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I’ll never forget the day I quit my job to pursue my startup full time.
My manager’s office was two floors above mine. The morning I decided to give my notice, I took the stairs. Turns out, two floors is a lot of time to think. Was I making a mistake? Had I lost my mind? My legs felt leaden as I climbed, and by the time I reached the top, my heart was pounding in my chest — and not just because of the stairs.
Making the leap into entrepreneurship will never not be scary. But my manager didn’t give me a hard time about the fact that I was leaving. He asked where I was going, and when I told him about my plans to build my own product, he didn’t sulk, get angry or try to talk me out of it. Quite the opposite: He was excited for me. We shook hands, he wished me luck and he told me I was welcome back any time.
No leader ever wants a good employee to quit. But the truth is, people grow. Their goals change. And if you’ve built the kind of team you’re proud of, you can’t be surprised when someone on it starts to dream bigger. What matters most is how you respond when that moment comes.
That conversation with my manager stuck with me — not just because it gave me the confidence to take a leap, but because it modeled the kind of leader I wanted to be. Years later, when employees started leaving my company, I remembered his reaction. And I made a decision: I would always treat departures with respect, encouragement and an open door.
Because the way you say goodbye says everything about your culture.
Related: What You Should Do If a Valuable Employee Decides to Quit
How you part ways matters
Founders often see employee departures as threats or betrayals — especially in the early days, when every hire feels critical and every exit feels personal. But that mindset is short-sighted and, frankly, unsustainable.
The truth is, people will leave. Sometimes it’s for a better opportunity. Sometimes it’s for personal reasons. Sometimes they’re just ready for something new. And that’s okay. When I lose a valued employee, I always refer to the wisdom of Don Miguel Ruiz’s The Four Agreements, which I recommend everyone read. In it, Ruiz argues for the value of not taking anything personally: “Nothing other people do is because of you,” he writes. “When we take something personally, we make the assumption that they know what is in our world, and we try to impose our world on their world.”
The opposite of this, which I don’t at all recommend, is burning a bridge out of pride or frustration.
The way you treat someone on their way out sends a clear message to the rest of your team. If you respond with resentment or coldness, you create an atmosphere of fear — one where people are afraid to be honest about their goals, or worse, feel guilty for growing. But if you react with support and kindness, you reinforce a culture of trust, respect and long-term thinking.
Your alumni — yes, alumni — are part of your company’s extended story. They may refer others, return someday or speak publicly about their time with you. That makes their exit just as important as their arrival.
Related: How to Quit Your Job With Confidence and Go All In on Your Side Hustle
Leading with a growth mindset
Like many aspects of leadership, your mindset matters.
When someone gives notice, respond with curiosity. Ask what they’re excited about — not to challenge their decision, but to understand it. What are they hoping to learn or experience next? These conversations can be enlightening. Personally, they remind me of the ambition and drive that led me to start my own company, and they can offer valuable insights into what motivated employees want from their next chapter.
One thing I’ve learned from running my company for so long is that what looks like a closed door often isn’t. Many of the people who’ve left Jotform have come back, often armed with new skills and expertise that they picked up during their time away. These are called “boomerang employees,” writes Harvard Business Review’s Rebecca Zucker, and they are a critical part of the talent pipeline, both as potential returnees and as ambassadors for future hires: According to Gallup, employees who have a positive exit experience are 2.9 times more likely to recommend their organization to others.
This sort of long-term thinking is the hallmark of a growth mindset. It means believing that careers evolve, people develop and relationships don’t have to end just because a job does. It means choosing encouragement over resentment, curiosity over control.
And most importantly, it means seeing every departure not as a loss, but as a sign that you’re hiring and leading the kind of people who are always striving for more. That’s something to be proud of.
I’ll never forget the day I quit my job to pursue my startup full time.
My manager’s office was two floors above mine. The morning I decided to give my notice, I took the stairs. Turns out, two floors is a lot of time to think. Was I making a mistake? Had I lost my mind? My legs felt leaden as I climbed, and by the time I reached the top, my heart was pounding in my chest — and not just because of the stairs.
Making the leap into entrepreneurship will never not be scary. But my manager didn’t give me a hard time about the fact that I was leaving. He asked where I was going, and when I told him about my plans to build my own product, he didn’t sulk, get angry or try to talk me out of it. Quite the opposite: He was excited for me. We shook hands, he wished me luck and he told me I was welcome back any time.
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