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Ask HN: Have you been laid off?

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Re: Ask HN: Have you been laid off?

#611

Post by ccajas »

nwsm wrote: post #393
ccajas wrote: post #353

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have been laid off just before 2015 and I haven't found any stable work since then. I have been under-employed for a long while before the outbreak, and I don't even know what new change-ups in job hunting I should be doing now. For a long time, many people have said that my years of experience make me valuable so that I should have gotten offers very quickly, but the reality hasn't shown that. Heck, even the found…

It sounds like you've gotten enough positive feedback to know you're not an imposter. Sounds like it's your interview skills or first impression?

If I consistently fail interviews then it's reasonable for me to conclude that I really could be an imposter. But I have gotten interviews from many places small and big, including some FAANGs and Bay Area companies.

If it's just first impressions then I could be like a decent TV show but with a bad pilot. Seems like I might be an "acquired taste" kind of professional.

Re: Ask HN: Have you been laid off?

#612

Post by n-exploit »

dang wrote: post #391

All: a user emailed with the brilliant suggestion that HN do a "Who Is Hiring Right Now?" thread. We'll do that soon; maybe tomorrow. This will specifically be for jobs that are ready to hire, and able to onboard, quickly. If any of you have suggestions for how to make this most helpful under current conditions, please share them. I'll check this thread later tonight.

This would be an extremely valuable addition. Please consider it.

Re: Ask HN: Have you been laid off?

#613

Post by ccajas »

fiddlerwoaroof wrote: post #500
ccajas wrote: post #353

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have been laid off just before 2015 and I haven't found any stable work since then. I have been under-employed for a long while before the outbreak, and I don't even know what new change-ups in job hunting I should be doing now. For a long time, many people have said that my years of experience make me valuable so that I should have gotten offers very quickly, but the reality hasn't shown that. Heck, even the found…

The company I work for is looking for software engineers in the LA or Chicago areas, email me if you want more details :). Our product isn’t the most glamorous, but we take work/life balance really seriously.

I live in Chicago, and will email you soon.

Re: Ask HN: Have you been laid off?

#614

Post by restingretinue »

aguyfromnb wrote: post #605
murukesh_s wrote: post #531

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I glanced over your LinkedIn profile, to me it looks like you need to add more 'modern' tech skills to your profile. It sucks, but the industry moves to new tech quickly and unless you are an enterprise Java developer, your skills get pretty much outdated in few years and you need to catch up at a fast pace. I would learn (or highlight it if you already know) React.js and Node.js immediately, along with Postgres and…

Sincere question: Does anyone else think it's crazy that you need to know: React, node, Mongo, AWS, the Python machine learning stack, golang, a bunch of databases, microservice patterns, serverless infrastructure, Docker...to get a job in the tech industry? Who are the people that actually know all this stuff?

It is crazy. I'm kind of one of those people.

Between my last two roles, familiarity and/or proficiency with the following technologies was required: React/Redux/JS/TS, Node/NPM, PostgreSQL, AWS (specifically Redis, ElasticSearch, Cloudwatch, CodePipeline, Lambda, S3, SQS, and RDS), Kotlin/Java/Spring/Maven/Gradle, C#/ASP.NET/MVC, Python, etc.

As well as testing frameworks / unit testing technologies like Selenium, JMeter, Postman/Chai, and Junit/Nunit/Pytest.

All of this hit me like a brick in the face over a 3 year period. I am NOT a master of any of them, but was definitely expected to be able to readily work with them. At times, it felt like I was supporting 5-6 different roles.

These were two startups with <100 people, so maybe that's why.

Re: Ask HN: Have you been laid off?

#615

Post by ccajas »

inlined wrote: post #476
ccajas wrote: post #353

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have been laid off just before 2015 and I haven't found any stable work since then. I have been under-employed for a long while before the outbreak, and I don't even know what new change-ups in job hunting I should be doing now. For a long time, many people have said that my years of experience make me valuable so that I should have gotten offers very quickly, but the reality hasn't shown that. Heck, even the found…

“Under qualified for your years” is ageist bullshit. You’re either a capable L3,4,5,etc. Any coupling of those achievement brackets to age ranges (which cannot be completely detached from experience level) is discrimination.

I'm not concluding that it's simply ageism, because this is feedback I'm getting from mock interviews, not real ones. Professionals tend to be more honest and open about how you interview if it's just for practice.

However the fact that you are using numbered levels instead of broader decscriptors like "junior" and "senior" means that we are thinking on different wavelengths. I guess you're talking Google-ese because it is harder to know what is "L3" without context.

I have obtained various kinds of feedback and working on some of my weaknesses, but "underqualified" and "repeating the same basic experience many times" are the most common themes.

Re: Ask HN: Have you been laid off?

#616

Post by ccajas »

mikorym wrote: post #543
ccajas wrote: post #353

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have been laid off just before 2015 and I haven't found any stable work since then. I have been under-employed for a long while before the outbreak, and I don't even know what new change-ups in job hunting I should be doing now. For a long time, many people have said that my years of experience make me valuable so that I should have gotten offers very quickly, but the reality hasn't shown that. Heck, even the found…

Not sure if this will help you, but just putting it out there: Getting a job via a referral will boost your chances by quite a bit. I am not sure what your core skills are, but in my case if I want to go work for a bank, via referral I get an immediate response (and even one other bank intercepts the referral). Without a referral I don't even get a response.

I try to use referrals whenever I can. A few years ago got one which lead to two on-site interviews. Lately though people have been giving me the cold shoulder on LinkedIn or email, understandably they are tired of being pestered about jobs.

I don't socialize often to begin with but I always separate people into "family or friend" or "professional" buckets, never mixing the two.

Re: Ask HN: Have you been laid off?

#617

Post by lwb »

karlkatzke wrote: post #542
lwb wrote: post #504

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Did you work at Homeaway?

Yes, but renamed to Vrbo and then my team was merged into Expedia Group but not re-tasked. The last six months before I was cut was an incredibly confusing time because we couldn’t even figure out how we were supposed to sign emails.

Interesting. Sorry to hear about the layoff, hope you land on your feet!

Re: Ask HN: Have you been laid off?

#618

Post by Bubbadoo »

adam_fallon_ wrote: post #264
Rebles wrote: post #44

At the beginning of the year, I decided it was time to find a new job after 10 years with my employer. I spent February doing interview prep and conducting interviews. Back then, the COVID-19 was mostly limited to China, markets and governments weren't terribly concerned about COVID-19. I accept a job offer, put in my two weeks notice, and my last day at was last Friday. Hardly anyone was seriously concerned about CO…

I left work due to burnout and wanted to try my hand at doing something creative - creating a new product. Had some time set aside for travel before I started, but then this all happened. Could not have picked a less convenient time to try and travel and make money off SaaS / AppStore. I remain optimistic and am expecting to learn so much more than I would have in the more comfortable market we are now leaving behind…

Actually, it's especially good timing to be starting a business during a financial crisis. I know, I've lived through 1987, 1993, 1998, 2002, 2008 and now c-19.

During these times when people are getting RIF'd (Reduction in Force), they're understandably panicked, nervous, in shock, etc. Most employees are not thinking of what service or product they can cobble together and bring to market, but how to swiftly rejoin the job market.

This leads to a shortage of new startups spinning up as well, because the economy has gone to the dumpster. Good times, bull markets and strong economies make everyone feel more confident. Who wants to gamble when the world is going to hades in a handbasket? Not a lot of people.

Then there's the cost factor. My experience during past financial implosions, demand for everything plummets. I get the idea we're living in more of a robber-baron era than even just 5 years ago, but still, you'll be able to negotiate everything from office rents to infrastructure, salaries of new hires, hotels and airfares for business travel.

Obviously, I am going to throw my hat into this ring for these very reasons. Good luck and good day!

Re: Ask HN: Have you been laid off?

#619

Post by AchieveLife »

aguyfromnb wrote: post #606
AchieveLife wrote: post #592

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How is the post an attack? He claimed his emotion (fear) towards a behavior that has been demonstrated by many in this chaotic environment. I interpreted his post as an observation and experience rather than an attack.

> How is the post an attack? Perhaps by asserting the OP is trying to "exploit" the situation by not wanting to pay Google wage rates at their small business? I'm not sure I understand why the business owner "deserves" to take the financial hit for the sake of a new employee. The market will sort it out.

He doesn't have to pay Google wage rates. He also doesn't have to wait it out for a bigger candidate pool so he can 'negotiate' lower baselines.

Business owner is using a turtle strategy. Opportunistic yes but also seeing people as numbers on a spreadsheet.

OP stated that he feels fear. Fear is a reasonable reaction when a Business Owner closes doors for conversation to wait out catching google 'talent' at a bargain.

Some people are in a situation where they need work now or very soon.

Re: Ask HN: Have you been laid off?

#620

Post by infinite8s »

traitsnspecs wrote: post #601
alasdair_ wrote: post #437

Earlier quoted context omitted.

2% to 4% is the number of hospitalized people that die IF they get care. If the health system is overrun, and there are zero ICU beds or ventilators available, that number will go up quickly. THAT is the problem we are trying to avoid.

The numbers matter here. Go up by how much?

Look at the difference between Italy's death rate and South Korea's.
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