I Quit: Lessons For Educators From The Great Resignation

Emily Grant (Washburn; Google Scholar) & Elisabeth Wilder (Washburn), I Quit: Lessons for Educators from The Great Resignation, 85 U. Pitt. L. Rev. ___ (2023):

The Great Resignation is the story of millions of Americans who have quit their jobs in search of something different and represents a cultural shift in how people think about work. The demands of the Great Resignation—meaning, better working conditions, and work-life balance—will continue to be present in the foreseeable future. As such, educators must begin to incorporate these cultural shifts into their professional development curriculum and career services.

As educators, we spend so much time trying to help our students find and keep jobs that we often neglect the importance of teaching students how to change jobs. Many of our institutions are not preparing students for the reality that they will likely quit and switch jobs multiple times throughout their careers, especially within the first five years of their career.

This article explores how teaching students the importance of quitting can lead to a more satisfactory job search and work life. Teaching students to reflect on the reasons they may quit a job will cause students to look for jobs that align with their values. Thus, we propose additions to the professional identity conversations currently taking place in law schools to include discussions about meaningful work, better working conditions, work-life balance, and about when the lack of those values might cause someone to quit a job.