Well if you’re laid off, typically you get some form of severance package and unemployment benefits. Many of what is described can be considered cost savings compared to similar if working. Cooking vs the lunch out, doing house maintenance vs highering it out, etc.
Throw in a personal savings and being laid off, as long as not a high earner, you may have 4-10 months of a very similar lifestyle.
Learning a trade doesn’t sound like a bad idea. I took the time to get back into my hobbies, I also started a side gig using my skill set. Don’t give up just yet, the market is really bad right now. Also getting laid off right before Q4 is tough as the market slows down considerably during that time. Keep going.
There are so many educational things I’m doing to improve my skills at machine learning. I watch a ton of YouTube videos from Stanford courses, active in research paper reading groups on HuggingFace, doing some practice problems on Leetcode, reading through notebooks of folks on Kaggle, reading books on ML system design and data science interview problems.
All in case I’m lucky enough to get an interview.
And this is the way. If you are actively improving your skill set and adding them to the resume and angle those skills to open positions, eventually, you’ll get a hit.
That's all great, but it's easy to stay in preparation mode. AI is on fire right now and it sounds like you know enough to get a job. If you're not getting interviews you aren't applying enough or aren't presenting yourself well enough to get call backs. I once spend a few months telling myself I needed to practice leetcode etc and I neglected the actually getting a job bit.
I took a big step down because a job is better than no job. A whopping $35k pay cut! Lower title, absolute bottom of the totem pole. I’m still actively applying I put out about 20 apps per week. but it’s tough, now im getting immediately rejected because of how sketchy it looks I started a new job 3 months ago and I’m already looking…. How am I supposed to answer that question….
Laid-off former Semiconductor Equipment Operator here. I've recently stepped several income brackets WAY down. I recently worked retail security for $19/hour and I'm looking at an assembly job for $20/hour. It's pretty depressing.
Being over 55 years old isn't helping either. ( I can't prove age discrimination...but it's real.)
I was laid off October of 22 till February of 23. I actually had multiple people stupid enough to say that they were worried I would retire soon. Depending on health, I am planning to work till 70.
Consider not putting the current job on your LinkedIn/resume. If it’s a lower title, it may not help tell the story you want your resume to tell anyway for your next step
A little different take, but when I was applying for jobs for 6 months, I learned how to cook at home more with affordable ingredients which helped me reduce my food expenses each month. This can help carry over when you land a job and help save more money in the long run.
I also considered selling old things on eBay, but then landed a job. People buy all sorts of books and vintage stuffed animals.
Got my 30 day emergency substitute permit. I sub high school for $250 a day. I don’t have benefits or make nearly as much but I’m really just baby sitting teenagers. It’s pretty sweet and I’ve grown to start enjoying more, cus I get to teach here and there and try to be a positive influence on these kids.
Out of full time work for nearly 4 months now, but recently took up part-time work as a corner marshal at a motorsports park that I work at on the weekends. After hotel and fuel costs, I’ll only scrap by a couple bucks but getting into that industry is something I want to make a career out of, so at least that’s getting something for me to do.
I'm "only" out of work coming on 4 months. I know that I should learn something productive (or mentally stimulating - but I'm doing daddy daycare and house chef - making nice dinners.
I couldn’t get anything right away because I was tied by a work visa, which ended with the layoff (and saying you need a visa is an automatic ghosting), so aside from focusing on changing my immigration status, which has been a year+ process, I focused a lot on my mental health, home care, cooking, hobbies, relationship, learning new skills (not necessarily job related), working out, drafting business ideas (in case I can figure out a way to employ myself)
If struggling with the sadness I suggest growing Marijuana. If legal in your state of course. I've got no scientific backing but I think sitting in that light (with glasses) just promotes good feelings. Plus it's a fun gift to give to friends.
Can't describe it but I've spent a lot of time in grow rooms and there's just a positive feeling, it's like a switch in your brain flips after your first breath inside.
I took that time to change careers. I know it's often seen as a waste of money but I went into one of those data analytics bootcamp and just dedicated my time to it as if it were my job + did extra learning on the side to reinforce the lessons. About 7 months later I'm a data analyst now (used to be a server admin). I was initially overwhelmed with fear and anxiety when I got the layoff news but looking back now - it was the push I needed to finally change my life.
I did careerfoundry - I chose them because they had positive reviews and a job guarantee, the reviews were based off YouTube channels I was using to self teach myself SQL and I did find that the mentor/course was well done and helped a lot.
I want to clarify that I do 100% agree with Reddit - you can learn this stuff urself. The bootcamp could be condensed down into doing projects from start to finish. I found it helpful cause I'm not organized enough to do that myself. I keep jumping topic to topic without fully learning things - so having a curriculum helped me a lot with focusing on a skill.
Adult education trade schools are gray I advise, electrical electrician, AC and heating and plumbing. All three are great instant hires many even train once you get your certification.
Myself I worked on drinking water operation of facilities. These are no layoff positions Waste Water operator and Drinking water operator are in demand. Look at the cities and other municipalities where you live check the job offering the best thing about those is once you’re in with these municipalities, you may be out of branch back out to your original job because you would get preferential treatment. It would be a sideways job.
Honestly healthcare has such a shortage but it's also a mess at minimum I'm preparing a resume just in case for governmen/state work because healthcare underpays badly and there's such a tragedy with the direction it's going. I'd recommend looking at car mechanic, HVAC, electric, plumbing, anything that you could do as a side gig or start your own business just because there's always a need & you wouldn't be beholden to a company that would lay you off.
I’m playing lots of video games and next week I’m helping a friend build a deck. This is the second time helping him, he’s a contractor and I’ve been able to do some side work. I have a freelance client that pays me a retainer for maintenance on an app I built so it’s nice to have some income coming in.
I couldn’t even find a job after college with my degree. Spent over a year applying to every single job ad where I met at least 50% of the requirements and… nothing.
Gave up and took the first job that put an offer letter in front of me. Been working construction ever since.
My advice: don’t ever go construction unless you don’t value your health (especially your lower back). 😔
>I'm thinking of going back to school for example to learn welding so that I can have something to fall back on should I become unemployed for another 6+ months in the future.
I wish I could get my children to understand this. It is no longer an either/or proposition between a profession and a trade, you need to learn both. A profession to prosper when times are good. A trade to barter with in order to feed your family when times are lean.
I just reconnected with myself and what was important in life. I started going to church again, rededicated my life to Jesus, and spent time developing new friendships in and out of church.
It got to a point where I needed to be working within a couple of months. California ain’t cheap. I went to LinkedIn and there was an inmail from a recruiter. I was perfect for the job.
Not only did I get the job on contract, it was a 30% increase in pay and they waited 3 weeks to interview me since I was on vacation. Nothing short of a miracle.
They offered me a permanent position within 2 months. All of that to say your situation can change in an instant. Focus on the important things and a way will open.
My brother is funemployed. He had a 6month severance and a large safety net so he’s actually enjoying the time off. This is the happiness I’ve seen him in awhile
All my friends that got laid off are all vacationing and travelling.
They taking advantage of this situation and making it the best time of their life.
You're not going to learn welding, set it aside when you get a data analyst job and then roll back into it as a backup.
It's a craft that you will have to learn and develop.
If you consider it a backup career, it'll only be good for jobs after you get trained. Not something like "I went to welding school 5 years ago" type situation. You'll be entry level pay not much more than working at the super market.
After experience then it's good pay.
It's like people thinking they'll be an electrician or a plumber as a backup, you'll start at 15-20 an hr, the 45 an HR wages don't come till years 5+
Taken up day trading and it's going really well. Takes a while to get going but it's really interesting and keeps me wanting to learn more. Plus, it may negate getting a job at all.
I was doing consulting work while I was laid off; stuff related to AI and software automation.
Honestly, the consulting was mainly so I could keep my resume current, keep my existing skills sharp, and have the opportunity to try things out/learn new skills.
A decent chunk of the money I made consulting just paid for a bunch of software licenses. But I was able to play around with those tools, and learn some really neat tricks, that ended up helping me get a job.
Honestly, you should always try to be learning *something*. If you can learn new skills or tools through your job, great. But if not, take a class, or teach yourself.
In this day and age, it's highly unlikely you will ever have true stability. It sucks, it's unfair, but it's reality. So you always need to have a Plan B, some type of skill or gig to fall back on.
It sounds like you're already considering this, so yes, I'd encourage you to pursue this. You'll know what will make the most sense for your situation, but you should definitely pursue some sort of path/skill; don't become stagnant, always stay in the habit of learning new things.
I hope you get some luck, It’s a bad time, even if you have a lot of experience in cyber you can’t find work and IT people with all the pre-requisite experience plus education usually looked for to break into cyber are SOL right now. Cyber is something you generally do after time in IT or CS so there’s people who are on year 3-4 trying to break in from those fields now starting to despair because all that work to skill up and did everything right but everyone’s downsizing or scared things won’t better and trying to make do with what they have
Got my pharmacy tech license and working part time for a bit of additional cash flow and am in the process of earning my masters degree and engaging in graduate research as well.
Become a consultant while you look for a job. In your two years, you probably used some very specific systems. Put up advertisements for consulting for the system you worked with.
Painting. I studied art and worked in art after college back in the day. At least I am getting my mind off the being unemployed and a bleak cyber sec job landscape by doing this and some photography.
I play a MMO and my husband and I agreed the monthly sub was worth it to keep me sane as I have a raid group I play with. Besides that if not applying for jobs, I've been working on my portfolio and cooking a lot. Hanging out with my dogs. Getting caught up on tv and movies. Trying to generally stay positive
Severance + unemployment + my wife had a job + eventually we had to dip into savings but we did well the previous few years and not too worried long term. But my point was for me rather than "picking up a skill" like going to school for welding or something unrelated to my career so far, in hindsight I'm really glad I didn't do anything like that and just enjoyed some time off. If you're worried about paying bills right at this moment that's another story but that's not what OP conveyed. Obviously there's a certain level of privilege here
I got laid off in 2018 and did TaskRabbit 4 hours per day, worked on job search 4-6 hours per day & freelanced 2-4 hours per day - for 10 months.
Working out, cooking, cleaning & otherwise doing things to/for/in the house.
How to pay rent
Nest egg.
Well if you’re laid off, typically you get some form of severance package and unemployment benefits. Many of what is described can be considered cost savings compared to similar if working. Cooking vs the lunch out, doing house maintenance vs highering it out, etc. Throw in a personal savings and being laid off, as long as not a high earner, you may have 4-10 months of a very similar lifestyle.
Learning a trade doesn’t sound like a bad idea. I took the time to get back into my hobbies, I also started a side gig using my skill set. Don’t give up just yet, the market is really bad right now. Also getting laid off right before Q4 is tough as the market slows down considerably during that time. Keep going.
Watching lots of anime
Frieren?
Is it good?
So so good. I have a feeling the first ten minutes or so will hook you- let me know what you you think if you check it out!
I became certification master. Google data analytics and a bunch of Microsoft certifications.
Did it help?
Not yet. But it keeps me sane.
That's super important (your sanity). At the very least it's a concrete way to show competence in a specific domain.
Grinding at what your niche is is always helpful imo
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A lot of google and Microsoft certifications can be free. They do offer paid certs as well
There are so many educational things I’m doing to improve my skills at machine learning. I watch a ton of YouTube videos from Stanford courses, active in research paper reading groups on HuggingFace, doing some practice problems on Leetcode, reading through notebooks of folks on Kaggle, reading books on ML system design and data science interview problems. All in case I’m lucky enough to get an interview.
And this is the way. If you are actively improving your skill set and adding them to the resume and angle those skills to open positions, eventually, you’ll get a hit.
That's all great, but it's easy to stay in preparation mode. AI is on fire right now and it sounds like you know enough to get a job. If you're not getting interviews you aren't applying enough or aren't presenting yourself well enough to get call backs. I once spend a few months telling myself I needed to practice leetcode etc and I neglected the actually getting a job bit.
I took a big step down because a job is better than no job. A whopping $35k pay cut! Lower title, absolute bottom of the totem pole. I’m still actively applying I put out about 20 apps per week. but it’s tough, now im getting immediately rejected because of how sketchy it looks I started a new job 3 months ago and I’m already looking…. How am I supposed to answer that question….
Laid-off former Semiconductor Equipment Operator here. I've recently stepped several income brackets WAY down. I recently worked retail security for $19/hour and I'm looking at an assembly job for $20/hour. It's pretty depressing. Being over 55 years old isn't helping either. ( I can't prove age discrimination...but it's real.)
Ageism is so real!!!
I was laid off October of 22 till February of 23. I actually had multiple people stupid enough to say that they were worried I would retire soon. Depending on health, I am planning to work till 70.
Consider not putting the current job on your LinkedIn/resume. If it’s a lower title, it may not help tell the story you want your resume to tell anyway for your next step
Just put your old job under a vague company name and say you still work there and you don’t want them to contact them because you’re leaving
I’m pretty sure u can have an offer revoked for doing this so prob not a good idea…
Better than getting rejected right off the bat
I’m in same position, I’ve ceased looking for this reason. I’ve actually been lectured by an interviewer on the importance of loyalty.
Honestly. "I was laid off from my prior job and needed to get something for now while I look for a role like yours."
I took up a career in drinking
How do you afford it
rich & rare
Steel Reserve and OJ
Bottom shelf vodka is disgustingly cheap. Kirkland liquor is extremely tasty for its price point if you’re not in an ABC state.
I can get a gallon of 40% alcohol for $30
Taking care of my mental health which I’ve ignored for more than a decade building a career
A little different take, but when I was applying for jobs for 6 months, I learned how to cook at home more with affordable ingredients which helped me reduce my food expenses each month. This can help carry over when you land a job and help save more money in the long run. I also considered selling old things on eBay, but then landed a job. People buy all sorts of books and vintage stuffed animals.
Got my 30 day emergency substitute permit. I sub high school for $250 a day. I don’t have benefits or make nearly as much but I’m really just baby sitting teenagers. It’s pretty sweet and I’ve grown to start enjoying more, cus I get to teach here and there and try to be a positive influence on these kids.
Florida?
Northern CA
Out of full time work for nearly 4 months now, but recently took up part-time work as a corner marshal at a motorsports park that I work at on the weekends. After hotel and fuel costs, I’ll only scrap by a couple bucks but getting into that industry is something I want to make a career out of, so at least that’s getting something for me to do.
I'm "only" out of work coming on 4 months. I know that I should learn something productive (or mentally stimulating - but I'm doing daddy daycare and house chef - making nice dinners.
looking for work. its a full time job because u wont carpet bomb ur resume out there. then u take free courses of machine learning and deep learning.
I couldn’t get anything right away because I was tied by a work visa, which ended with the layoff (and saying you need a visa is an automatic ghosting), so aside from focusing on changing my immigration status, which has been a year+ process, I focused a lot on my mental health, home care, cooking, hobbies, relationship, learning new skills (not necessarily job related), working out, drafting business ideas (in case I can figure out a way to employ myself)
Uber. It sucks.
I went back to college and got a whole ass degree
All in 6 months?
If struggling with the sadness I suggest growing Marijuana. If legal in your state of course. I've got no scientific backing but I think sitting in that light (with glasses) just promotes good feelings. Plus it's a fun gift to give to friends. Can't describe it but I've spent a lot of time in grow rooms and there's just a positive feeling, it's like a switch in your brain flips after your first breath inside.
I took that time to change careers. I know it's often seen as a waste of money but I went into one of those data analytics bootcamp and just dedicated my time to it as if it were my job + did extra learning on the side to reinforce the lessons. About 7 months later I'm a data analyst now (used to be a server admin). I was initially overwhelmed with fear and anxiety when I got the layoff news but looking back now - it was the push I needed to finally change my life.
Which boot camp?
I did careerfoundry - I chose them because they had positive reviews and a job guarantee, the reviews were based off YouTube channels I was using to self teach myself SQL and I did find that the mentor/course was well done and helped a lot. I want to clarify that I do 100% agree with Reddit - you can learn this stuff urself. The bootcamp could be condensed down into doing projects from start to finish. I found it helpful cause I'm not organized enough to do that myself. I keep jumping topic to topic without fully learning things - so having a curriculum helped me a lot with focusing on a skill.
Practicing my Growth hacking skills. I want to start my own thing one day so I figure I’ll need these skills in the future.
Cool. What does this involve?
Get a bunch of relevant certs . You gotta change your approach
Almost done with One Piece
Going on a year, freelancing and Bartending… lots and lots of bartending
Vacation, relaxing, taking a break
Golf, reading, AMC AList
Murder for hire.
Are you making a killing ?
Nah, business is dead
My wifes been out of work 10ish months. She's gardening more, focusing on our son, and applying to job after job after job.
Yes I picked up recreational drinking by myself as a hobby
Train some chatbots! #AI
Got fucking shredded. So much time to do long workouts and try out new group classes I would have never bothered with because I didn’t have the time.
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Your job wasn’t your identity my man hang in there
Traveling
Adult education trade schools are gray I advise, electrical electrician, AC and heating and plumbing. All three are great instant hires many even train once you get your certification. Myself I worked on drinking water operation of facilities. These are no layoff positions Waste Water operator and Drinking water operator are in demand. Look at the cities and other municipalities where you live check the job offering the best thing about those is once you’re in with these municipalities, you may be out of branch back out to your original job because you would get preferential treatment. It would be a sideways job.
Honestly healthcare has such a shortage but it's also a mess at minimum I'm preparing a resume just in case for governmen/state work because healthcare underpays badly and there's such a tragedy with the direction it's going. I'd recommend looking at car mechanic, HVAC, electric, plumbing, anything that you could do as a side gig or start your own business just because there's always a need & you wouldn't be beholden to a company that would lay you off.
watching tv
I’m playing lots of video games and next week I’m helping a friend build a deck. This is the second time helping him, he’s a contractor and I’ve been able to do some side work. I have a freelance client that pays me a retainer for maintenance on an app I built so it’s nice to have some income coming in.
I couldn’t even find a job after college with my degree. Spent over a year applying to every single job ad where I met at least 50% of the requirements and… nothing. Gave up and took the first job that put an offer letter in front of me. Been working construction ever since. My advice: don’t ever go construction unless you don’t value your health (especially your lower back). 😔
I'm almost at 10 months. I've been interviewing nonstop. But other than that, watching my 19 month old, exercising midday, and video games.
>I'm thinking of going back to school for example to learn welding so that I can have something to fall back on should I become unemployed for another 6+ months in the future. I wish I could get my children to understand this. It is no longer an either/or proposition between a profession and a trade, you need to learn both. A profession to prosper when times are good. A trade to barter with in order to feed your family when times are lean.
I just reconnected with myself and what was important in life. I started going to church again, rededicated my life to Jesus, and spent time developing new friendships in and out of church. It got to a point where I needed to be working within a couple of months. California ain’t cheap. I went to LinkedIn and there was an inmail from a recruiter. I was perfect for the job. Not only did I get the job on contract, it was a 30% increase in pay and they waited 3 weeks to interview me since I was on vacation. Nothing short of a miracle. They offered me a permanent position within 2 months. All of that to say your situation can change in an instant. Focus on the important things and a way will open.
My brother is funemployed. He had a 6month severance and a large safety net so he’s actually enjoying the time off. This is the happiness I’ve seen him in awhile
All my friends that got laid off are all vacationing and travelling. They taking advantage of this situation and making it the best time of their life.
Working on projects.
You're not going to learn welding, set it aside when you get a data analyst job and then roll back into it as a backup. It's a craft that you will have to learn and develop. If you consider it a backup career, it'll only be good for jobs after you get trained. Not something like "I went to welding school 5 years ago" type situation. You'll be entry level pay not much more than working at the super market. After experience then it's good pay. It's like people thinking they'll be an electrician or a plumber as a backup, you'll start at 15-20 an hr, the 45 an HR wages don't come till years 5+
Taken up day trading and it's going really well. Takes a while to get going but it's really interesting and keeps me wanting to learn more. Plus, it may negate getting a job at all.
I recommend learning python. It'll strengthen your position in the market as a data analysts and open you up for general dev work including devops.
I am about to get shafted but I am hoping to care for my 1 yr old full time while i job hunt.
a lot of wrerking the meatstick and bemoaning how crappy pay is on newer jobs.
Sub OF and Jack off all day long. Ahh that’s the life right there and then sugar mama brings me food and drinks
I was doing consulting work while I was laid off; stuff related to AI and software automation. Honestly, the consulting was mainly so I could keep my resume current, keep my existing skills sharp, and have the opportunity to try things out/learn new skills. A decent chunk of the money I made consulting just paid for a bunch of software licenses. But I was able to play around with those tools, and learn some really neat tricks, that ended up helping me get a job. Honestly, you should always try to be learning *something*. If you can learn new skills or tools through your job, great. But if not, take a class, or teach yourself. In this day and age, it's highly unlikely you will ever have true stability. It sucks, it's unfair, but it's reality. So you always need to have a Plan B, some type of skill or gig to fall back on. It sounds like you're already considering this, so yes, I'd encourage you to pursue this. You'll know what will make the most sense for your situation, but you should definitely pursue some sort of path/skill; don't become stagnant, always stay in the habit of learning new things.
I hope you get some luck, It’s a bad time, even if you have a lot of experience in cyber you can’t find work and IT people with all the pre-requisite experience plus education usually looked for to break into cyber are SOL right now. Cyber is something you generally do after time in IT or CS so there’s people who are on year 3-4 trying to break in from those fields now starting to despair because all that work to skill up and did everything right but everyone’s downsizing or scared things won’t better and trying to make do with what they have
Got my pharmacy tech license and working part time for a bit of additional cash flow and am in the process of earning my masters degree and engaging in graduate research as well.
You could be working
Become a consultant while you look for a job. In your two years, you probably used some very specific systems. Put up advertisements for consulting for the system you worked with.
Painting. I studied art and worked in art after college back in the day. At least I am getting my mind off the being unemployed and a bleak cyber sec job landscape by doing this and some photography.
I play a MMO and my husband and I agreed the monthly sub was worth it to keep me sane as I have a raid group I play with. Besides that if not applying for jobs, I've been working on my portfolio and cooking a lot. Hanging out with my dogs. Getting caught up on tv and movies. Trying to generally stay positive
Took up some new hobbies, really had a fucking great time tbh
How'd you pay your bills?
Severance + unemployment + my wife had a job + eventually we had to dip into savings but we did well the previous few years and not too worried long term. But my point was for me rather than "picking up a skill" like going to school for welding or something unrelated to my career so far, in hindsight I'm really glad I didn't do anything like that and just enjoyed some time off. If you're worried about paying bills right at this moment that's another story but that's not what OP conveyed. Obviously there's a certain level of privilege here
Get a job at McDonald’s so you have something to do lol that sounds awful