I just accepted another job a few hours ago and I need to give my boss my 2 weeks notice and I am kindof nervous. He is a very nice man and the bank I work with folks that are so nice it feels like a family. I know they are going to be very dissapointed but the money that I was offered was almost 10K more than I currently earn so I am not turning it down just to “stay friends” with my current co-workers.
So how I can make this smooth and painless? What should I expect?
Help?
People at my place have done it with a letter.
Type out a letter and place it on the boss’ desk.
If he’s there, and asks what it is, say “It’s my notice” and take it from there.
But don’t take my advice as best. I’ve only ever ‘handed in my notice’ once, and it was at a shelf-stacking job, so piss easy (I can’t even remember how I did it. I must have gone into the supervisor’s office and said… “I’m quitting. I’ve been offered a real job”)
You definitely need a letter. And don’t forget to sign it (I did once, it’s embarassing). But I would respectfully vote against the put it on the boss’s desk advice. In the environment you describe, you need to go into the boss’s office (or pseudo-official space) and sit down and explain that you’ve enjoyed working there but you’ve found a better-paying job elsewhere and you can’t stay. When you’ve made clear that you’re resigning, hand over your letter of resignation.
Polite, friendly, above-board. It’s a business: they’ve had people quit before. Don’t worry.
I’ve always heard keep it simple and to the point. I can’t find my last letter right now, but this site seems to be a pretty good guide
http://www.1st-writer.com/Resignation.htm --just delete the parts that aren’t applicable like the offer to train a replacement for the next four weeks.
Thanks guys. He has a customer in his office now. I had typed a very respectful letter and have it typed and ready (and signed…Thanks KneadtoKnow). I am just ready to get it over with and stop feeling bad. I know it is business and they will get by fine with out me I am just way to worried about pleasing folks anyway.
Congratulations on the new job!
This could devolve into a joke thread real easily.
I printed out a letter that mentioned how much I had enjoyed working with everyone, and what a great experience it had been, but it was time for me to move on to something else. When I handed it to my boss and told him I was resigning, he was shocked, and told me I’d be welcome back anytime if I changed my mind. He didn’t counter-offer, or try to argue with me, but just wished me the best and told me keep in touch. (He also gave me glowing references for years after that.)
Then they threw me a big farewell cookout party at the pavilion at the state park. Beer, burgers, and lots of good friends. Best company ever, as far as friendly work environment goes. Sadly, they’re no longer in business.
Don’t just leave a letter on his desk. Talk to him in person. Ask if you can speak to him privately in his office.
Type up your letter first. When you hand it to him explain that you’ve been very happy working there, but unfortunately you’ve received a better offer.
Don’t go into details about why it’s better. If he asks, just say “It’s a better offer” until he stops. (Hopefully he won’t ask.)
If he tries to come up with a way to keep you around, nip it in the bud: “I’m sorry, but I already accepted the other position.” Using a job offer to get a better deal at your current job never turns out well and you don’t want to go down that road even if it seems like you’re “doing him a favor”.
If you have anything personal on your work computer, clean it off before you resign. Some nice companies turn nasty when you say you’re leaving and it’s possible (but not likely) that you’ll be escorted out the door immediately after you submit your resignation.
Don’t feel bad. People change jobs all the time. I’m sure your boss has done this before.
I don’t know where this letter stuff is coming from. Either you are leaving or you aren’t and a letter won’t change that. All you have to do is just tell the boss in whatever setting is most comfortable to you. You are going to have a conversation anyway. I don’t see why someone would go to the trouble of writing a letter so that it can be stored in something…something…somewhere in a place that you don’t work for anymore. A letter could potentially used against you in the future anyway no matter how it is worded. Why would someone do that? A polite chat does it better with no paper trail.
FWIW, every employer I’ve ever had but two have required notice of resignation in writing. Signed, natch. 
The two that didn’t were both paying me off the books.
That’s the strange thing. You say “required”. If you quit, you don’t intend on working there anymore. What would happen if you don’t want to write a letter? Would you have to work both places at the same time until their paperwork requirements were met? They are simply an employer and it is a two-way street. You can quit any time you want and it doesn’t need to meet any of their requirements at all. Bitch-slapping the boss to get the message out is unprofessional but simply telling them about your resignation and your last day is not.
Short term? I would jeopardize my last paycheck for violating terms of my employment. Long term? I would not be able to use that employer as a reference. But what it boils down to is, why wouldn’t I play by the rules? Just because I’m quitting doesn’t mean I’m telling them to f&ck off. I’m just off to greener pastures and may be back one day, so why not keep things agreeable?
Ironically, the place I most would have liked to say “f&ck you” to when I left was the place I forgot to sign my letter of resignation. The real problem I had with leaving that employer was that my boss and I got along fine. In fact she apologized to me when I resigned because SOP there was once you resigned, you were escorted out the door by security. She knew I knew this and was afraid I had counted on it, but she couldn’t run the place without me and had to hold me to the four weeks notice I gave her.
No, no, and enormously no 1000 times over. I work for one of the largest HR consulting firms in the world. Almost all U.S. states have at-will employment. They can fire you when they want and you can quit any time you want. Unless you are in a union, you don’t have a contract and that would bring up lots of different issues. They can’t ever withhold your paycheck for such a thing. Most large employers don’t give official references at all. They just give dates that you worked there. Real references come from former coworkers that you trust and have nothing to do with any letters you typed up at any given time.
Just slip out the back, Jack
Make a new plan, Stan,
Hang your tools up, Julep…
and get yourself gone…
If you’ve worked for state government in one agency, resigned, and want to go back to work for another state agency in the same state, your prospective employer WILL have access to your state personnel file, and the resignation letter can provide written documentation that you didn’t walk out without giving the required two weeks notice.
But scrub your nose well before you get to that new job. 
But great references can come from former bosses at small companies, who don’t bother about the “dates of employment” references. If a company has treated one well, I think the courtesy of a letter of resignation is proper.
When I applied to another job, and they called my former boss for a reference, he said, “Oh, hell, I’d hire her back in a minute. She knows what she’s doing, and she’s loyal.” Sure, he could have just said, “Yes, she was employed here from 1992-1997.” but he didn’t.
If the only issue is money, it seems to me you ought talk to him. He might want to match it to keep you.
You could also tell your boss to go fuck himself if you want. The question is whether you want to do it, not whether you can. What do you gain and what do you lose by doing it?
Most people request references from individuals, not corporations.
You’ve already received the best advice: type up a letter, sign it :D, but talk to your boss in person before handing it over. Don’t burn bridges you don’t need to burn, even if your boss gets defensive and/or takes it personally. Two weeks’ notice is respectful, four weeks is very generous (you may be tasked with training your replacement).
After your resignation, you should make an effort to document everything you’ve done (so you don’t get pestered with calls or annoy your boss by leaving a big stack of unfinished business).