What is Your Exit Strategy?

In this week's episode, Ricardo makes an analogy on how you can use the same approach to close a project in your own professional life when it is time for you to move on.

Sometimes we know that, for any reason you may choose, it is time for you to end a cycle to give the opportunity to start a new one. But this process is not as happy and joyful as the beginning of a project or job.

Ricardo shares the 4 things you need to be mindful of to avoid destroying what you built when it is the time of your departure. Listen to the podcast to know more.

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Episode transcript

The transcript is generated automatically by Podscribe, Sonix, Otter and other electronic transcription services.

Ricardo (4s):
Hello, everyone. Welcome to the five Minutes Podcast Today. I like to continue the discussion about the closure, The end and the pain have the end. But right now, and I'm going to talking a different way. I want to talk about your exit strategy led to pose that you are closing on a project or you are leaving a job. What you should do it. You may ask me to this sounds strange because of, and if I want to leave and someone offered me a better salary or a better job, I will just go to my boss. I'm living. I go to a HR sign, the documents and we leave. And that's it. That's it? Yes, you can do that.

Ricardo (44s):
But maybe these is not the smartest way of doing that because every single job you had in your life, every single project you have in your life, is it a fantastic opportunity for you to grow your network to no people? Because you know, life is so crazy. Sometimes you meet someone here and 20 years later, you meet them again. M 30 years later, you meet again. And these meetings are a part of the lives of, so you need to have a good network. It, look, I'm not trying to play here in that. I'm perfect. I'm mess it up many, many times. Okay? But with that, I'm trying to learn in what I suggest you to think each, to think about for pillars.

Ricardo (1m 31s):
Every time you decide to promote an exit from your job, from your project, every time you are facing an end on something. So the first thing kids, what is the feeling of do organization with your departure? And it's not a feeling of your boss, the feeling of the organization, how you can leave or creating the lowest possible in fact, and damage to the organization. And I know that many of you say, I don't care about a company. They, they either leave. I want them to blow up. I want them to go to bankrupt. You see, this is not a smart, I need to tell you, this is definitely not smart, because you will have a line in your CV where you spend 10 years.

Ricardo (2m 17s):
That is now in a foul. That is knowing. Bankrupts is not good. Every body wants to be part of a winning team, not a failing team, not a losing team. So I think about how I can create and support the organization during the storm. So how I can create the lowest amount of damage. The second is succession, and I know succession. It's also very polemic in a very quickly. 'cause many people say you, if I have a very strong someone to succeed me, or I will be at risk because then they will just dispose me. And to me, you think to me, or for someone that is cheaper and do these, let me tell you what if it company is thinking like that this combat does not deserve UW.

Ricardo (3m 3s):
They do not deserve. You should do something. No, the house. So succession is something that can free your mind and your time to do new things. Because many times, if you don't prepare success or you get stuck or your whole life doing the same thing, if you want to explore new things, do you need to create people that are competent, that can go behind you or creating their own plant. So you grew people, we hire you. And these is one of the most relevant aspects of leadership that we aim to build when we are leading in this challenging times. So succession. So you need to understand, okay, if I leave, what kind of support can I give to the organization to bring them options of succession that will create less damage.

Ricardo (3m 53s):
And I need to tell you, it's not, I'm not talking that you will be perfectly a, a a hundred percent replaceable because people are different, but you need to think about it. And I love to tell you recently, I was talking to friends that live here in Portugal, and one of their pets is it, oh my God. And its getting sick. So it's a pretty good, she, and I would say the end of the pet's life. And now they are buying a new pet, a new young path. And it's not because they want to replace, but they want to make sure that there is a transition because they feel so much in love by having pets that this is a transition that will help them to cope with the loss of the loved one.

Ricardo (4m 39s):
So this is just an example for did that go reasons on how you need to be mindful when you think that, what about succession? The third pillar is your team. Remember many people around you when you leave were hired by you, you hired them. You brought them to that organization and now you will to live. Imagine that on that small, The team, you are the captain and you are living in the boat. And how do you think there will feel? So why is it is my suggestion for you? Or is that every time you were building a team, you need to understand and empower them to saying, look, we are now on this magic, a journey together that may be in one year, maybe two, maybe three, each of us, we will go to a different boat and sailing the different water.

Ricardo (5m 31s):
And these is the way you develop a team. So you need to create a team that over time becomes so independent and so empowered that they can live by themselves. Because imagine you are the only one leading a very, I would say, immature team, if you leave what will happen? You will not only destroy Oregon's there, but you will destroy the team. People we'll feel the betrayal. People will be sad. You and this is not what you want. It's not the kind of energy you want for your life. Many times, people that used to work with me 10, 20 years ago, the whole, now it became clients or students that where my students, 20 years ago, they became clients.

Ricardo (6m 14s):
Or maybe I will work tomorrow for one of the people that are used to be my employees' in the past and its natural, you know, things change and last but not least is communication. It's how you want the internal stakeholders, the external stakeholders, the community, the people that are around you to fill with your department or you don't leave and you just leave and disappear. Don't do that. Even if you are angry or even if something on these departure is challenging, you, you need to come here it properly. You need to explain your reasons.

Ricardo (6m 54s):
You need to create a positive message for everything. Yeah, because if you don't do that, people will start putting their ideas out and maybe they're ideas are not, what are you really think are the true reasons. So think always about that, that communication. So even within, for example, you're finishing a project or you are retired. You need to communicate in a proper way, the way in, why you're deciding doing that and the, how you believe that the company will be in good hands by the orders team members. Can you put in there and please one more time.

Ricardo (7m 34s):
I know that the, the part where is painful, I said these last two week and how many times we or so contaminated by these bad mood, have the departure that we just say, I don't care anymore. I don't care anymore. They company does not care about me. I'm just leave it. And you miss the opportunities because you know, in the future, when we meet these people again, there is only Happiness and please I'm not perfect. Again, I mess it up many times, many times. Okay. Many times I did things that I would never do if I had the chance to do, but I did the, you know, in part of my DNA today.

Ricardo (8m 15s):
But you know, you need to work hard to do every time you finish or you close a door, you make sure that you have the willingness. Yes. And the ability to open the door again and be proud of the old of what you do and be proud of that. In these is the main aspects of what I'm calling exit strategy. You so think about that always. When you are in a transition from please from your job to the end of your marriage, to the end of your project, to the end of your career, to the end of your PhD, to the end of your MBA, always thinking the more holistic way then only about yourself and moving away.

Ricardo (8m 58s):
I hope you enjoyed this podcast. Sorry for it. It became very long, but this was something I wanted to share with you. Okay. Have a wonderful week. See you next week with another five Minutes Podcast.

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