Sometimes Layoffs Can Have A Silver Lining

Sometimes layoffs can have a silver lining… 

I’m going to share this story because usually layoffs are a negative thing in the short term (having just written about my own adverse experience in this post: A Crisis of Identity).  But sometimes luck can be on your side, all the stars align… and you knock it out of the park.  The story I am about to tell you is real, although I can barely believe it myself.

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(February 2020 – prior to any pandemic fear) 

My brother was laid off from his job yesterday.  Well, technically not laid off yet, but imminently in two months.  He was given notice and if he sticks around like a good lil’ employee, he gets his severance package. 

He’s 30.  He’ll be fine and it was one of those zingers out of the blue. 

In my opinion, this is actually a good thing.  Like many of us, he had become complacent and comfortable after being with the same mega-corp for over 7 years.  He had been wanting a change for a while now, just not like this.  Because we never want it to be like this.  We always want it to end on our terms, not theirs. 

Sure, he’ll struggle with the normal emotions that go with any downsizing: shock, fear, anger and grief.  There will be loss of identity for however long the transition takes and a bruised ego, but a new life will be forged from the ashes of the old one.  He will learn and be stronger for experiencing this shunned aspect of corporate America at such a young age. 

The irony, that we can all relate to (if you’ve been laid off before), is that he thought he was safe… beyond safe.  Just the previous week he was telling my dad how busy his department was and that he could easily hire two new scientists to help with his burgeoning workload. 

But like a lot of us, he had to learn the hard way.  That regardless of what you think or feel, when you’re employed by corporate America, you are always one step away from losing all that you depend on.  Beneath the solid ground that you think you are standing on, lays an ever so thin layer of ice. 

Careful how you tread my friend… 

This is what I try to tell people who think layoffs do not apply to them and they are immune.  It doesn’t matter how safe you think you are.  It doesn’t matter how busy you are.  It doesn’t matter how much of a super worker and all-star you think you are.  Because change comes from the top, in areas that you can’t see, feel or begin to understand. 

So, you can falsely believe that everything is sunshine and roses, but the hammer can drop at any moment, like a guillotine on the refrain. 

Remember, you always need a plan “B”.  Dust off that resume and keep your LinkedIn contacts current.  Because the day to start looking for a new job is the first day that you start in your new one. 

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(March 2020) 

It’s been a month since my brother got the news of his layoff and everything has changed.  I’m happy to write this because it gives me hope that good things can still happen to those who work hard. 

Once he knew his job was ending, he got on the phone.  He took action (and yes, I am very aware that this does not guarantee you anything, but it will at least create more options than you would have had). 

He called a bunch of different people, some work contacts in his field and some that were not.  One of them happened to be his brother-in-law who worked as a business consultant but had a background in coding.  My brother is a scientist but always had an interest in coding and had taken some classes on his own to help teach himself.  Long story short, they got to talking and this brother-in-law thought he might be able to hook my brother up with a consulting job if he was willing to put in some very hard work quickly and switch industries. 

This potential new job would be in DC, but both my brother and his wife had been looking at moving from the West Coast back East for a few years now, so the opportunity has potential.  My brother will have to eat and sleep coding the next few weeks and make it through several rounds of interviews, in order to capitalize on this opportunity.  I think it’s a long shot, but he might as well put in the time and effort and see where he lands.  He’s going to be unemployed anyway, so he has nothing to lose, right?  If anything, it will help his interview chops to get ready for other job opportunities. 

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(April 2020) 

I can’t believe I am typing this, but in less than two months of being told my brother was going to be laid off, enduring one of the craziest employment fiascos in the pandemic (that looked like his layoff timing could not have been worse since the Great Depression) and slurping down several weeks of non-stop coding tutorials and advice, my brother will be moving to DC to start a new career as a coder! 

If you would have asked me if this scenario was even remotely possible back in February, I would have said that you are fucking crazy!  In all my years of corporate experience, I haven’t seen anything like it and I could not be more happy, proud and excited for him.  In an exceptionally quick turnaround, he was able to recover from losing a job that he didn’t like and switch to a more promising career brimming with potential in an entirely unrelated industry before he’s even collected his first severance check. 

Absolutely amazing. 

In addition, his new company is also a small consulting firm that I hope will have much more of a family feel than the mega-corp he is leaving.  And, since we are in a shelter-in-place and there is no longer any reason to stay in California, my brother, his wife and his one-year old Golden Retriever have made the trek from Coast to Coast while searching for their new house and beginning the next chapter of their lives in the DC area. 

I think it’s safe to say that this is not the normal layoff/career-turnaround story (as you can read about with my own experience).  Most of us are not this lucky to have great opportunities fall into our laps so quickly.  However, the important take-away is that my brother seized the moment and took full advantage of the resources that were available to him. 

And maybe he won’t like this new job at all.  But at least he got out of his old situation and is growing.  This will be a huge transition that will pay dividends down the road in both learning and experience. 

Anyway, with the virus and all the scary and uncertain stuff transpiring in our fragile lives lately, I thought I’d share a positive story that reminds us no matter what happens, you never know where the cards will fall.  And sometimes something as traumatic and stressful as being laid off… can turn into that pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. 

Keep on chasing that rainbow my friends… 

Stay safe and keep your heads up out there. 

-Q-FI 

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P.S.  Ever have an experience that seemed dire and insurmountable but ended up having a transformative silver lining attached to it?  Please share…