Have you ever resigned from a job, without having another one lined up?

In My Humble Opinion (IMHO)
#1

Great thread from 2010 here, that I have read through probably a dozen times.

Just wondered if anyone has done this in the last couple of years (I really don’t know if there’s much of a difference in “the economy” between July 2010 and now - whatever that’s worth).

My situation - early 40’s, office drone job (that pays ok - it’s not what I would LOVE to do, but I’m pretty good at it, so my next job will likely be in the same line of work). But at my current place of employment, it’s nothing but nonstop hostility from the woman I work for. There is no training and development whatsoever, because she is extremely “territorial” about her work (probably because a couple of us could likely do her job better than her, if she ever showed us what she does).

We all think she is paranoid that everyone is “out to get rid of her”, so she’s always the first one to distribute the blame when something goes wrong (even if it was her fault), or the first to take credit when something goes right (even if she wasn’t even involved).

I’ve gotten to where I almost can’t stand it anymore. I’m contemplating just giving “one month’s notice”, making it clear that I’ll still consider this job “priority # 1” while I’m there, but in the meantime I won’t be making it a secret that I’ll be off interviewing from time to time (maybe once or twice a week, for an hour or two each time).

If I don’t find anything in the next month, then I’ll gladly look forward to walking out, four Fridays from now; then taking a couple weeks off, and then making “finding my next job” a full-time ‘job’.

Couple of things that I’m pondering though:

I wonder if they hired my replacement in that one-month window, presumably they could just say “get your shit, your last day is today”?

And secondly, I wonder - if it came to being without a job for a month or so - if just saying on your resume’ that you are “currently employed” would be the worst thing in the world (to prevent having to explain why you’d up and quit without having a new job)? Granted, I wouldn’t still be trying to pull this 3 - 4 months down the road… but one month? I’d likely consider it.

Thanks for any input / personal experiences.

#2

Nope. I’ve had 9 paid jobs and was riffed once but started work the next day 125 miles away.

#3

Only once, and it was the scariest thing I’ve ever done.

It was partly because of my work situation, and partly because of my living situation.

I was sharing a house with about 5 other people (it varied) and by the time I left my job, I had been the only one WITH a job for about half a year - therefore, the only one contributing to rent et al for half a year.

I was also horribly overworked as a requirement of the job (about 80 hours/week) and not paid for my time, and there didn’t seem to be any chance of remedying that. (Yay right to work states!)
So - I gave 2 months notice to my roommates and to my boss, upped and quit, and moved to another city with absolutely no job prospects. I was terrified, but I felt like it was either that or live in wage slavery forever while supporting my slack-ass roomies.

Fortunately, I found a job in my desired profession within about 2 months, so I never had to worry about the gap too much - it was too little to really matter in the grand scheme of my working history. Still, even if I hadn’t - I decided it was worth it to escape.

#4

I’ve twice left jobs and moved country with no job on offer on arrival - each time it took 2 months or so to find a decent job, although i could have found something earlier if I had been less picky. But, that was 5-7 years ago, and a different economic environment. I was also single, with no debt. I think with a family and a mortgage now, I’d not be so cavalier, although we are considering another country move to be closer to family. It will be much more secured (at least one of us having a job offer before we move) if we do it though.

#5

At the beginning of this month, I moved my family from Vancouver, BC to a small city in Central Alberta - to be closer to family.

We’re both looking for new jobs. I am a lot less freaked out about this now than before - the economy and cost of living is so much better here - the 55% percent that employment insurance pays is enough until the ship comes in, and the interviews I’ve had so far have been encouraging.

Salaries are higher here, and everything is cheaper. Housing, groceries, everything. There’s no provincial sales tax, the provincial portion of income tax is lower, retail prices are lower, fuel is (duh) lower, medical services plan is lower, family benefit is higher.

It’s weird, but jobless with two kids, I feel more optimistic than I have in ages - once things settle down, it’ll be the end of busting my hump just to get by. We looked at townhouse last week that had three bedrooms, washer, dryer, dishwasher, a rec-room/playroom, huge kitchen, etc - spread out over three levels - and the rent was cheaper than we paid for <700 square feet in Vancouver, with no extra appliances.

#6

Yeah, less than two months ago I quit my job - the job that took me eight months to find. My boss was a horrible, controlling person and I felt like my job was actively harmful toward people in need than actually helping them. And I had little interest in what I was doing -it in no way was helping my career. One day she cornered me, demanding to know if I was looking for another job, and I basically told her, I wasn’t before but I am now. It quickly went downhill from there.

So far I don’t regret it for a second. I still seethe with anger whenever I think of that awful job. And at the moment, I am a heartbeat away from getting my dream job - I find out today.

That’s actually not even the first time I walked out on a job. Years ago, I worked at a cafe at a Middle Eastern restaurant (with the best food in the woooorld.) The boss was a sexist asshole who let his 9 year old children play with the cash register at their leisure and then blamed me for any discrepancy. He kept telling me he would take it out of my paycheck. He blamed me for everything. If there was a hair in someone’s food, it was my fault. I was the fucking cashier! I watched him illegally descriminate against job candidates because they were men and “customers like to see women serving them.” He was a total asshole, and incredibly sexist. One day I just went home after my shift and never came back.

Don’t regret that either.

#7

I’ve done it twice (once on good terms, just fed up with what I was doing, once on not so good terms). Luckily, I’m in a profession where I can always freelance for a bit while I work out what to do, so it was never that scary.

I’m currently moving from working freelance to setting up a company with a former colleague and that’s MUCH scarier.

#8

I was always able to find a job in a heartbeat, I got laid off Sept 1, 2011 and nothing.

I must say I can get low level jobs. I live in Chicago and people seem to think there are no jobs, but there are lots of them. The thing is they are all between $8.25 (minimum in IL) and $10/hr and they are one or two days a week.

So currently I work about 28-50 hours in a given week at three jobs. And only one of those part time jobs has lasted since Sept. That’s now up to one shift for 12-16 hours a day.

The whole job attitude has change, and there is definitely discrimination against old people. I’ve heard all sorts of supervisors on my part time jobs I’ve had say this, they don’t like old people or young people.

#9

Yes. But that was a long time ago in a land far, far away. In these modern times it would be extremely risky.

#10

Sort of. I’ve been let go from a job and found a new one a few months later.

I did quit a job while I was in school and didn’t look for a new one until I graduated. But that job I hadn’t been paid in about five months, among other problems.

#11

Yep. My partner and I moved from central Ohio to LA with no jobs set up into an apartment we had never seen.

#12

Yup. Best thing I ever did. Quit like two days before Christmas back in the late 90’s. Coming home crying every day just wasn’t working for me. I was lucky to have my boyfriend (now husband) support me in the deicsion.

#13

I’ve done it twice. The first time was in 2011. I was working as a communications manager at a nonprofit. My boss was wonderful, but the job was a terrible fit for me. I gave a month’s notice, had my last day, and occasionally volunteered for some small projects (this was at a nonprofit) while I was voluntarily unemployed for three months. I started getting sick of using my savings to pay for everything, so I started applying for jobs and took a temp receptionist position at a big legal services company. That turned into a permanent position, which I accepted although I had no intention of staying very long.

When I bought a house on the other side of town, the commute made me want to die, so I gave two weeks’ notice without having anything else lined up. I applied for a few jobs during those two weeks. I ended up getting one of them (an administrative assistant at a foundation) and only being unemployed for three weeks.

So, it’s possible. I find the worst thing about it to be explaining yourself to other people who think you’re nuts. “You quit and you don’t have anything else lined up? I could never do that!” Well, I think you’re crazy for being OK with your two-hour daily commute. To each her own. I highly prioritize saving enough money to be able to be jobless for a few months because I never want to feel trapped at a job.

#14

I went to Princeton today with a friend, and as we strolled through the campus with all these young, intelligent kids all I could think was, “You poor fuckers. You’re being scammed so hard.”

#15

I took an early retirement from a very stressful peace officer position 4 years ago, when it became clear that a (non-service connected) back injury would prevent me from being able to effectively do my job. My employer offered me a position as a clerk at 1/3 the pay (basically the same entry level job I had 30 years prior to this) but I declined it. I had no plans or offers for other employment. I was eligible for a partial pension and was old enough to begin to draw SS, so that’s what I did.

#16

I left the active duty army with nothing lined up. But I was planning to go to school full time so that probably doesn’t count.

#17

Yep. But I had a pension and social security coming in one month after, and the job paid monthly anyway.

#18

I always end up doing this, haha. The last time was last summer (quit at a full-time desk job I couldn’t tolerate anymore, got hired as a cheesemonger, where I am still working, usually happily). Keeping in mind: I work mostly service jobs, so there’s always demand and nearby (I also live in Philadelphia so there are literally millions of potential jobs within an hour’s travel). And I have lots of experience in what I apply for at this point, and interview well. There have only been three times I’ve applied somewhere and not ended up hired.

#19

Well, look at it this way- if you can;t find a job while you’re employed, and thus seen as a more valuable commodity, how do you think you can find when when you have quit a job? And telling them why, absent a criminal arrest for your employer, will not make you sound good, no matter how true.

Update your resume, and job hunt like mad. Post on Monster, etc. Work LinkedIn like a madman. Hire a pro to re-do your resume.

#20

Yes, I did quit my job just recently with no new job in hand, but I’m leaving the state and already interviewing there so I don’t think the wait will be any longer than I want it to be. I really needed a break anyway.

Keep in mind that I had planned this for more than a year. I brown bagged lunch every single day, bought basically nothing, and reduced my regular expenses to a very small monthly nut. Plus I have no dependents and $0 debt.

To my coworkers it probably looked like I just lost my mind and quit in a huff, but my immediate supervisor knew about my plans all along and supported them, in fact she gave notice herself on my last day.

Some days I’m freaking out and some days I know this is the best thing I’ve ever done for myself. Time will tell I guess, but either way I’m glad I did it.