Counter offers. They’re really very flattering, aren’t they? You’ve handed in your notice and are ready to move on to bigger and better things, only to find that your current employer makes a new offer in a bid to keep hold of you and the skills you have to offer. Wow!

They’re not always ideal though, are they? After all, you’ve gone to all that trouble of updating your CV, tweaking and tailoring it for the jobs you’ve found and attending as many interviews as necessary for someone to offer you the right opportunity, and then your current employer throws a big, fat spanner in the works!

While you may be flattered or even consider accepting their offer to be the easy option – you’re not the new kid on the block here, after all – it is also perfectly possible that you’ll want to reject such an offer in favour of new work that you’ve secured elsewhere.

So, what will you do to politely decline a counter offer in a way that will reiterate your intention to move on without burning bridges or jeopardising the possibility of a return in the future?

It’s really very simple: stay calm, take control and re-familiarise yourself with your initial reasons for seeking a new role. Stay positive, too – relate your reasons to what you’re hoping to gain from the new role, as opposed to what you can’t achieve by staying in your current job.

Explain that you’re grateful for the opportunities that you’ve been given within your current company but that you’re confident that it’s time to move on. State your intention to leave on a positive note and thank your current employer for understanding your wish to leave. Offer to help with identifying, appointing or training your replacement (if appropriate).

Few of us want to terminate the working relationships that we’ve built up or close doors within the companies that we’ve worked in, so the issue of declining a counter offer needs to be handled delicately. Essentially, it’s about being courteous, yet assertive to leave on the best possible terms.