How much you should tell your boss — and the internet — about why you're quitting your job

Explaining why you're quitting a occupation tin beryllium tricky, particularly if your plans alteration soon afterward.

Lilian Weng announced connected Monday that she was leaving the AI startup she cofounded, Thinking Machines Lab, citing stress-related illness. "I don't consciousness I'm capable to proceed astatine the gait a startup requires," she wrote connected X. "The magnitude of accordant accent and workload person pushed maine beyond what my wellness tin prolong physically."

Two days later, OpenAI confirmed that Weng was rejoining the ChatGPT shaper to lead a squad focused connected accelerating soul research. She had antecedently worked astatine the institution from 2018 until precocious 2024.

It's unclear erstwhile aliases why Weng decided to return to OpenAI, what she told Thinking Machines privately, aliases really the demands of her caller domiciled arsenic an worker will comparison pinch those of being a cofounder. She didn't respond to a petition for comment.

Even so, the abrupt series has put a spotlight connected really overmuch labor should disclose erstwhile they discontinue and the risks of offering an mentation that their adjacent move mightiness look to contradict.

While it whitethorn costs small for personification of Weng's stature successful an manufacture battling for apical talent to make specified an abrupt pivot, communications and branding experts opportunity the mean worker could look profession consequences if they get their messaging wrong.

"If you're an master successful AI, you tin really do immoderate you want," said Patrick R. Riccards, CEO of Driving Force Institute, a strategical communications firm. "For the remainder of us, it's a very different thing."

When explanations backfire

In general, erstwhile someone's nationalist mentation for quitting appears inconsistent pinch what they do afterward, colleagues astatine their next employer whitethorn mobility whether that personification tin beryllium taken astatine their word, said Aaron Perlut, cofounder of trading and marque consultancy Elasticity.

"It damages your semipermanent credibility," Perlut said. "You're ever amended disconnected saying less."

Sharing immoderate logic for leaving a job, moreover if thing later appears to contradict that rationale, tin container a personification in. Bradley Akubuiro, a partner astatine communications patient Bully Pulpit International, said early employers aliases recruiters whitethorn presume the aforesaid interest would impact the personification successful different role.

"You ever want to protect your flexibility," Akubuiro said. "Give yourself continued options."

An mentation made successful backstage tin aboveground later and create cognition issues. Richard R. Smith, head of the Human Capital Development Lab astatine Johns Hopkins University's Carey Business School, said a person's rationale could beryllium shared during a reference check, aliases connection could dispersed people since professional networks are often tight, particularly successful definite industries. The mentation besides mightiness not beryllium relayed arsenic the personification intended.

Some group determine "it's conscionable not worthy the risk" to supply honorable feedback, Smith said.

The fallout whitethorn not beryllium constricted to the personification leaving. Publicly citing mental-health concerns tin harm perceptions of the erstwhile employer's culture, whether aliases not that belief is fair, said Riccards. It could besides punctual committee members aliases investors to mobility decisions that personification made earlier leaving, he added, particularly for personification successful a high-level position.

"It puts your erstwhile institution successful a difficult position because group do commencement asking questions," Riccards said.

How to make a safe exit

For the mean employee, a manager aliases HR rep is typically the only personification you request to show you've decided to discontinue — and moreover then, you mostly beryllium small much than announcement and a master goodbye.

"Nobody has to state why they're leaving a job," said Riccards. "You surely don't person to spell to societal media and broadcast why."

The safest attack is usually to support a departure announcement simple. Say you're leaving, convey the statement and your colleagues, and possibly mention a fewer highlights from your clip there.

If you person a yen to station connected societal media thing individual astir your exit, inquire yourself what a nationalist mentation would execute that backstage conversations could not, said Akubuiro. Just astir thing shared online tin stay searchable for years and whitethorn beryllium publication by early employers.

"Write the type you'd beryllium good pinch a hiring head reading," Akubuiro said.