issue ... looks like we'll need to do something. Having you manually downloading the shows each week is obviously not workable.

Unfortunately, after talking to a couple of folks, simply moving to another "media hoster" probably won't work. My guess is that companies aren't blocking SwitchPod because of the content, but rather because of the heavy bandwidth implied by downloads from this media hosting company. My guess is that those companies that block SwitchPod will block Libsyn and other hosting companies focusing on podcasts. Ugh!

Sounds like I'll need to have two feeds; the standard bandwidth-saving (SwitchPod) feed, and a second internally-hosted feed for those of you with issues. I'm waiting on a needed bug fix from a software vendor, but as soon as I have that I'll make the changes and let you know how to get to the new feed. Unfortunately, If I revert to the old feed now, I'll cause worse issues.

Thanks, everyone, for your patience!

regards,
Mike

Mike - Thank you for your attention

Mike -

Thank you for your attention to this issue that seems to be a problem for a relative minority of your, as of yet, FREELOADING customers. You guys continue to blow me away not only with the excellent quality of your product, but also excellent customer service. Outstanding! And by the way, please don't think that I brought this up because I am so audacious as to believe you guys owe me anything. Manual downloading will work for me for as long as it has to.

Craig.

Craig et al- Hey, you're NOT

Craig et al-

Hey, you're NOT freeloading. If a neighbor invites you to a barbecue, and says to bring nothing, eating their burgers and dogs and drinking their beer isn't freeloading. It's just being a good and smart community member! ;-)

We're getting there on subscriptions, too....and casts will always be free.

Mark

Mark/Mike, Thanks for the great

Mark/Mike,

Thanks for the great show. It is very useful to me as I am in the process of resigning from my current managerial post and really think your podcast helps me a lot in resigning professionally.

I have one concern, since I am being posted at a location that I am in charge for a small operation and resigning base on you phase 2, that is to do it face to face, but I rarely see my boss and it is not visible for me to fly to England to tender my resignation.

Would a phone call acceptable in this case, since I am will not be able to see my boss face to face.

Can you kindly advise? Thanks in advance for the reply.

William

William- Yes, phone is fine UNDER

William-

Yes, phone is fine UNDER THOSE CIRCUMSTANCES. [ I use the all caps not for you but for others reading this and trying to drive a truck through that loophole ;-) ].

Script your statement in advance. Make sure you say you're "resigning", versus "leaving" or "heading in a different direction". Bosses hate losing people (if nothing else, it's more work), so they REALLY hate it when the person who's leaving delivers a muddy message and they have to ask a bunch of questions to get to the bottom of things.

Apologize for doing so over the phone.

If you have to leave a voicemail, tell him you have something important to discuss, but don't resign INITIALLY to voicemail. If you haven't heard in 24 hours, leave the same message. On the third call, apologize for doing so but resign to voicemail, and if you haven't heard from him within 12 hours, then AND ONLY THEN send an email resigning and stating your efforts to get in touch with him. (Essentially you're making clear that it was HIS lack of communication that caused you to slide down the slippery slope to the least common denominator.)

Hope this helps... it's a privilege to serve you.

Mark

Hi Mike, Thanks for the great job

Hi Mike,

Thanks for the great job you and Mark are doing with these podcast. They are clear, logical and have the amazing quality of 'S**t, how didn't I think about it myself?!".

A few months ago I received an interesting offer. I was about to sign with them, but approached my boss who's also a friend and told him what's going on. I told him why I'm considering the offer and he asked me to wait before making a final decision. I did, and in the mean time was also asked by his boss to stay.

They addressed my issues about responsibilities and wages and I ended up staying. I'm sure I lost points for this maneuver - and, eventually, I did not receive the job that was promised to me (though I did receive the raise). I'm wondering how to approach them about the promotion I was promised without rocking the boat. Any thought?

Thanks!

Mike

Mark/Mike, Thank you very much for

Mark/Mike,

Thank you very much for your advise concerning how to resign thru the phone, it works really well base on your advise.

I have one problem though, my boss in UK told me not to inform my staffs in china about my resignation until he comes to china in much later timing (2 weeks before my last day) which I don't really think is a good idea, because I think his decision will bring down the morale of the staffs when they hear that I am leaving the co.

In my opinion, my staffs has to be briefed aft I resign and my boss has agreed on it. Given sufficient timing, my staffs will be able to get over the news that I am leaving the company and function properly.

I am very sure abt this as I have been working with my team for a while and I know their culture as well as their behaviour, moreover, they depend a lot on me for bridging the communication as well as negotiating between china and England.

I love working with my staffs, and want to make sure they survive the transitional period.
My dilemmas are:
1. Follow my bosses instruction or go against it and do something that in "my opinion is right?" If I remeber correctly in your podcast you are advising to resign and don't tell anyone and let the boss or HR brake the news.
2. Am I looking too highly on myself about staffs not functioning properly without proper transition period?

Thanks,
William

William- Thank you for the kind

William-

Thank you for the kind words. Glad we've helped so far.

Unfortunately, it would be quite unprofessional for you to simply tell your team after your boss has told you not to. He may very well be aware of information you are not that relates to your situation, or, more likely, HE is also worried that your team will leave unless he has a chance to keep them by speaking directly to them.

You're still a part of the organization, and so your FIRST RESPONSIBILITY is to the organization. That means helping the organization keep your team.

If your team is going to leave because of what a great manager you are, they will leave anyway after you're gone. Until you go, you have to stay professional.

Now, there are a couple of other things you CAN do. First, go to your boss and make your case for why you want to tell them early (as long as you're not doing that so they can leave). Convince him on the merits of the plan. That briefing, to be effective, would need to include a list of actions you will take in the interim to smooth the transition, help keep them, and ensure good operations after you're gone.

Second, come up with a plan for your boss to action if you DON'T get what you want. You do that because you know them so well, and if you care about them, you'll want them to do well after you're gone.

And finally, it's not your place to say, for your team, that they should not stay if you leave, because of what you've done for them. Even if you've done a lot, it's THEIR choice, not yours.

Hope this helps!

Mark

Hi, I discovered your Podcasts six

Hi,

I discovered your Podcasts six months ago thru iTunes, and I wanted to let you know that I find them very interesting and useful.

An additional comment… in other countries it is mandatory to sign a letter of resignation. I live and work in Venezuela and this is a legal requirement here.

Best regards,

Gerardo Fuenmayor
Caracas-Venezuela

Gerardo- Many thanks for the kind

Gerardo-
Many thanks for the kind words, and also for the guidance regarding resignations there. Mike and I are looking forward to hearing more from our international colleagues in the years to come.

It's a privilege to serve you,

Mark

Gents, I stumbled across your

Gents,
I stumbled across your podcasts, and have come a bit of an addict, going back through each of the old podcasts when I have a spare hour or so. But this one proved most helpful of recent, all be it for a tranision rather than a resignation

I was about to make a very successul secondment within my company relocating to a different business. The timing of this however meant I was about to leave my team with no one to hand over to. I followed your steps in creating a pack for the person who's chosen to warm my chair to absorb to make the transition as smooth as possible.

I felt extremely professional when I handed this over to my manager and can now sleep soundly at night knowing that my people will be taken care of and the direction will remain set in my absence.
Thanks for the guidance guys.
Cheers
Vaughan
Perth, Western Australia

Vaughan- Well done you. Glad we

Vaughan-

Well done you. Glad we helped.

It's a privilege to serve you.

Mark

Hi Mark and Mike, Discovered the

Hi Mark and Mike,

Discovered the podcast about three weeks ago... Hence the one-on-ones are starting this week!

However, at the same time an opportunity looks like it could materialise so I listened to your podcast on resigning with interest. In the transition file that you recommend creating, you talked about a 1 page team performance summary which should include: strengths, weaknesses, and what they're working on. I started a draft for a couple of my directs and found that I'm developing bullet point lists. For instance 'excellent project management skills demonstrated during project X'. I'm assuming that where possible these bullet point summary statements should be backed up with evidence - as in my example. What I found was that I was starting to want to write pretty generic statements like 'Needs to improve people / communication skills'. I can back this up with examples e.g. 'Needs to improve communication with other superintendents who are sometimes put off by his brusque manner' or something like that - but it is still a potentially subjective statement. I'm assuming you're answer will be to focus on behaviour and what behaviours may be seen as strengths or weaknesses?

So in summary I'm seeking information on the nature of appropriate comments on strengths and weaknesses for direct reports in the 1 page transition file summary. To be more specific - I know their strengths and weaknesses - but want to make sure I communicate this in the most professional manner possible.

Cheers

Trent

Trent- Well done! Yes, you need

Trent-

Well done! Yes, you need more than just those short bullets, and all it takes is 1-2-3 examples thereof. "Brusque manner" might be:

Told a peer, "No way I'm helping you out." and "Ignored repeated emails, culmintating with ' I don't work for you.'"

Glad we're serving you.

Mark

I love your Podcasts and I want to say

I love your Podcasts and I want to say that I listened to this series over my vacation right before I received an offer letter for a tremendous job opportunity! I am so glad I listened to your series. The 6-week schedule is something I will not be able to manage, I will admit. However, I am already working on my reviews and documenetation for the CEO. Thanks!

Rgol- Thanks for the kind words!

Rgol-

Thanks for the kind words! Glad you're getting value from our work.

Mark

Hi Mark I am sure we've all lived a

Hi Mark

I am sure we've all lived a situation in which a particular direct report suffers from lack of motivation due to normal circumstances (ie peer got promoted, not himself), and tends to go to extremes and even insubordination.

Would be great to have a podcast on how to handle insubordination and make sure your authority is respected and not challenged back unreasonably, because of paralell issues or concerns. In normal circumstances authority has to come naturally through a manager's skills/leadership - but there are extreme cases in which you need more than that...

Thanks.

GVReich- The problem isn't

GVReich-

The problem isn't insubordination so much as it is behaviors that we would characterize that way. Put differently, insubordination is an inference or characterization or conclusion we make, going to their state of mind. Addressing directs' states of mind is a dangerous game and rarely resulting in a happy ending.

The answer is behavioral feedback.

Feedback rules.

Mark

GVReich - insubordination is a

GVReich - insubordination is a wide-ranging subject. Are you talking about someone who challenges your authority on a specific point? I welcome that - it forces me to consider my original argument.
Insubordination in general points to a state of mind ... and the door.

Chris

HI Mark Firstly , I admire Manager

HI Mark

Firstly , I admire Manager tools efforts, the content is invaluable.

You always refer to the behaviors that include , non verbal clues, frowning, raising the eye brows etc.
How about putting up a list of important non-verbal clues and their interpretation?

Anshuman

Anshuman- I've done something

Anshuman-

I've done something similar before, and it wasn't terribly effective. The list is long, and often only slightly different facial expressions - some of which are best viewed as opposed to described - mean very different things in different situations.

Mark

Mike and Mark: I used these three

Mike and Mark:

I used these three podcasts as a basis for my resignation. I am going to be a City Manager in a new community. I have communiated to the Commission that I will have a summary of all my projects to them before I leave, I will write guidelines for the interim city manager and suggestions for the city manager that replaces me. It is actually comforting to see the relief on the faces of the governing body that I am taking that direction.

The difference in the public sector and the private sector is that I gave 60 days notice - it is in my contract. The departure timing is much different that you described in your 'casts. Some times it feels weird to be "still here" doing stuff.

But, as we did in OCS (buffing the floor on the way out the door to the commissioning ceremony), I will be working until the last hour. Actually, the last day includes a Commission meeting and we are working on budget so it will be work until the very end.

I recently registered for the Premium

I recently registered for the Premium content and I am trying to get the Premium content for the "How to resign" Podcast. It does not seem to be available anymore. Can someone please assists. Thanks.

kirkp_3131, The "How to Resign"

kirkp_3131,

The "How to Resign" shownotes are now available for Premium members!

regards,
Mike

resig. went so well, I'm being asked to interview my replacement

Resignation podcasts are golden.  I love having an outline for what can be a difficult/stressful situation like turning in a notice...Best of all it works!  It works so well, that I've been asked to interview my replacement before leaving.  I have initially said yes, but after thinking about it I'm becoming uncomfortable with the idea.  I'm leaving for an awesome opportunity but I also have some very specific reasons for not wanting to stay here that have to do with some integrity related issues of a co worker that management chose to ignore. 

I want the organization to move forward and be successful without me, but I'm not sure that me interviewing my replacement is a good idea...I'd love to hear everyone's thoughts....

Thanks!

Slides and transition document

Hi I am a premium member, but there are no slides or sample transition document that was mentioned in the pod cast.  Currently I can only view the show notes.

Thanks, munropm ... we

Thanks, munropm ... we corrected the problem.

Regards,
Mike

Thanks

Thank you so much.  Thanks for all the great podcasts!