How to Tell Your Boss You're Quitting Your Job
I had been working on my last startup for about a year when I finally decided to go full time. We were generating some revenue, and I had enough savings in the bank from my full time job to keep me afloat for at least 6 months. My partner and I wanted to focus aggressively on sales during that time, which meant that I had to quit my job -- taking sales calls during lunch and before work wasn't going to cut it anymore. I had quit a few jobs before. Once when I decided to leave finance to work in sales, and again when I left my first sales job for an opportunity to run sales for an early stage company going through an accelerator. Both times I had very understanding bosses, making the separation process really easy. This time, I knew it would be different. RELATED: Stay Cool: 7 Tips to Help You Keep Calm Under Pressure I had been in my role for over 2 years, and in that time my title changed 3 times as I got more and more responsibilities. At this point I was managing all of our major client relationships, and was basically the only one in the company that knew how the software product worked. I had a decent relationship with the CEO (my boss), but knew he would be incredibly upset at news of me leaving. In my two years there I saw massive employee turnover, and every time someone quit he would give them a really hard time, in some cases even threatening with lawsuits. That kind of leadership style may have worked for Steve Jobs, but it was debilitating here. If you’re facing a similarly difficult conversation the best way to feel prepared is to: Role Play Through The Conversation With Someone Else For several days I prepared what I was going to say, role playing with my brother to make sure that we thought of every single objection he could throw my way. We recreated this roleplay here as a reference for anyone that has to face a similarly difficult conversation, and highly recommend role playing as a way to practice getting comfortable with what you’re going to say. If you anticipate what might happen, you're much more likely to stay calm when the real discussion comes. Finally, I confronted my boss, and two weeks later I was working full time on my startup! Offer Value And Be As Helpful As Possible I made sure to be incredibly nice throughout the whole conversation, offering as much value as I could. When you can, do give the customary two weeks notice, even if you don't love your boss or company. There's no reason to burn bridges, and if you plan on staying in the industry your boss might easily try to blacklist you if they're well connected (I've seen this happen). If you can't give the two weeks because a new opportunity is fleeting, then you have to do what's best for you. RELATED: 3 Steps to Dealing With a Toxic Boss or Coworker Productively I offered to post a job description for my role, and interview all of the candidates. If we made a hire quickly, I also offered to fully train the new employee, even saying I could stay on as a part-time contractor for a month after (which he took me up on, giving me some extra cash). Lastly, I offered to create documentation to transfer my knowledge of the product to other employees. Research Local Employment Laws and Study Every Contract The CEO also tried to get me to commit to stay for more than two weeks, saying that I would be making things very difficult for him during a busy time for the company. I stood my ground, saying that this wasn't an option. I also clarified that by law, New York state is an At Will state, meaning that he could fire me with no notice, and that I could technically leave with no notice as well. Don’t Feel Pressured To Reveal Information My boss tried to force me to tell him where I was going next. Whether you're going to a new company or starting your own business, you have no obligation to divulge this information. I told him I was moving on to a new role, and that I was not comfortable disclosing this information at this time. He then told me that I had to give him this information to make sure I wasn't breaking the non-compete clause that I signed when I was hired. I ensured him that I re-read all of the original documents that I signed, and that I was in no breach of those contracts. In the end, he tried to force me to sign a separation/termination agreement. For the most part, this is not enforceable (nor is it legal to force someone to sign something when they're leaving). Employers typically do this to cover their bases, and to prevent you from collecting unemployment benefits if you're eligible. It's incredibly important to know rights in a situation like this, so if you're unsure, speak to an employment lawyer first. Understand Your Non-Compete Agreements Obviously if you're starting a company you should never work on your business when you should be working at your full time job since it’s illegal to use company materials and company time to do work that’s not related to your job. It goes without saying that if you're starting a business that's competitive to the company you're leaving, you should not go after the same clients and you must read the non-compete you signed very carefully. Non-competes are notoriously difficult to enforce, but you don't want to be forced to spend a bunch of money on lawyers if your old boss decides to sue you because it's clear that you are a direct competitor. With that said, there's countless examples of startups that are built by domain experts that have been working in their field for years, so this shouldn't necessarily deter you - it's a judgement call. RELATED: 5 Ways to Reduce Occupational Stress and Start Loving Your Job If you didn't sign a non-compete, then you can feel free to build a product that directly competes with the company that you worked with (thank you capitalism). Just make sure you're creating everything yourself from scratch, including the business/customer relationships. This experience taught me that even the most difficult person and situation can be confidently dealt with when you take the time to prepare. There's tremendous power in knowing that you're right, so take the time to understand your rights and remove any possible doubt.
4 Simple Strategies to Help You Get the Most out of Attending a Conference
Want to know a secret? The most important events to attend at a conference don't actually take place during business hours. Conference After Parties are Where Lives are Changed. Hear me out: this is your opportunity to solidify all of the relationships you’ve been building at every panel, talk, and workshop you’ve attended. After a long day of scheduled events, people go to after parties to unwind and relax without the pressure of having to be buttoned up. Sharing a drink and some laughs creates a setting where relationships can be cultivated, and not just stoic business relationships. These informal relationships are much more likely to help each other out in business than random strangers that briefly met in between conference sessions. Still, when you attend a conference with thousands of people it’s not easy to stand out from the noise. If you’re an entrepreneur, you’ve invested significant money to be there, and walking away without meeting some people that could have an impact on your business is simply not an option. Fortunately, if you prepare correctly you will not only get noticed, but will have people approaching you to connect. Can’t make it to the after party? Here are 3 other surefire ways to get the most out of a conference: Give a talk or get on a panel This takes the most amount of effort, but it can have the biggest impact. If you know you’re attending a conference well in advance, submit a pitch to speak at the event, participate in a panel, or run a workshop -- the more attendees, the better. RELATED: Richard Branson’s Smart Strategy for Overcoming the Fear of Public Speaking If you manage to secure a spot to present in front of hundreds of people, you will get recognized everywhere you go for the rest of the conference. If you’re confident and do a great job, people will assume you’re important (which of course you are) and approach you to start a conversation. Conferences often have calls for speakers when they’re organizing the schedule, so keep an eye out for new conferences that might need experts like you. You can even be proactive and e-mail the organizers directly to pitch ideas. Don’t worry about getting accepted as a main speaker -- your only goal is to secure stage time any way you can. Also, speakers typically get to attend the conference for free, potentially saving you thousands of dollars. Leave a lasting impression when you meet someone When you meet someone at a conference, the conversation always starts the same exact way. “What brings you to the conference?” or “What do you do?” Most people don’t pay a lot of attention to how they answer these questions, and even if business cards are exchanged, the conversation is quickly forgotten. Instead of saying what you do, start by saying the most interesting thing about you, or a story that might leave an impression. Do you run a company with an interesting name, like Carey Smith of Big Ass Fans? Then start the conversation by saying: “Well, our customers always told us that we make some big ass fans, so I decided what the heck -- and named the company that.” If you’re at an industry specific event like a data conference, don’t just tell someone you’re a Data Scientist at Seamless.com. Mention something more impactful like how you analyze millions of data inputs every week to feed people all over the world. Summon your inner “teacher’s pet” and sit in front When selecting panels or talks to attend, your decision should be made with only two things in mind -- ‘will I learn something that might change my business,’ and ‘would I benefit from meeting the speaker.’ Speakers and panelists always make themselves available to meet the audience after a session, but the only way to get to them is if you approach them immediately after the event is done. Otherwise, you’ll be stuck waiting in line only to be forgotten after meeting them for a few seconds. RELATED: How Getting Rid of My Fear of Meeting People Helped Me Meet Daymond John Prepare exactly what you’ll say to this person before you come up to speak to them. Your goal should not be to sell them something or to get something out of them. It’s simply to leave some kind of an impression. Tip: ask for their contact information or for a business card before you leave. The next day you can follow up with this person, thanking them for their insight and their time. At this point, the best thing you can do is figure out a way to offer them value to solidify the relationship before asking if they can help you. Following up right away is incredibly important as it shows diligence, respect, and professionalism. You’ll stand out from the rest of the people that they met, and have a higher chance of still being remembered. After all, you did the hard work of approaching someone important, so you might as well try to make something of it. Meeting people in person is still the most effective way to make significant progress in your business and personal life. The relationships you build can pay dividends months and even years down the line simply because people tend to implicitly trust others that they’ve met in person far more than someone that they’ve interacted with online or through email. Investing your time and money into targeted conferences and events is absolutely worth it. Just make sure that you’re prepared to extract all of the value that you can from the experience.
How to Stay Motivated When You Feel Like You're Losing Focus
Motivation is a fickle beast -- at least that’s the relationship that most people have with it. When we’re unmotivated, we feel incredible guilt and search for ways to feel more motivated and inspired to act, without actually getting any work done. It’s a neverending cycle.Before looking for a solution, we must change our relationship with the idea of motivation. Having the expectation that any emotion or state of mind can be sustained indefinitely is inherently flawed. Take focus, for example. Everyone wants to be more focused, but each of us operates a little differently. Some people can dedicate consecutive hours to one specific task, while others find that they’re more productive when working in 30 minute increments, with built-in breaks in between. Your ability to focus is also affected by your physical environment, and the nature of the task at hand. A writer may need to get into a long mental flow, while a sales person may take mental breaks between calls. Each task requires a different level of focus, but the understanding is that sometimes your brain just needs a rest. Similarly, no one can stay motivated forever. Like focus, motivation can wane, and that’s okay. Disassociate guilt from lack of motivation, and start thinking about why you might be in a mental funk.What is motivation?Derived from the word motive, which is the reason that causes someone to act or behave a certain way, motivation is the internal process that guides a person’s behavior towards a goal.How does motivation work?There are two major types of motivation: intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic motivation comes from within and drives a person to behave a certain way simply because it feels good. The behavior itself is internally rewarding. Playing a sport because you genuinely enjoy the activity and the way it makes you feel, is an example of intrinsic motivation because behavior is driven by internal forces and not by an external reward, such as a trophy, medal or praise.Extrinsic motivation, on the other hand, comes from external factors that are outside of you. It involves engaging in a behavior in order to achieve external rewards. Studying for an exam, in order to get a passing grade, is an example of behaviour that is extrinsically motivated because you are seeking to be externally rewarded for your effort with a good grade.One of the most famous theories on motivation, Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, suggests that people are motivated to fulfill their most basic needs before they’re able to meet more complex, higher-level goals. That’s to say he believed humans have an inherent desire to ‘self-actualize’, which means to reach their full potential. But before that can happen, more basic needs need to be met before any more progress can be made.Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is often represented by a pyramid that includes five levels: the most fundamental needs make up the bottom of the pyramid while the top level represents “growth” needs, which lead a person to live up to their full potential. The lower four layers of the hierarchy consist of what Maslow called “deficiency needs”, which include physiological needs, safety, social belonging, self-esteem and finally the highest level is the need for self-fulfillment.The idea is that if “deficiency” needs aren’t fulfilled, we have a tendency to feel anxious and tense, and the deprivation we feel is what motivate us to satisfy these needs.The need for self-actualization, on the other hand, is not driven by a lack of something but rather from our desire to develop and grow as individuals.What’s fully under your control?These are usually the things we think of last. They’re the easiest to change, but they require the most amount of discipline. Are you getting enough sleep? Have you been eating well and exercising consistently? A full eight hours of sleep, a well balanced breakfast, and an hour at the gym can feel like flipping the motivation switch in your brain. We convince ourselves that there must be a better reason for why we feel lazy, but often times there isn’t. Go on a three-mile run right now, and I promise that you’ll feel accomplished and motivated to work. What’s troubling you?If you’re preoccupied with something, you’re likely depleting all of your mental energy. Things like financial issues or relationship problems can put you in a state of tunnel vision where you’re too worried about your problem and blind to actual solutions.You might have a business to run, or a deadline to meet, but if you’re not addressing the things that are weighing heavily on you, your work will suffer. If you’re fighting with your spouse, talk to them and work towards a resolution. If you barely made rent last month, focus on spending less elsewhere or getting a higher paying job. These things must be prioritized and resolved so you can free up your brain to feel motivated again. Find inspiration from othersJeff Bezos, founder of Amazon, keeps a quote on his fridge from Ralph Waldo Emerson: "To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded."This is one way he stays motivated. Getting perspective from others can be just what you need to start working again. For some, this means reading a book full of entrepreneurial stories, or listening to a podcast and watching a video that can plant new ideas into your head. The key with consuming content, however, is to get back to work as soon as you feel inspired to act, capitalizing on the newly found energy. Others find that it’s more helpful to meet and talk to other people. Grab a beer with a friend, or reconnect with a colleague. Just by getting out of the house, you’re taking a step toward action. Someone else might be able to help you connect the dots and get moving again. You can’t always wait for motivation to strike you. Sometimes you just need to be disciplined enough to put in the hours and do the work. Other times, lack of motivation is a symptom of something bigger. Take the time to understand yourself, and avoid looking for shortcuts. Addressing difficult personal problems upfront can have the most lasting impact. Looking for more uplifting content? Check out our article of quotes that will motivate you.
How to Change Your Career (And the Course of Your Life) in 6 Months
After winning the Mr. Universe title, Arnold Schwarzenegger first made millions in masonry and real-estate before turning to acting, and eventually politics. Jessica Alba’s net worth increased more than tenfold after she started The Honest Company and shifted her focus on her business instead of entertainment. Before becoming a bestselling author, John Grisham was a criminal lawyer and served in the House of Representatives. Why changing careers can be the best thing to ever happen to you There are countless examples of notable people who changed their careers multiple times in their lives. This is often fueled by one simple desire -- to do what you love. From an early age, we’re conditioned to think that we should to strive towards a single career path, a convenient label that can encompass all of our interests, expertise, and goals. It’s no wonder many people feel stuck in jobs they don’t like after spending years pigeon-holing themselves into one profession. This is even more prevalent amongst people who have had to invest significant personal time and money in their education, like attending law school or medical school, only to find that the day-to-day job is completely different than they imagined. Growing up, every child is asked the same question. “What do you want to be when you grow up? An astronaut? A gymnast? A teacher? A musician?” Why not all four? How to take the leap and make a career change We all have the ability to change our careers, and set our lives on a completely new track. The process must start with understanding the skills that you need for the career you desire. Success in any job comes down to your ability to effectively solve problems for the people that hire you. If you think you already have the skills necessary to transition to a different career, but are finding it difficult to land interviews or job offers, you’re likely not communicating your value correctly. Simply put, the employer isn’t convinced that you can solve their problems. Start by repackaging your story. What have you done in your previous roles that is especially relevant to the job that you want? Think about how you’ve been able to overcome interesting challenges in the past that might be applicable to your desired role. Let’s say you work in tech and you’re interested in transitioning from sales to product management. Have you ever interacted with the engineers in your company? Maybe you worked directly with a developer to help put together a proposal for a new client, or perhaps you took close inventory of your customer conversations to communicate feature requests for your product. Some of these tasks are directly related to what a product manager might tackle in their day-to-day responsibilities. Rework your story to highlight other areas of your past that might not be directly related to the titles you’ve held. Develop your skills If you’re like most people looking to change their career, you still have to develop additional skills to look attractive to a potential employer. Here’s three things you can do start acquiring those skills incredibly quickly. Self-Study This may sound obvious, but if you’re truly interested in entering a new field, you need to become an expert in the subject. It’s imperative to speak intelligently when you’re talking to someone who works in the industry or role you’re trying to break into, so start consuming as much content as you can. Fortunately, it’s easier than ever to learn about a new field, from video interviews, to podcasts, ebooks, free articles, and even entire online courses. Of course while you might get to a point where you sound like you know what you’re talking about, nothing is more effective than hands on experience. So, to really acquire a new skill you must: Create something yourself This is by far the fastest way to learn something new, potentially accelerating your education by years. Most importantly, when you make something yourself you’re no longer seen as just an employee, but as a creator. You become perceived as someone who knows how to take initiative and build something out of nothing. Let’s say you’ve been working in PR for five years, but realized that you actually want to work in marketing. Marketers need to be good at identifying an audience, driving initial interest, and creating engagement. Leveraging your background in PR, you can easily start a new blog or online publication around a topic that interests you. Over the next few months, focus on building your little brand. This means driving traffic, subscribers, and content shares. When you create something yourself, something incredible happens. Employers will not care if you only spent a few months building your brand -- they’ll only be interested in how you achieved your results, and if you can do the same for them. This is why spending just one year building something yourself is often seen as equivalent to several years of experience working for somebody else. Freelance Another way to quickly gain new experience is by taking on freelance gigs. The goal isn’t to make a lot of money on the side (though it could happen), but you can compete on price (based on your lack of experience) by charging less than your competition. Make an account on UpWork or Fiverr and start bidding on projects that require the skills that you need to acquire. Each new gig is a new line item you can put on your resume, and new experience you can reference in your future interviews. The fact is, our lives are not defined by one job, or even one success but rather a collection of experiences that help us become more well-rounded individuals while having an impact on other people's lives. If you truly want to do something else with your life, no-one can stop you from just doing it.
