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Ask HN: Laid off. Now what?

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Re: Ask HN: Laid off. Now what?

#11

Post by usernametbd »

What kind of job were you working in? If you are in the software field, you chances of finding employment again are high. But the key is for you to act fast. While it is sad that you are out of job, this is not the time to regret or ponder over what you could have done differently. There is plenty of time for that.

I can share my own story. On one Saturday, I got a phone call from a co-worker that there are rumors of an impending massive layoff the following week. And then I got laid off on Monday. But I updated my resume on Saturday and already applied for several jobs on Sunday and started preparing for interviews. On Monday, I got laid off. And on Tuesday, I got a call scheduling for an interview. That entire week, I got two more calls for interviews. I scheduled them for the week after that as I needed at least one week to get up to speed with interview preparation. 20 days after my layoff, I had an offer. I still had interviews scheduled from bigger companies at that time, but I took the offer because I had some personal situations also to deal with at the time (My marriage was supposed to be in 3 weeks). I had a good raise in the new job, and with severance, it all ended up great with a good bonus and a raise.

My general advice is this. While I admit it is an incredibly stressful and emotional time, your emotions cannot take priority over actions.

Re: Ask HN: Laid off. Now what?

#12

Post by nickff »

_m8fo wrote: post #2

1. I would immediately file for unemployment in your area, if applicable. 2. Take one day and just relax. Have the most fun you can possibly have that doesn't damage your health or take anything more than a trivial amount of money. 3. Calculate your burn rate and cut expenses. 4. Accept that you have a new job. Your new job is finding a new job. 5. Dedicate 20 hours a week to finding and applying to jobs. You can jus…

The only thing I would add to this (great, positive) advice is that you may want to read McArdle's masterpiece on rebounding, The Up Side of Down.[1] She was in a terrible (long-term) unemployment situation, followed by underemployment; she took the lessons she learned, added some others she found later, and wrote this (very helpful and practical) book.

[1] https://www.amazon.com/Up-Side-Down-Failing-Success/dp/01431...

Re: Ask HN: Laid off. Now what?

#14

Post by donretag »

Vacation. Dependent on your living expenses and the amount of unemployment you get. Life is short, if you can travel while collecting unemployment, then try and do so.

Been laid off a few times. I wish I traveled the first couple of times.

Re: Ask HN: Laid off. Now what?

#16

Post by scaryclam »

1) It's OK to panic for a short while. Get it out of the way so you can get past it and start job hunting properly. 2) Contact recruiters, get your CV brushed up, talk to your companies HR if you have it, they can be helpful in this situation, even if it's just helping you get your CV brushed up. 3) Update your linkedin in case someone out there is looking at profiles like yours, you never know, you might get lucky and bag a quick interview. 4) I'm guessing from the insurance thing you're in the US? Let HN know where you are! 5) Unless you're in dire straits financially, take a deep breath when you get your first job offer and make sure it's not a bad choice for you. 6) Use your free time well. Get out of bed in the mornings, get dressed, spend some time looking for a new job, but when that's done have something else to fill your time. If you can get a side project going you'll feel like you're at work which can really help keep motivated.

Re: Ask HN: Laid off. Now what?

#17

Post by falcolas »

bsvalley wrote: post #10
_m8fo wrote: post #2

1. I would immediately file for unemployment in your area, if applicable. 2. Take one day and just relax. Have the most fun you can possibly have that doesn't damage your health or take anything more than a trivial amount of money. 3. Calculate your burn rate and cut expenses. 4. Accept that you have a new job. Your new job is finding a new job. 5. Dedicate 20 hours a week to finding and applying to jobs. You can jus…

40 hours a week? I've done it in the past it's not realistic. If you schedule one interview per day, you'll burn out quickly. You need breaks in between to digest the previous interview.

Personally, I didn't find that any form of break between interviews made a difference (excepting when I had to fly out of state). I was fine doing 2-3 interviews (in person combined with phone) a day when they came up. It's probably a personal thing.

If you do need a break between interviews, submitting new applications or working on your skills makes for a decent filler. Like a regular paying job, you'll get out of your application efforts what you put into them.

Re: Ask HN: Laid off. Now what?

#18

Post by falcolas »

mindcrime wrote: post #7

Start calling recruiters and/or submitting resumes, etc. NOW. It seems like it always takes longer for things to happen than you want, so don't waste even a minute getting the job hunt going. That is, unless you have plenty of savings as a buffer. You may also want to immediately do the math to see exactly how much money you need for things that are absolute "musts" to pay... light bill, gas bill, rent, etc., and fig…

Taking a weekend to digest what's happened isn't going to burn that much money, and it will help ensure you're ready to move on to submitting applications.

Something fairly traumatic just happened, don't be afraid to take time to absorb it so you can focus on the next effort.

Re: Ask HN: Laid off. Now what?

#19

Post by GuiA »

As a sidenote, this post highlights why your first priority when you have a decent paying job should be saving ~6 months or so of expenses so that if something like that happens, you have an immediate safety net to fall back on.

There are too many people in the Bay Area making 6 figures salary and living paycheck to paycheck (exorbitant rent + car lease + student debt payments + weekends in Tahoe + nice brunches + buying the newest phone quickly adds up...)

Re: Ask HN: Laid off. Now what?

#20

Post by bsvalley »

falcolas wrote: post #17
bsvalley wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

40 hours a week? I've done it in the past it's not realistic. If you schedule one interview per day, you'll burn out quickly. You need breaks in between to digest the previous interview.

Personally, I didn't find that any form of break between interviews made a difference (excepting when I had to fly out of state). I was fine doing 2-3 interviews (in person combined with phone) a day when they came up. It's probably a personal thing. If you do need a break between interviews, submitting new applications or working on your skills makes for a decent filler. Like a regular paying job, you'll get out of…

Sure, you can practice and reflect on the previous interview in-between. Your level of concentration is so high during a technical interview, as soon as you disconnect you get a big drop. For an onsite for example, you go to 5-10 45 minutes interviews in a row... you're in until the end, then you crash at night in your bed. No way you can do the same thing the next morning.
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