The title of this blog is to be read in your best flight attendant’s voice, in case you didn’t get it!

They say that “it takes a lifetime to build a reputation, and only a minute to destroy one”.

I was thinking about this today in terms of one’s career reputation.  I think it’s a shame how many people put in a good run at a company, only to see their reputation ruined by the way they leave a company.  It’s senseless to let it happen.

At any company that has 20 employees or more, turnover is a fact of life.  People decide to do different things and voluntarily move on, or their skills or values don’t quite cut it and they are “volunteered” to move on.  The way that you handle yourself while going out the door can make just as much of an impression on your boss and peers as the X number of months or years you invested in the compay beforehand.

I’ve seen people handle this very poorly recently, and I’ve seen people handle it with class and respect recently as well.  I can tell you that the references I will give and the lengths I will go to assisting them with future career moves are now dramatically different for the people mentioned above.

Please watch your reputation as you exit the company.