How to quit your job and leave with your head held high

So you've decided to quit your job, you may be leaving to pursue another position, you might be leaving for personal reasons, or perhaps you have become fed up with whats been happening in your office.

No matter what you reason is for quitting your job you need to do so in a polite and professional manner.

We've all had those moments at work where we have wanted to flip our bosses off and storm out the door to make a statement. While this may seem like a good day now, it will surely bring major consequences down the line in your career. Karma is a bitch and will come back to bite you in the ass--so don't burn any bridges with your company while you make your exit.

Take these steps to leave your company with tact and ease:

• Do not give two weeks notice. Two weeks is not enough to find a replacement for you. Two weeks is the bare minimum you should give your employer. Only give two weeks notice if you are leaving due to a serious emergency. I recommend giving four weeks notice, it will show that you care about making sure your shoes are filled before you leave, it will show general concern which will be appreciated, and most importantly, it won't make your boss look bad for hiring you in the first place.

• As soon as you know when you need to leave your job schedule a mandatory meeting with your boss. Sit down with them and let them know your intentions of leaving, and when your last day will be. If you are leaving out of spite, be very careful not to let this show. It will look extremely unprofessional and it will be remembered. If your boss asks why, and you aren't comfortable with giving them the real reason, say that you are leaving due to "personal reasons"

• Bring an exit memo to the meeting and give it to your boss. The memo should be short and concise. Put a header at the top with your name, position, and contact information. State your last date of employment in the letter. Do not elaborate on your reasons for leaving. Be sure you leave something courteous in it...when future employers call the HR office at the job you're leaving, they will likely pull out your exit memo to get a quick refresher course on the type of employee you are.

-An example of an appropriate and appreciative note to include in your letter would be: " Much to dismay I must leave my position as [insert role] at [company] due to personal reasons. I enjoyed being part of a successful team that helped me grow as an employee and I thank you for the wonderful opporitunity to spend [insert years of employement] as your employee.

• Before you leave the meeting make sure you hit these key points: you do not like the fact that you have to leave, you are willing to wrap up any projects that you are currently responsible, you are more than willing to help your boss find an appropriate candidate and assist in training them if need be. Finally, THANK YOUR BOSS, let them know you really appreciate all of the help and guidance they've given you ( even if you are pissed off, I'm sure there were many occasions where they took you under their wing and gave you the benefit of the doubt when you made a boo boo at work), and always let them know it was a pleasure to be their employee.

Please note: You want this meeting to go as smoothly as possible. If your boss reacts poorly, its important to keep your cool and only say gracious relevant things in response. This is going to be one of the final impressions you leave on your boss, if you want a good reference down the road, you will want to be on your best behavior when you give your four weeks (or more) notice.

You might be thinking that you really don't give a shit right now, and you just want to get the hell out of your company. If you don't leave your job in a respectful manner, remember, the world is a small place, you will run into people you formerly worked with in all types of situations. If you want a successful career, you have to be able to network down the road, and you will have trouble networking and building good working relationships ( and good references) if you get so heated that you piss off the people you work with.

So before you storm out after telling off everyone you hated to work with, take a chill pill, and think about the long run, this is one time in your career when you will want to act like the level-headed adult you really are.