I resigned over email. I am a schmuck.

I resigned over email this week. That makes me a schmuck. I've been working from home recently and connecting with my boss via email. I've worked with him long enough to know his preferred communication methods: text, email, cell, regular phone. Unfortunately I am not a fan of texting (140 characters on twitter is hard enough), so I regularly email him.

Let's start with from the beginning... my company was in a transition state, spinning off a division with employee owners. (How cool is that!) Many of the old/new employees were working unpaid to get the new company up and running, including me. It was an exciting, crazy, emotional and scary time for all of us. Everyone needs a plan B in a situation like this, so I turned to my close professional network to work on my plan B. Long story short, I accepted a position at a new company down the street within two weeks of my networking. I feel very fortunate to have found a great company and fit in such a short time. But, I also know that I need to break the news to my boss as soon as possible because everything was moving so quickly.

I have always resigned the "proper" way - a general resignation letter saying that I am resigning and appreciate the time that I have worked with said Company- handed to my boss in a private setting. I've given two or more weeks notice so that a proper transition can take place. Since I have been working unpaid at home, this situation was different. The next time that I knew that I was going to see my boss was going to be at a company update meeting. Not at all private or appropriate for this type of conversation. I could have called him, but he has been in very important meetings nonstop for the past three weeks and he will answer the phone during a meeting. I can't imagine hearing this kind of news while in a meeting, so I didn't think that a phone call was the best approach either. So, I sent him an email. I was able to think about what I wanted to say and thank him for his support and tell him that I believe in him. I was able to think about what I was going to say and not get all emotional. So I wrote it, hit send quickly and waited for a response. I felt like a total schmuck.

He was disappointed, but not surprised. We had talked about having a plan B and he was always very supportive of my networking and development. I think that email was the best communication method in this situation, but I still feel like a schmuck. I like, respect and admire my boss and I think that the feeling is mutual. He's become a fantastic leader and has a great future and adventure in front of him. I think that he makes a great addition to my close professional network.