A few years back I gave the thumbs up to hire a promising new developer. He was hired in at an entry role with the idea that he would quickly get promoted due to his prior experience.
He was working out great and I was feeling pretty good about my decision to hire him.
He quickly started making a scene about getting the Sr position. Usually we don't promote that quickly but since we had talked about it when he had started and he was working out well we decided to promote him out of band. He had ruffled a few feathers but he got what he wanted.
I thought we were done and ready to get back to work.
Soon after his promotion he started demanding a principal role. The ruffled feathers were starting to catch fire. He ran his request all the way up to the top, to the CEO himself. It was an incredible example of self destruction. I am not sure what his plan would have been had he been given the role when he burned every bridge trying to get there.
He was let go, or rather he “quit”. The feeling that we needed to part ways was mutual.
Ego burns bridges.
There is almost no strategic value in burning a bridge. It may feel good at the time but it will only create a scenario where you have less options to work with in the future not more. Be clear about what you want, even be willing to quit if you feel that passionately about it but it doesn’t make sense to destroy future potential by creating hostile relationships with the people you disagree with.
Each job you work, or person you work with becomes a vector for future opportunities. Maybe when the job market is booming you can afford to set your current job on fire but once times get tough and getting a job requires someone to bump your resume to the front of the line, you will be glad that you kept your ego in check.