I quit work without notice a few weeks back. I simply did. It was a long time coming.
I’m not going to mention exactly where I was working (hint: it’s one of the largest IT companies in the world).
To clear things up before I get started, I didn’t join this organization by choice. I never would have. The company I used to work for previously was acquired; that’s how I ended up inside this big fish.
What compelled me to quit? It was a mix of both personal and professional reasons.
Personally, I was dead bored with the work I was doing. I used to write copy for websites of small and medium businesses in the US.
Writing content for 1-2 businesses everyday was pretty usual; sometimes even 3-4 businesses when I was in the mood.
There’s only so much you can write about a plumbing business or an attorney. Occasionally, I used to get an offbeat business to write about (such as an adult video store), but that was very rare (and fun).
I wasn’t satisfied with myself and where my life was heading. Writing the same stuff for more than a year had taken its toll on me. I felt that my creative talent will be of not much use here.
I also had other personal issues too, but I’m not comfortable discussing them here.
Suffice to say, I wasn’t satisfied with where I was.
Plus, there wasn’t much room for growth; unless, you wanted to get into management (or something related to that). And I wasn’t interested in any of that.
That brings me to the professional reason.
The management here doesn’t know its head from its tail. Though highly experienced, the leadership had minimal people skills. Employees were just units they had to control, efficiently and rigorously.
Meetings were held with no purpose in sight.
I call it the “Art of Bullshitting.”
Our team had around 30 members, with two team leads. Copywriting is more of an art than a science, though you can get better at it just like any other repeatable activity. It gets pretty easy after a while, but it still takes some creative effort to churn out quality original content.
Focus on the words “quality” and “original.”
The management at the previous company understood that. They let us work within our limits, with achievable targets.
I liked the team I worked with. My team lead was great too. All of us gelled well together, though we had our own separate groups and in-fights (we’re still wild animals after all, despite acting otherwise).
I met some of the best people I’ve known at this place.
And then came in the new management, trying to force their regressive work culture on the new company they’d just acquired. As always, it was all about the profits with scant regard to anything else.
Targets kept getting pushed further and further up the ladder. Writers were treated as all-purpose robots with no conscience or emotions. The management started interfering in everyday simple affairs. Partiality started creeping in.
You had to lie to take even a single leave, even if you had many hanging lustfully in your leave balance. Even taking a casual leave was a big hassle. The work-life balance was worsening (which is pretty ironic considering how much they bleat about it).
Work had become synonymous with whining. The time I spent with my colleagues during breaks was the only aspect of work that was interesting.
And the salary too, but who doesn’t like that?
A few colleagues were fired for egoistical reasons. Some more left of their own will. I didn’t hear any good things from other teams at the office too.
I realized, I was just one in a list of many casualties.
Apart from being unhappy with work, I also felt that I was deteriorating as a person. There was a mismatch between my expectations from myself and what I was expected to do at work.
Almost no one I worked with was happy with the management. And that made me even more unhappy.
So, I quit.
Without notice.
It was highly unprofessional of me to do it this way, but I couldn’t serve their anti-employee 3-month notice period. Nor did I wait for their appraisal, which looked like a charade anyway.
As soon as I got my hands on another job, I was out. I didn’t need the experience letter. The knowledge and experience I’d gained here was enough.
I’m not sure whether my new job will be better than my previous one. I’m not sure whether I’ll be happy doing it. I’m not even sure how my new bosses and colleagues are.
For now, I’m just ready to embrace the change and hope for the best. I’m glad that I have the privilege to take this chance.
