Parting is such sweet sorrow

The saga continued as I submitted my resignation circa 2 weeks ago. In my professional career I have only worked for one company. Although I have worked in many locations around the world, I have never gone through the process of submitting a resignation and saying farewell to years of accomplishments, relationships and friends. In the process, I am assimilating quite a lot of information on how others view me. For instance, in contrast to the rebellious, under-appreciated, ‘intrapreneur’ that I envisioned myself to be, I was instead perceived as the flag waving, pro-company, gung-ho activist.

In the past couple weeks, I have found myself becoming a bored, brain-dead cyber-loafer. Thus, in an attempt to rejuvenate my lazy neurons, I embarked on an ambitious project outside of my portfolio. I suddenly realize that I am vain. I want to leave that last accomplishment to safeguard my legacy. I think I can relate to President Reagan and President Clinton, in their leadership terms. Seven years of going against the grain, then that final sprint to meticulously polish the image.

The whole reaction in the office took three stages. At first it was like someone died. Everyone stopped by my office to offer congratulations or condolences, depending on whether you believed their words or their faces. Then, once the initial shock dissipated, I was suddenly invited to everyone's house for dinner, cocktails and other intimate gatherings. The masses were baffled and demanded answers. I made it clear to everyone that I was quite happy but I needed to invest in my own development to pursue divergent long-term goals from those of the company. So, after being stuffed with food, drink, cigars or combinations of the three, the interrogations began. So...what did you do to get into Wharton? Did you write GMAT? What was your score? Why don't you do an on-line MBA? (you get the idea). Finally, the sarcasm started to ooze from beneath the civility. For example, during our weekly steering committee meetings, there was an instance when I naively made the mistake of articulating a few ideas in usual fashion, only to be greeted with something like: "Well Mr. MBA will show us the way".

However, on the bright side, there are the few who seem genuinely happy for me. This group is making my last month enjoyable. They range from junior engineers who I believe see a path to follow, to senior managers who seem to be either brimming with pride from a self-realized protégé, or living vicariously in the excitement of a new adventure. Finally, to wrap things up, I have a booze-gushing farewell party, many nights of boxing my junk, and an exit interview to look forward to.

“So we finally found it…the rainbow connection...the lovers, the haters, and me”