Lay offs. Are you ready?

Lay offs are everywhere in Tech these days. You should act NOW.

Twitter has cut 50% of its workforce in November, Facebook announced 13% cuts about the same time. Microsoft has announced it's going to cut 10000 jobs.

Losing a job can be devastating but it doesn't have to be. Below is 6 step strategy which I think can save one's life.

Step one:
Work on the emergency fund. It's advisable to have at least 3 months of salary in a safe place - just in case. At times like this I would probably suggest changing the target to 6 amounts of your monthly expenses

Step two:
If you can - decrease your expenses. Sell this unused car you have, stop subscriptions you don't use, consider home made lunch over Deliveroo. And now totally is not a good time for credit application unless it's a matter of life and death.

Step three:
It is never hurt to have your CV up to date. Update it now, and if people suggest you roles to consider - don't refuse them straight away. You might be looking for a new role sooner than you expect

Step four:
Have plan B. List 3-5 companies, including your ex-employers which you could go to if you have to. Try to come up with a list of companies you might want to stick around with.

Step five:
Have plan C. If you cannot find new work in 2-3 months - what kind of temporary work you may have? Maybe there's something you always wanted to do but could not because it wasn't profitable enough? Job which isn't paid very well for usually is better than no job at all, especially when you have family and bills to foot.

Step six:
Prepare for tech interviews. Do Leetcode challenges or participate in mock interviews on my YouTube channel or even just go through real interviews. Make sure you can crack it when and if you have to!

Bonus tip:
Don't even consider changing jobs now. Laying off long-term employee is usually significantly more difficult than ending a probation or revoking an offer altogether. Just check your LinkedIn - it's full of stories about that.

Hope this helps and even more so - hope none of this will be necessary.

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