Ex-Google TechLead explains his learnings from leaving Google.
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Video Transcript:
Note: This transcript is auto-generated by YouTube and may not be entirely accurate.
00:00
hey tackle it here and welcome back to
00:01
another episode of the tech lead now
00:03
today I'm going to be talking about how
00:05
I quit Google it is tea time with the
00:08
tech lead your host the X Google tech
00:10
lead now while many of us know that I
00:13
used to work at Google what we don't
00:15
know was how I left Google and what my
00:18
learnings were from there and I think
00:20
that these learnings will be applicable
00:22
to anybody who is working in any job
00:24
really because as a society we don't
00:26
talk much about quitting jobs right we
00:29
talked plenty about how to get jobs but
00:31
we don't talk about how to leave a job
00:33
properly and make sure that you're doing
00:35
it correctly and getting what you
00:37
deserve in that process you could get
00:39
pretty screwed over if you don't do it
00:40
correctly you know for example when I
00:42
left Google I tried to give them a four
00:45
to five week notice but they wanted me
00:47
out of there much faster like one week
00:49
and then I was out and they almost
00:50
didn't even pay out my health insurance
00:52
there's a lot of pitfalls there so we're
00:54
going to be covering these tips and more
00:56
this video by the way is brought to you
00:57
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01:00
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01:01
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01:03
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01:05
link in the description below so back to
01:07
my story when I left Google I gave them
01:09
a four week notice because I felt that I
01:11
was a pretty important guy over there
01:12
and I wanted to just you know make the
01:15
transition as smooth as possible but you
01:17
know I think what really happened was
01:19
that as soon as HR heard about this they
01:21
probably checked some things like maybe
01:23
stock vesting dates they check the
01:25
valves leaving for a competitor and they
01:27
just decided you know what they just
01:29
wanted me out of there in a week and you
01:32
know that wasn't really my plans right I
01:33
have planned to be working there longer
01:35
but eventually I even qualified for
01:37
unemployment insurance which is
01:39
ridiculous but I did collect that
01:41
because I qualified for it and I think
01:43
what you need to understand here though
01:45
is that HR is not your friend the job of
01:47
HR is to protect the company from
01:50
employees so if you're dealing with HR
01:53
you need to always have your guard up
01:55
and make sure that you're keeping your
01:56
cards close to your hand and even though
01:58
you may be friends and buddies with your
02:00
co-workers or even your manager they're
02:02
not necessarily able to protect you from
02:04
HR right that's an entirely different
02:06
organization and so let's get into tip
02:08
number one which is to use up your
02:09
vacation days it's
02:11
that many companies will say well hey if
02:13
you quit they'll just pay out your
02:14
vacation days anyways so you don't have
02:16
to use them if you don't want to but the
02:18
great thing about using them up is that
02:20
it helps you hit additional vesting
02:21
dates
02:22
it may help you hit additional bonus
02:24
dates maybe you can just stay around
02:26
stick around with the company and see
02:27
what other extra goodies you get maybe
02:29
some off sites right whatever that is if
02:31
you just personally use up those
02:33
vacation days you just get those extra
02:34
benefits of staying with a company
02:36
hitting your stock vesting dates is a
02:38
big one and you earned it so you deserve
02:40
it I didn't get mine by the way when I
02:42
was forced out earlier than I expected
02:45
so there were several thousand dollars
02:46
for me lost in that one there's also
02:48
additional benefits like you may get
02:50
access to remote offices you know I was
02:53
going to take a vacation to Japan at
02:54
that time I wanted to check out the
02:56
offices over in Japan I didn't get a
02:58
chance to do that there may also be
03:00
additional corporate discounts and perks
03:02
employees stores movie ticket discounts
03:04
things like that so use up those
03:06
vacation days instead of having them
03:09
paid out to you when you leave and then
03:10
just quit within two weeks or so when
03:12
you come back from vacation the second
03:14
tip I have for you is to never give more
03:16
than two weeks notice
03:17
never give more than that you know I
03:19
tried to give four weeks I thought I was
03:21
being nice I thought was important
03:22
you're not that important nobody is that
03:24
important you know I've seen directors
03:26
get terminated within one day for
03:28
violating some policy and the company is
03:31
still fine without them so they're gonna
03:32
be fine without you as well the second
03:35
you tell people that you're thinking
03:36
about leaving whether that's in two
03:38
weeks or four weeks you should be ready
03:40
to leave on that very same day because
03:41
HR can just come and terminate you right
03:44
away so a few tips you're number one
03:46
make sure that you handle your notice
03:47
after any of your stock vests right
03:49
check that invest in calendar number two
03:52
you want to make sure that you're
03:53
backing up anything on your computer
03:54
that may belong to you personally right
03:56
you don't want a backup company data but
03:58
if there's anything on your computer you
04:00
want to get that and secure any of your
04:02
personal belongings in the office
04:03
because you could be walked out that
04:05
very same day they could take your
04:06
laptop away immediately shut off access
04:08
if they suddenly just decide that you're
04:10
not team player if you're going to a
04:12
competitor any of those reasons like for
04:15
example I know a guy he used to work at
04:17
Google and he took a three-month
04:18
paternity leave and then when he came
04:20
back he gave a two weeks notice and then
04:22
he left
04:23
and you know I think that was a really
04:24
smart move actually because he had given
04:26
a two-week notice before he went on
04:28
paternity leave HR would not have given
04:31
him that paternity leave they would have
04:33
terminated him that very same day if
04:35
they needed to but they would not have
04:36
paid that out if they could have saved
04:38
that for themselves which in my opinion
04:40
may not be entirely fair right maybe he
04:42
earned that paternity leave and it would
04:44
have been probably fairly brutal on him
04:46
if he was having a new kid and then he
04:48
was terminated from his job that very
04:50
same day but the company may just do
04:52
that and you need to protect yourself
04:53
the third tip I have for you is just
04:56
make sure that you're checking the
04:57
company calendars bonus calendars look
04:59
for any additional events coming up it's
05:01
funny that if you detract like when
05:03
people quit a lot of people are smart
05:05
enough to know that you quit after bonus
05:07
season you know in my very first job as
05:09
so many pictures I quit on the
05:11
anniversary date that I had joined which
05:13
I thought was very cool very interesting
05:16
I could say hey I work there exactly one
05:17
year but I did not get my bonus bonus
05:20
comes a little bit after that so there
05:22
were several thousand dollars that I had
05:23
lost right there the fourth tip is to
05:26
take a moment and check your benefits
05:27
portal if you have one and make sure
05:29
that you're maximizing all of that so
05:32
I'm talking about like 401k matching I
05:34
like to front-load my 401k so I will
05:37
always put in like a hundred percent of
05:38
my paycheck into that and just max it
05:40
out as soon as I can
05:41
each year such that if for any reason I
05:43
left my job I could at least get my 401k
05:46
contributions in and if there was an
05:48
employer match then I would get that as
05:50
well by the way not all employers are
05:52
going to be matching you 100% rather way
05:54
sometimes our caps and limits but you
05:56
can check with your plan about that you
05:57
know if there are other things like FSA
05:59
flexible saving account plans dependent
06:02
care accounts try to get those maxed out
06:04
as well use them up because they could
06:06
expire at the end the fifth tip I have
06:08
for you is to never quit a job without
06:10
having another job in hand why is this
06:13
important you know because I think this
06:15
is leverage right when you're getting
06:18
another job and you're trying to
06:19
negotiate that compensation if you don't
06:21
even have another job in hand and you've
06:23
got nothing then you've got no leverage
06:24
but if you already have a job and then
06:26
you're trying to apply to another
06:27
company that company knows they need to
06:29
at least beat your current compensation
06:31
and there may even be an additional
06:33
counteroffer that they don't need to
06:35
beat as well
06:36
so you already have leverage right there
06:38
that's actually kind of acting as you're
06:39
competing offer right there just by
06:41
holding on to that job if you gave that
06:43
up because you just decided to rage quit
06:45
you don't have any leverage you don't
06:47
have power and then you're essentially
06:49
willing to work for zero dollars right
06:51
even if someone were to pay you ten
06:53
dollars they've already beaten your
06:55
current salary so this is about
06:57
negotiation leverage that will get you
06:59
set up for your next grow the sixth tip
07:01
I have for you is that when you're at
07:03
that exit interview don't say a word or
07:06
keep a play and keep it professional
07:08
I think exit interviews are kind of
07:11
silly like imagine that you got dumped
07:13
by somebody and then they said well hey
07:15
now that the relationships over why
07:17
don't you just let loose and just tell
07:18
them everything that you didn't like
07:19
about them it's like why would you even
07:22
waste your time doing that you're trying
07:23
to get the next portion of your life
07:24
started and now you want to just
07:26
badmouth each other and let loose for
07:28
what gain what's the point you're gone
07:31
it's not even your problem anymore
07:32
and if they really cared maybe they
07:34
should have asked you when the
07:35
relationship was still working out so
07:38
what I'm trying to say here is that
07:39
number one don't burn your bridges keep
07:42
things professional and number two what
07:44
do you have to gain by giving any of
07:46
this advice to your former employer
07:48
right oftentimes you're going to be
07:50
talking to HR it's not even the
07:52
engineering manager or the team who is
07:54
doing the exit interview for you do you
07:57
think that people actually take your
07:59
feedback and use it to improve the
08:02
company I don't know I'm not part of HR
08:06
but I wouldn't be entirely surprised if
08:09
they just took that filed it away and
08:11
put it in your personal records and just
08:13
use that as leverage against you as your
08:15
own personal history record I don't know
08:16
if they actually integrate that into any
08:18
of their internal feedback processes or
08:20
to improve the company at all I don't
08:23
know if they do but keep in mind that
08:25
this isn't a family farewell party you
08:27
don't have to be Terry either pardon you
08:29
don't owe these people any explanation
08:31
it's simply a business deal that has
08:32
closed out and now both parties are
08:34
moving on to future opportunities it's
08:36
as simple as that the seventh and final
08:39
tip for you is just about health
08:40
insurance make sure you're quitting
08:42
after say like the first of the month
08:43
usually health insurance plans they'll
08:45
continue your coverage through the end
08:47
of the month in which you are employed
08:48
so if you quit on like the 30th then you
08:51
may be forced into buying Cobra health
08:52
insurance right away Cobra by the way
08:54
it's extremely expensive health
08:56
insurance it's essentially like the same
08:58
solid health insurance that companies
08:59
have but you just gotta pay for that out
09:01
of pocket individually it's just crazy
09:03
prices there so overall just keep in
09:06
mind that usually when you quit people
09:07
are going to be asking you to stay maybe
09:09
it will work on the extra month maybe an
09:11
extra two months just kind of delay the
09:13
process for you and you just need to
09:15
really prioritize yourself I will say
09:17
two weeks right that's about all you
09:19
really need and don't let anybody else
09:21
for you into thinking that you're more
09:23
important than they're telling you that
09:24
you're and you know you need to
09:26
prioritize yourself the company they're
09:28
gonna be doing just fine they're gonna
09:29
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10:41
know your best tips on how to leave a
10:43
job if you liked the video give it a
10:44
like and subscribe and we'll see you
10:45
next time bye