I am a consultant by occupation and a life-long learner by nature and I have been struck recently by observing how some people deal with the issue of endings. Healthy relationships require that things change and adapt with the times and the needs of the people involved and yet I watch how the only way some can deal with change and evolution is by picking fault and then burning down the relationship as a means to call it over. It seems that this applies equally to personal and professional relationships and it's an all or nothing kind of approach that I certainly have fallen into in my time on earth.
But really, life is too short to burn those bridges. How many times will you want to call that person for some informal advice in the future only to find you have cut yourself off because you didn't have the courage or integrity to bring things to a healthy point of transition.
I once had a chat with a friend about divorce and we agreed that partners often do more damage on the way out of the door than the issue that caused the breakdown of the relationship in the first place - leaving the possibility of an ongoing but different relationship all but impossible.
It's the same in business and in employee/employer relationships. I watch how people cannot allow people to leave an organization with dignity. What can be thrown away are the years of good service and dedication because this seems to some to be impossible to reconcile with the fact that the needs of either party has now changed and there is no longer a good fit. And life is too short to stay when this is the situation but it is also way too short to burn down the relationship that existed and was part of building the new reality.
So I would say - take the time to save the relationship as well as opening the exit door.
