You are here in this article for one obvious reason: you want to resign from your job and you need to write a resignation letter in order to formally do so.
You have come to the right place because, in this article, we are going to provide you thirty examples of resignation letters that you can refer to, as well as tips and guidelines on how to write one, when you will be already writing your own resignation letter. Unfortunately, if you are having second thoughts about resigning from your job, this article cannot help you in your decision making. However, if you have already made up your mind, this article can help you in getting through the process of resignation because we have also provided you some do’s and don’ts and advantages and disadvantages of resigning from your job.
If you have already made up your mind in resigning from your job, sending a resignation letter is a protocol that you should always follow whatever your reasons for resigning may be. A resignation letter is a formal letter that informs and advises your employer, the Human Resources department, your superiors, and your fellow employees that you are leaving or quitting your job. Your resignation letter could also act as the official notice of your voluntary resignation from your current employment with the company. You may also see Examples of Writing a Board Resignation Letters.
Sending a resignation letter to your employer means that you are respecting him or her and the job that you are quitting even if you are the one who is resigning. Sending one could also mean that you are quitting your job with grace and not doing the easy way out by not sending one and just leave your job like nothing happened. It gives you a final good impression that even if you are the one who is quitting, it shows that you have maintained professionalism. You may also see Resignation Letter Examples.
Here are some things that you should always keep in mind when you would already be drafting your resignation letter
1. Make sure to always include the specific date of your departure. Make sure you are not vague about your resignation and do not hand in one if you are still indecisive about your departure. Being vague about your resignation for this will cause a lot of confusion in the part of the administration or your employer. Remember that with your departure, they will have to look for someone who can take your place, if you will be vague about your resignation, they will get confused between opening or putting of job applications. You may also see Examples on How to Write Retirement Resignation Letter.
2. If you have no idea what are the resignation norms or policies of the job you are going to resign from, make sure that you take some time in researching all those. There could be policies such as giving adequate and proper notice, training the staff who will be assuming your position, and your number of days to render before officially resigning. Even if your employer would ask you to leave immediately or that you don’t have to train the staff who will be replacing you, make sure you would still offer some help and create a final impression as a professional. But if there are some cases wherein you could not anymore train the staff who will be assuming your position, make sure that you inform your employer about this. You may also see 9+ Official Resignation Letter Examples – PDF.
3. One of the reasons for your resignation could be about your employer and even if he or she was the most incompetent or negative boss you’ve ever had, make sure you should never include anything that is negative about him or her in your resignation letter. Remember that your employer or even your supervisor would have to give you a recommendation for your future employment and his or her opinion could make or break the impression to your future employer of you. Bottom line: always make sure that you are leaving on good terms as much as possible with your supervisor not because you will need his or her recommendation anytime soon but it can just be a sign of respect and an act of being a professional. You may also see Temporary Job Resignation Letter Examples.
4. Keep in mind that your resignation letter is one of the last impression you will make before leaving the company that is why you also have to make sure that you do not indicate your dissatisfaction. You will be perceived as someone who has an attitude problem or other assumptions; do not end your employment by making your own self seem like a good riddance. Creating a negative tone in your resignation letter would not do anything good to you. If you are indeed dissatisfied, you can write in a way that would not make you seem like someone who has to be pleased. You can say your new job as a challenge for you to become an improved individual or how your career advancement can help you grow as an individual. You may also see 19+ Simple Resignation Letter Examples – PDF, Word.
5. One of the reasons for your resignation could be the pay but make sure you would not include that in your resignation letter. Have the decency by not mentioning that you are resigning because you have found a job that can give you a bigger pay. Another possible reason that you are leaving is because of your co-workers, superiors and/ or subordinates. Aside from having a best last impression to your employers, you must also strive to have a good last impression among your co-workers. You should even consider informing them regarding your resignation and expressing gratitude for all the time that you have spent with them. You may also see Examples on How to Write a Relocation Resignation Letter.
6. Make sure that you make use of your resignation letter in expressing your gratitude to your employer and the organization in general. Even if you are leaving because of the negative things, for sure there were also sometimes when things at work are positive and some of it is even one of your good memories. Ending on a negative note will also make you look negative to the people that will be left behind. No matter how bad things might be that is why you are resigning, ensure that you have acknowledged the good one. You may also see Examples of Writing an Acknowledgement of Resignation Letter.
7. Despite the aforementioned thing are encouraging you to only speak of positive things, do not be afraid to express the negative ones because too much positivity will make you look insincere and fake. But even if you would, you can always construct it in a respectful and decent manner; there is definitely no need for you to be harsh in delivering negative statements. Do not be sarcastic or offensive; for sure, you already know the difference between being disrespectful and professional. Even if you were disrespectful, it does not warrant you to become one as well. Be the bigger person instead. You may also see Writing a Heartfelt Resignation Letters.
8. One way of showing professionalism is by proofreading your resignation letter as many times as possible. When you proofread, you have to make sure that you were able to avoid spelling mistakes and grammatical errors. Also, ask someone to check your resignation letter before you would hand it because you can be staring and reading it for a long time now and you could easily miss your mistakes and errors; a fresh pair of eyes can help in checking errors and mistakes. Again, your resignation letter is your last chance to create the best last impression; checking your spelling and grammar is one of the best ways to do so. You may also see How to Write a Job Resignation Letter.
Finally made up your mind to resign from your job? Here are the things that you should and should not do when resigning from your job.
Even if the Human Resources department would also do their part in clearing whatever files you have left on the company laptop or computer, have the initiative to delete all of your files sins the laptop or computer. Start with deleting personal files, email messages, photos, documents, and etc.
Giving your employer two weeks notice regarding your resignation is a standard practice for all companies when an employee would want to resign. If there are instances that require you to leave earlier, you can always ask appropriately instead of choosing the easy way out by just neglecting it altogether.
Handing formal resignation letter has always been a protocol when resigning. It shows that even if you are quitting your job, you are still showing that you are a professional individual who would not run away from his or her responsibilities without formality and grace. Writing resignation letters shouldn’t be too hard. Also, include and mention in your resignation letter that you are willing to train the staff that is going to replace you.
There are employee benefits, conversion of unused vacation and sick pay, and salary you are entitled to when you are to resign. Make sure you know what these are before leaving. It is the company’s responsibility and if you have noticed that the company is inconsistent with their policies regarding this matter, you can do your part by reminding them of their responsibilities.
Even if you loathe your job, your boss, and the company, in general, do not even dare put it into your resignation letter unless you are planning to live the unemployed life for a lifetime. Anything you write will back and haunt you even if a lot of years will pass by after you hand it in. As what people have said; regrets are always found at the end
There is no place for negativity anywhere, even in your resignation. Leave on good terms and do not leave with a bad blood with your employers, your fellow employees, and the company in general. Negativity will reap no good results so even if you are leaving due to an unfortunate reason, you should stop the urge of ranting about it.
Rubbing your new job on the faces of your fellow employees is a big no-no. There is seriously no point in doing so and it is not an act of a professional. No matter how proud you are of your new job and that you have no intention whatsoever of bragging, it would still come off as bragging to your fellow employees. It’s better to keep your mouth shut about it or just be humble when asked regarding your resignation.
Even if you are leaving because of unfortunate reasons, make sure you would still have the heart to express your gratitude to your employer and fellow employees. Despite everything, your experience in that company has benefited you in a way that you have learned both the good and the bad things that has helped you grow into the becoming the better version of you.
You may already be acquainted with your boss but when it comes to writing your resignation letter, you have to ditch the too-friendly vibe and have a professional tone with your resignation letter. But do not be too stiff either; just find the balance between friendliness and formality.
Many employees would be too timid to say their honest intentions to their employer when writing their resignation letters. If you have already decided that you are leaving the job, you should clarify that to your employer in your resignation and indicate a specific and obvious statement about your intention to resign from your job.
Of course, there is no need for you to go into elaborate details of the reasons why you are resigning. However, it is a good gesture if you would inform your employer about your reason for leaving. Aside from formality, it can also help them in their assessment or evaluation of their company performance such as knowing the factors why employees are resigning; your resignation letter can help them assess. It can also help in making the process of your resignation letter a smooth one. Your employer also has every right to know why you are resigning.
It is encouraged that you should mention in your resignation letter that you are willing to assist the staff who is going to replace you. This is important especially if you previously held a crucial position in the company. If your decision to resign is already fixed, you might want to consider that it is imperative for you to train the staff who will be filling your shoes. Training the staff who will fill in your job position is important because this helps in having a smooth transition and this will also avoid any instances wherein the company would fall back behind in its usual performance.
Even if one of the reasons that you are resigning is due to some unfortunate and unpleasant experiences, resist the urge to whine and rant on your resignation letter. You can always make all those experiences into a positive perspective. Despite it all, you still had some positive experiences and that the negative ones have helped you become a better person and that you are growing into a developed individually.
Conciseness or keeping things simple is very important when it comes to writing and constructing your resignation letter. Do not dilly dally; directly state your point and do not even go on talking or bragging about your new job or how you dislike the job that you are going to resign from. Most resignation letter are noot more than a page.
A resignation letter is also a formal letter so you have to take note of the format. You have to take note of the font style, font color, and font size. For the font style, it is suggested that you should use the traditional fonts such as Times New Roman, Arial, or Calibri. For the font color, you should use color black. For the font size, it should not go below 10 points or 12 points.
Another thing you should mind when it comes to the format s the spacing. Your resignation letter should be single spaced, meaning there is only one space between each paragraph. Plus, there should be a margin of 1 inch on all sides of your paper.
If you want to be taken seriously, always make sure that you would proofread and check your resignation letter for possible grammatical mistakes and spelling errors. Ask someone to review it for you. If you hand an unchecked and unedited resignation letter, it goes to show that you are not professional enough to do it. Rememer that resignation letters are still formal letters so always be sure to edit it before you would sent it.
The header of your resignation letter should contain both of yours and your employer’s contact information which consists of the name, title, company name, address, phone number, email and these are then followed by the date that you are going to send the letter. Make sure that the contact information is accurate and complete.
This is the part where you would address the resignation letter to your employer. Make sure that you are using his or her formal title such as Dr. for a doctor, Engr. for an engineer, Prof. for a professor, Lt. for a lieutenant among others. If non-applicable, address him or with Mr. or Miss, Ms., or Mrs.
It is suggested that the body of the letter consists of three paragraphs.
In the body of the letter, this is where you would be stating your decision to resign and also include the date when you would want your resignation to be effective. Also, mention and include how much notice you are required to give your manager.
You can include your reasons why you are leaving such as starting a new career, going back to school, to travel, or just taking the time off. But worry not because this is not really necessary. Do not state what you dislike about the job you are resigning from. You could also mention that you are willing to assist the staff who is going to take your place once you will officially be resigning. However, if you are under a circumstance wherein you can no longer offer your assistance, include it in your resignation letter.
It also in the body of your resignation letter wherein you would want to ask a letter of reference from your employer.
Lastly, it is in the body of your resignation letter that you will be expressing your sincere gratitude to your employer for all the experiences you had in the company.
Use the usual closing remarks that are kind and formal such as:
Also, make sure to end it with a comma.
Do not forget to sign this part of your resignation letter as most people would usually forget signing this part. Your signature should be handwritten and do not just insert a digital copy of your signature. After your signature is where your full name places and keep in mind that it should be written in full block or in capital and bold letters.
Example of the Recommended Organization Above
Here the look of the recommended organization of a resignation letter that is stated above. Also, take note of the recommended spacing. Take note that this letter comes in a full block format, meaning it does not have any indention.
[Your contact information:
name, address
contact number, email]
(insert 2 spaces)
[Date]
(insert 1 space)
[Employer’s contact information:
name, title, company name,
address, phone number, email]
(insert 2 spaces)
Dear [Your Boss’ Name],
(insert 1 space)
Please do accept this resignation letter as formal notification that I am resigning from my position as [job position] with [company name]. My last day working in the company will be on [the date of your last day].
(insert 1 space)
Next, it’s always a good idea to thank your employer for the opportunity, describing some of the key things you’ve enjoyed and learned on the job. And yes, this is true even if you’re thrilled to be leaving. Remember—you may need these people for a reference down the line, and leaving things on a good note will leave a lasting (positive) impression.
(insert 1 space)
I express my deepest gratitude for giving me the opportunity to work in this position for the past [number of years working on the job role]. I greatly appreciate the opportunities and all the experiences I had while working in the company. I have also learned a lot from my job position and all of this learning are already a part of me and will play a great factor throughout my life particularly on the aspect of my career.
(insert 1 space)
During the weeks I’m going to render before leaving, I’ll do what I can do in wrapping up all of my responsibilities and I’ll also willingly train the staff who is going to replace me. Please do let me know if I can be of help during the transition.
(insert 1 space)
I wish the company success in all its endeavors.
(insert 2 spaces)
Sincerely,
(insert 2 spaces)
[Your signature]
[Your full name in full block letters]
We hope that you will be able to come up with a resignation letter that ends your affiliation with your current job through the guides and tips that we have provided for you in this article.