On Leaving
There is that special kind of saying that is just obviously nonsense but somehow keeps being repeated because it’s, I don’t know, culturally engrained or something. But that doesn’t make such sayings cultural wisdom, simply because they’re not wise at all. They just sound catchy. The following is a verbatim quote of a thing I blurted out on LinkedIn some time ago.
Since I’ve come across another example of the “employees don’t leave companies, they leave their managers” trope today …
Generalisation and simplification don’t cut it, in most cases there’s quite a bit of nuance involved.
Sure, blame it all on the managers. Or read on.
How about someone interested in significantly improving their financial situation for whatever reason finding another company that simply offers more than the current one possibly can? Not leaving the manager.
How about someone discovering they would like to apply that special knowledge they built in their spare time that just isn’t applicable in their current company but elsewhere? Not leaving the manager.
How about someone having collected enough money to finally start that travel year? Not leaving the manager.
How about someone who realises that the company culture is changing in ways they really don’t appreciate? Not leaving the manager.
And so forth.
If I may offer myself as a sample of one: of the six or so job changes I’ve done, only one was “leaving the manager”. The others were mixed, and more often “going to” than “going from”. I’m not implying statistical significance, but the “not companies, but managers” thing just reeks of simplistic nonsense with garlic on top. (I like the garlic.)
Addendum: At the time of this writing, I’m looking for a new job. I’m not leaving a manager, no reason for that. In a way, I’m leaving a company, because my current employer is liquidating itself. That’s not at all intentional on my part. In the context of the above, make of this what you will.
Tags: work