Whiteboard resignations, for the most part, are short and to the point: "I Quit." Exclamation points and multiple underlines optional. The soon-to-be former staff member simply holds the whiteboard above his or her head and smiles, smirks or makes that just-sucked-a-lemon face. Some employees, though, feel they owe their superiors a slightly more nuanced explanation.

"My co-workers shower … annually."
"I found my boss's sex tape."
"I want to spend more time with my cats."
"This cubicle smells like feet."
"I'm sick of drinking the Kool-Aid … especially Your Kool-Aid."
"My Boss Thinks Twitter is an S.T.D."
"There's no Starbucks for miles."
"No Hot Chicks."

But for some disgruntled employees, the whiteboard is a canvas far too small, particularly if they have access to a ladder and the employer's streetside marquee.

At a Wendy's, the boss couldn't miss this heartfelt resignation echoing the company's own advertising tag line: "Greg, I Quit. Now That's Better!"
Another employee's resignation also contained a helpful suggestion: "My Boss Can Change His Own Damn Sign. I Quit!"
At a local supermarket, the sentiment on the marquee minced no words: "This Place Blows. I Quit."
Not really a marquee resignation, but true to the "marquee spirit," a teacher projected this surrender on a movie screen at the front of his classroom: "Mr. Lear is giving up. I'VE HAD ENOUGH … if you want to complete the course, you will have to teach yourselves. You need to get to Lenin's death in 1924. Good Luck (you'll need it)."

And then there's cake. More precisely, quitting by cake: the four-letter cake; the nice cake, the weapons-grade cake.

Instant Insights /

Say it with cake: The new ways of quitting

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