Layoff’s are devastating, but here’s your post-layoff playbook

I’ve never been affected by a layoff, but working in tech in 2023, it’s a constant conversation and certainly never far from my thoughts.

Over 250,000 people have been affected by layoffs in 2023 alone, and many more have been affected job loss for other reasons. Some people are fortunate to receive warnings and generous severance packages - but many people receive just a few weeks or pay, and sometimes, nothing at all.

In this issue, I’m going to share steps and strategies from people who have successfully come back from layoffs, to help you stay in the air post layoff, and land in an even better place after.

If you’ve been laid off recently, I hope you get some useful resources out of this. And even if you’re currently employed, most of these ideas are going to be useful to you for any job search - even one that you initiate.

In the first few days:

1. Cry, scream, yell, laugh
   Studies show that job loss impacts mental health more than a divorce for many people. So you’re going to go through all of the stages of loss and grief- anger, denial, fear - it’s all normal. So is relief, or even joy. Whatever you’re feeling is normal - so take time to feel your feelings, but don’t do anything overly reactive (like publicly bashing your employer).

2. Apply for unemployment
   It can take weeks or even months for unemployment to come through. If you receive severance, it may not kick in until after that period is over, but you’ll want to make sure you’re set up to minimize a gap in cashflow. You can learn more about unemployment benefits (in the US) here.

3. Understand your insurance options

   1. Make sure you know how long your employer will provide insurance. Price out COBRA vs options on the marketplace. Hopefully you won’t need them but you’ll want to understand your options.

4. Contact an attorney (if needed)
   Most major companies work closely with their legal departments on their layoffs, but it’s still possible that employment laws were broken. Do you think WARN was violated? Were you terminated for performance without any warnings? It never hurts to have a lawyer review your exit before signing - lawyers are expensive so you might even use a service like LegalShield to do this at a lower price point.

5. Figure out your finances

   This is going to be the biggest and scariest thing for anyone post layoff, and it can be easy to ignore. But early on, figure out how far your severance and your savings will take you.

   Then consider ideas like the ones below to cut costs and increase cashflow (and even if you’re employed, doing this now will help you build up your savings!)

   1. Cancel or downgrade subscriptions. You can even resubscribe with a different email and get new member deals, and some services will offer deep discounts to keep you a customer.

   2. For bigger bills, contact companies to let them know you were laid off. Many student loan or credit card companies will work with you to adjust payments, decrease interest rates temporarily, waive fees, etc.

   3. Start a side hustle - you might do so well that you never want to go back to working full time!
      - Interested in selling coaching services or virtual products? -Start a Stan Store and set up email and phone consultations, create guides, etc. (You can check out mine here!)
      - Offer up your services as a fractional or contract employee to companies similar to your last employer. There are lots of companies that can connect you with opportunities - I did work through vChief and learned a ton, and built amazing networks as a result! Fiverr or Upwork are other options to build up a client base quickly.

      - Are you crafty? Start a small business like this guy who was laid off from Amazon, and set up his candle business in just a few weeks. You can also sell products on Etsy.
      - Join affiliate programs! Share-a-Sale has thousands of businesses available - look for products/services you already use, join their programs, and share them on social media, or on your Linktree/StanStore. Something like Rakuten can help you save money on shopping you’re already doing AND you can make money off of referrals.
      (Fun story: I got free lawncare for a 2 years after dropping my referral code on a Yelp review, and make 4-figures off of these programs without much effort at all.) 

      A lot of those survey sites are scams, but one that is very reputable, and pays well, is Respondent. They connect researchers with vetted responders - some of the highest paying do require verifying your work email (you can try workarounds like creating an email on your own domain) as they involve providing feedback on new products/services in your niche but some are unrelated to work and average over $100/hour. I’ve made as much as $300 for a 90 min feedback session!

      Sign up for rideshare services, food/grocery deliveries, dog walking, petsetting, etc. where you can control your schedule while also getting some consistent cashflow.
      And taking these steps while still employed or early in unemployment is always smart - then you’ll have them as options if you need to drive cash flow!

Take Action to Land Your Next Role

After you’ve had some time to process the layoff, let’s get to work landing you your next role! And if you’re fortunate enough to currently be employed, I’d still suggest taking these steps - you never know when you’ll need them!

1. Get your resume together!

   1. Free DIY option: Use the resume-builder in here or templates here to update your resume.

   2. Resume Services: This one gets you a resume and cover letter - the code CV20 gets you 20% off which means it should run about $130. This service is a bit pricier ($140+) but has some beautiful resumes.

2. Get recommendations

   1. Ask your former colleagues to leave recommendations on your LinkedIn.

   2. If you’re in an industry where reference letters are common, ask your supervisor for one now so you have it readily available.

3. Lean on your network

   1. Make a list of people you’ve worked with in the past, people you know through hobbies, church, college, etc. I keep a running list in a CRM. (I use folk and the code FOLKXBONNIE will get you a 10% discount but you can just create this in a Google sheet, Airtable, or any other spreadsheet!)

   2. Send an email to your network - let them know about the layoff, ask for recommendations and referrals, and let them know what you’re looking for. This is also a chance to plug your side hustle/small business and generate referrals!

   3. Post about the layoff on LinkedIn (more on this below).

4. Create your list of target companies

   1. Start connecting with recruiters and employees in your target departments

   2. Monitor job openings regularly, and try to apply to jobs within the first few days that they’re posted

   3. You can also house target companies and jobs in a job tracker like the free one from Teal, or in a Google sheet.

5. Bookmark these less common job boards! Many include companies that may be less familiar to you - and that typically means other people don’t know about them, and your chances of getting through the process increase!

   1. Still Hiring is a crowdsourced list of companies that are currently hiring.

   2. Massive uses algorithms to highlight companies actively hiring. I worked with them to create this list and ensure that you all have free access. Massive has other services and job boards as well if you’d like to try them, use the code BONNIE2 for a free trial (just cancel before it’s up!) We’ve got an HR-focused version as well!

   3. Folk created this free list of companies that are currently hiring.

   4. TrueUp tracks great data on layoffs AND whose still hiring.

I asked my followers who have landed jobs post-layoff for their strategy. You can see their perspectives in this post and the poll results below.

But the headline here is that you’re going to need a targeted strategy - while there’s always some benefit to higher numbers, the reality is that applying strategically, and pairing your applications with referrals or outreach to people at the company is always my recommendation - and what’s been most effective for my followers!

Showing Up on LinkedIn

Posts announcing the loss of a job often get a lot of traction on LinkedIn so this is a prime way to build your networks and connect with people who are willing to help. So let’s talk about how to maximize this opportunity!

I did a poll on LinkedIn asking people how to speak about their layoffs - and over 50% of respondents suggested that it’s OK to share the struggles you’re experiencing - there are lots of great suggestions on this post so check it out!

You’ll want to be cautious about bashing your previous employer - this could reflect negatively on you. But it’s OK to share your disappointment or frustration.

One of my favorite layoff posts was from a software engineer at Meta who used humor - this went extremely viral. It looks like he landed a job within 2 months.

One of my followers sent me this post they wrote - it came a few months after their layoff, but they shared that after posting this, someone offered them free business coaching, and they landed a new role a few weeks later. They had previously posted a few times that they were looking for their next role but I like how this post highlights some of the ways they’re growing as a leader.

And here’s a great post where someone impacted by layoffs is able to share their disappointment while also showing gratitude and appreciation for his colleagues.

In general, my thought is that you should show up in whatever way is authentic to you. But also keep in mind that your content will be seen by recruiters and future employers - make sure you’re comfortable with the conclusions they might draw from your posts.

Express frustration at specific companies? This could lead to empathy from others, but you also risk being seen as negative and that might turn some companies off. Post frequently about how poorly the search is going? It could lead to empathy, or it could result in people assuming you’re not a strong candidate.

So I’d try to strike a balance personally but try to show optimism for the future. Here’s one that I think does this well. It’s OK to air frustrations, but I’d suggest doing so in a way that elevates you as a great candidates and someone people would be excited to work with.

The In-Flight Amenities 🍱

A product you need to try: We’re talking about layoffs this week, I wanted to direct you to some free resources for jobseekers, post layoff. Product Hunt compiled this amazing toolkit of free apps and resources for folks to use post-layoff. This blog post from Jazz HR links to job fairs and free courses to support upskilling.

A company you need to check out: Informed K12 is an ed tech company working to transform school district operations. One of the reasons I picked this company is their commitment to DEI - they strive to build a workforce that mirrors the students they work with, and are transparent about their demographics. You can learn more about their culture through their blog.

They currently have openings for remote roles in Customer Success, Support, and Engineering! Check it out and see if you have a good match!

Interested in being featured in this section? Nominate your company here.

A jobseeker you need to hire: Meet Miles Lee! Miles is a highly collaborative product designer who loves improving team workflows and user experiences. And in alignment with the theme of this week’s newsletter, Miles was impacted by layoffs in tech.
Recently, he worked on product strategy and design systems with the Strategic Design team at Attentive, a high-growth B2B SaaS startup whose SMS product has 8,000+ users and reaches billions of people worldwide. Shipping product updates, design system templates, and accessible web experiences, he collaborated with Client Strategy, Engineering, and PMs to improve their product for users. Advocating for their users and end users energized him; he came to understand their pain points and tweaked his team's workflow to ameliorate them. He’s open to remote work and relocation, especially to Seattle, Boston, and Chicago.
You can check out his work here.
Think you might have a role that’s a good fit for Miles, or be able to help make a connection? Add him on LinkedIn, or email him, and let’s get Miles hired!
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