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Layoff Thinking

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Re: Layoff Thinking

#41

Post by roarcher »

gedy wrote: post #34
le-mark wrote: post #9

I’ve been in software development since 2003. I’d never been layed off until Jan 2024. I had some dodged several. The signs were all there, company acquired about a year before, product didn’t really fit in their vision. That’s when the layoffs usually happen, a year or so into it. Yet I was still surprised. They got me, they finally got me! At first I thought it was a blessing. I had changed jobs fairly regularly bu…

> once said long term technical unemployment would be a sign of the singularity; just pray for a soft take off I think that's true, but in your case (mine as well), companies just don't really want to hire older people. People get touchy when this is brought up, but young recruiter women aren't attracted to them and are biased, younger guys/interviewers view them as some dragon to be slayed to prove themselves, etc.…

I'm pretty sure any recruiter's primary motivation is to find a fit for the role so they can get their commission.

Re: Layoff Thinking

#42

Post by drzaiusx11 »

cortesoft wrote: post #19

I don't know. When I was laid off, I had no questions about my identity or self worth. I knew it wasn't any fault of mine, the company was just failing because the business plan was bad. My worry was how I was going to manage my budget, how long my savings would last, etc. It was 100% practical concerns. I didn't worry about my identity, I worried about my mortgage. I knew I had savings to last many months, but not s…

It certainly can be both, no? It was for me at least

Re: Layoff Thinking

#43

Post by ilovefrog »

I don't care about this identity thing at all. I only care about survival. If I am unemployed long enough in America, I will eventually die. I worry about not being able to pursue things that matter to me because I am going to die.

This article is written for someone who doesn't need money.

Re: Layoff Thinking

#44

Post by KellyCriterion »

le-mark wrote: post #9

I’ve been in software development since 2003. I’d never been layed off until Jan 2024. I had some dodged several. The signs were all there, company acquired about a year before, product didn’t really fit in their vision. That’s when the layoffs usually happen, a year or so into it. Yet I was still surprised. They got me, they finally got me! At first I thought it was a blessing. I had changed jobs fairly regularly bu…

> Personally I think

- think? or

- believe?

or

- hope?

Re: Layoff Thinking

#45

Post by gedy »

roarcher wrote: post #41
gedy wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> once said long term technical unemployment would be a sign of the singularity; just pray for a soft take off I think that's true, but in your case (mine as well), companies just don't really want to hire older people. People get touchy when this is brought up, but young recruiter women aren't attracted to them and are biased, younger guys/interviewers view them as some dragon to be slayed to prove themselves, etc.…

I'm pretty sure any recruiter's primary motivation is to find a fit for the role so they can get their commission.

I'm talking in-house recruiters/HR, not the external broker types

Re: Layoff Thinking

#46

Post by moondev »

crystal_revenge wrote: post #38
cortesoft wrote: post #19

I don't know. When I was laid off, I had no questions about my identity or self worth. I knew it wasn't any fault of mine, the company was just failing because the business plan was bad. My worry was how I was going to manage my budget, how long my savings would last, etc. It was 100% practical concerns. I didn't worry about my identity, I worried about my mortgage. I knew I had savings to last many months, but not s…

Following along with this, I find the real hits to self-worth post layoff are in the process of finding that next job. Even when you have a job, a serious job search can be exhausting and, depending on the feed back you're getting, really whittle away at self confidence. But when you can feel the financial timer ticking, you continually start to question yourself and, dangerously, drop your standards. Desperation is…

Being unexpectedly unemployed also starts a virtual timer of sorts not on your terms. Regardless of how you feel about the event, the longer it persists is universally seen as a negative signal to those that would hire you for your next role. It gets exponentially worse as time goes on making it even harder to find a job, because of the increased time you don't have a job.

Re: Layoff Thinking

#47

Post by satisfice »

jjmarr wrote: post #2

I don't understand the American "what do you do?" as first introduction. It's more fun to ask "how do you know 'x'" where 'x' is the host of the party or event or whatever. Although I'm Canadian.

How can you possibly not understand? You really are flummoxed about people who devote themselves to supporting their families economically and thus invest great energy into that pursuit?

That’s like going to the Olympic Village, among all the athletes, and being unable to understand why athletes ask each other “What’s your sport?” They are in the Olympics, man! They put everything into getting there. Ask them about their obsession, for crying out loud.

And ask me about how I am trying to make it in the world. I am happy to talk about it! Why aren’t you?

Re: Layoff Thinking

#48

Post by betaby »

munificent wrote: post #21
tonyedgecombe wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I suspect most retirees would disagree.

Many would disagree but many would disagree. When you look around or start talking to older folks you discover that retirement is often a traumatic transition, even when entered voluntarily. The loss of structure, frequent social interaction, and a sense of meaning can be really difficult. There are a lot of people who retire and die not long after because they sort of stop thriving in the absence of those things. It…

> There are a lot of people who retire and die not long after because

Because they are old. Retirement age is close to the death, especially for men. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/life-expectancy.htm

Re: Layoff Thinking

#49

Post by Animats »

ilovefrog wrote: post #43

I don't care about this identity thing at all. I only care about survival. If I am unemployed long enough in America, I will eventually die. I worry about not being able to pursue things that matter to me because I am going to die. This article is written for someone who doesn't need money.

> If I am unemployed long enough in America, I will eventually die.

Not wrong.

Re: Layoff Thinking

#50

Post by skeeter2020 »

>> In Western (American) society, we often place a great deal of our identity into what we do.

This is not only an American thing; any society where you spend the majority of your conscious time at work tightly couples employment with identity. In Spanish ¿A qué te dedicas? literally translates "to what are you dedicated?" but means "What do you do?", i.e. your job. to which you're dedicated.

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