Time to put the plan into action.

So the call from Shelly came late last night. I have finalized the letter of resignation and will be speaking with my boss Mike this afternoon. I have not been this nervous about something for as long as I remember. I think that this is a good life lessson. I was too comfortable. I like this feeling of vulnerability. I know now that everything will be fine. There is a strange peace in all of this. A copy of the resignation letter will be placed below in blue to document the entire situation:




Dearest Tom and Mike:
It is with a heavy heart that I tender my resignation from my position.

It is sort of poetic in a way that I am writing this letter on the sixth anniversary of my employment with our organization. I can not express with words how the mere act of putting these thoughts onto paper is by far the most difficult thing that I have had to do while working for Oreck.

The difficult part of writing this type of letter is how can I put into words the amount of deep, heartfelt gratitude, admiration, respect, and love that I have in my heart for the two of you. How can I properly pour my heart out enough that you know without a doubt that you have both touched my life in an indelible manner? I hope that these words suffice, but I fear that words sometimes fail to hit their mark. Just know that the resounding theme of this letter is “Thank you”.

My time with Oreck was a Godsend. I came in a jaded 24 year old boy with a bad taste in his mouth for a cold, corporate lifestyle. In my previous job, I watched a great organization go public and loose sight of who the real customer was. With the ring of a bell the person in my store was downgraded to second class citizen in lieu of the newly found shareholder.

It was amazing to see such a different atmosphere, philosophy, and approach from our company. My second week with Oreck I attended Oreck U to have the CEO sit in a room with me and 13 other budding vacuum salespeople and spend ½ of a day discussing the basic philosophies of why Oreck is such a great company. I was amazed that in this day and age financial gain was not on the tip of the tongue. The main focus was legendary customer service, and how we could offer just one more solution to our customer’s problems. I was hooked. I thought ‘so I can help people and get paid to do it!?’ Tom may have not been going for revival that day, but he created at least one more zealot. Six years later, and the zealot within is bigger than ever. I still firmly believe that we have the best product for the best price than any other company in industry, AND we do it with more grace, dignity, and compassion than any other company than I know. The lessons have been invaluable, and I am forever indebted to both of you for this opportunity to grow and learn.

My whole life my heart has been drawn to help people. That is why it found a home at Oreck for so long. I am positive that if I were not blessed with the opportunity that was presented to me a few days ago that it would have been very hard to find a reason, other than under police escort, to get me to leave.

The reason for leaving is not for another job. I am leaving to serve people on a bigger scale. Briana and I have been asked to join a cause that speaks to both of our hearts so loudly that we cannot dare tune it out. We are going to work with an organization known as Human Energy to provide proper humanitarian aid to people in great need. The thing that speaks to our hearts so much is the fact that we are not going to be raising money to send food or clothing or any of the other things that other organizations have tried to do to help the problem. We are not going to throw money at the situation and hope the problem stops. We are going to throw people at the problem. We are going to teach these people how to live in a self sustaining manner by offering them jobs, desperately needed medical support, and education so that their children are not doomed to face the same poverty that they have had to endure all of their lives. I do not think I could live with myself if I ignored the great need for talented people to jump in to put an end to this suffering. A father figure of mine once said to me “You cannot do anything to please me, for I am already pleased. It is not the things that you do in life that will disappoint me; it is the things that you do not do that will make me sad.” I know that my calling has found me. What a blessing.

A special note to Mike: What a great mentor, father figure, friend, and leader you have been. It has been an honor to study under you. I appreciate your patience, guidance, and understanding. You have embodied the Core Vales in every way. You will never know how much respect I have for your shrewd, intuitive style. When Theresa Nisbett would call me “Mini-Mike” my heart would smile so big. What an honor. I will miss your practical style, and fairness Mike. You are such a great soul.

My last day with Oreck will be June 23, 2006. I intend to work very diligently in this time frame to make sure that my open responsibilities are closed out or properly passed on to the successor that you choose.

The only personal loose end that needs to be tied up before we leave Dallas is that I need to right a bad decision that Briana and I made 4 years ago. I will be undergoing a vasectomy reversal procedure scheduled tentatively for the 7th of June. This will require me to be out, but available to guide by phone, the 7th of June through the 13th of June. This means that I will use 3 days of PTO time to recover from this surgery. Briana and I are so excited about starting a family together. If I could un-do one thing in life, the vasectomy would be it.

Once again, I appreciate so much the wealth of knowledge that the both of you have shared over the past 6 years. It has been a true blessing to have come in contact with such great leadership. You will both be missed a great deal. I will keep in touch to let you know how things are going with the projects. A lot of my time will be spent in Europe, India, and Africa, but we will always call the U.S. home. For now home will be in Honesdale, PA.

If there is ever any way that I can begin to repay the favor, please do not hesitate to ask. My contact information will follow in separate communication in the near future.

Sincerely,

Matthew Douzart
Regional Sales Manager

Ok, so Mike and I spoke and it went well. He thinks that I am not making a good choice (as if anyone does, but I love everyones' concern, it is a sign of their love for me. If people were like "umkaythks" I would begin to think that I have been a not so great dude ;)). The fact is that the deed is done, and we will mutually miss one another a great deal. He paid me some wonderful compliments. I will never forget the lessons that he taught me.