AP Photo/Matthew Daly
Tomorrow is Sarah Palin’s last day as governor of Alaska. Although there is a possibility that Palin may act like a maverick and go rogue as she leaves office, this is generally not something we want to do—no matter how tempting it may be—on our last day at a job. Here are more tips that will make your last day at work much easier and leave a good impression with your colleagues.
6. Do make it easy for people to find you. Be sure to give your colleagues your information so that you can keep them as part of your professional network. Also, if your company has an alumni network or a group on LinkedIn or Facebook, sign up for them.
Additionally, it is a good idea to create an autoresponder for your e-mail, as well as a voice mail message, letting people know that you have left the company and how they can get in touch with you.
7. Do get your references lined up. “Make sure you spend a few minutes with everyone that you have worked directly with, or for, and get their personal contact information and ask if you can use them as a reference. Do this even if you have already found your next job,” said Rahul D. Yodh, Partner at Link Legal Search Group. “You never know when you will need a good reference. It is important to have their personal contact information—with the amount of turnover today, you don't want to have to try and track someone down a few years from now.”
8. Do update your social networking profiles. When you update your employment status on social networking sites, this will result in people contacting you for an update and they may be able to point you in the direction of a new opportunity.
9. Do leave on an empowered note. “No matter what your job, whether CEO or floor sweeper, it is very important for your own dignity’s sake to personally shake the hand of everyone you worked with and thank them for the opportunity of working together,” said Hara Estroff Marano, Editor at Large at Psychology Today. “This elevates you at a difficult time and gives you a sense of control. It also gives people an outstanding sense of you as a person who handles difficulty well.”
10. Use your Flexible Spending Account. “If you’ve been saving money through your employer’s Flexible Spending Account, you must spend it on your last day of work,” said Rebecca Schreiber, Certified Financial Planner at Solid Ground Financial Planning. “Let’s say you’ve been accruing money in this account to pay for eyeglasses or dental work you have planned. The first day you are no longer employed, you can’t get back the money you saved. But if you incur an expense on the last day of work, you can still submit the paperwork later and get reimbursed.”
Part One: 10 things Sarah Palin should do on her last day at work
Related Reading:
10 things Sarah Palin should not do on her last day at work
What employees can learn from Sarah Palin's resignation
Poll: Was Sarah Palin's resignation unprofessional?
E-mail etiquette and the mailboxes of Sarah Palin, Mark Sanford, and Elizabeth Becton
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How to help a colleague cope with the loss of a loved one
10 workplace lessons from 'The Twilight Zone'
E-mail etiquette do's and don'ts
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