I got laid off in June 2023, and finally found a job in January this year. But man those 6 months of unemployment were hell – constant uncertainty, money problems, and I even gained a lot of weight. Things are better now – I've got a steady paycheck and some experience to put on my resume. But those six months left a scar. I can't seem to enjoy life like I used to. I'm always scared I'll lose my job again. God knows how will I cope up if it happens again. I worked so hard to prove myself that I burned out within the first few months. Now, I feel like I can never be truly happy until I create a sizeable passive source of income so that I don't have to give a fuck to this shitty job. This fear is eating me alive. Has anyone else been through something similar? How did you cope? #layoff #mentalhealth
What is your new TC? Are you on h1b?
I am based out of India. TC: INR 19 LPA (USD 23K) L4 SDE 1
lol what. Cost of living relative to salary for software engineers is super low in India. In the US, each year we work, we save approximately 6 - 8 months of runway because childcare costs like 30,000$/year, and rent is like half of after-tax income. How did you run out of money so quickly in India?
Have you even tried to drive an Uber? Ask.people who do that for a living For the first 6 months you will spend a lot more than you will earn
I think everyone who got laid off feels this at some point. It gets better with time, but not by a lot
Lol. Compared to other stuff that leaves scars, unemployment for 6 months is nothing. I was unemployed for 4 months and I can tell you it is nothing compared to the car accident I have been through.
It have been through this 3 times. Now employed by Broadcom, it might be 4 times in the near future. However, I am not stressed. Why? Well experience has taught me a few lessons: 1) you will get another job (especially in tech) 2) have a ‘recovery plan’: the best plans are simple. My recovery plan is: find a new job as fast as possible to keep my family finances in good standing. Take the job even if it doesn’t enhance your resume but instead leverages some of your older experience (say Java backend work on legacy code). But don’t put that job on your resume. As soon as you have secured that job, immediately start looking for a job that reflects better on your resume & gives you growth in the right direction. This right job exists, but it can take upto 9 months to secure it. 3) watch your spending. Save a lot. Especially save a lot for retirement & put your money in a good index fund. This is to take advantage of compound interest. The sooner you have the option to retire & do more of what you like the better. Why? Well, as you get older it gets harder to secure good paying jobs because there is a lot of youthful competition.
Same. 1 and 2, not so savvy on 3 but I’m trying
This is the way.
I got laid off 4 times in 5 years. not afraid of a damn thing
How old are you? It seems you're just learning we live in a pay-for-play world in general, while companies owe us absolutely nothing nor do you owe a company anything. People unfortunately have been indoctrinated to think 'if I just get a job at a big company my life will be set'. But they don’t understand that over 80% of the companies on the stock market 30 years ago are gone. There's a big risk in working for a company, just as much risk as starting your own business.
Sorry you went through this OP. Just remember this the next time it’s an employee’s market. Companies don’t care about you and don’t deserve any sort of loyalty.
How long have you been working.
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Have more savings?
+1 If you want passive income, you'll have to have some form of savings to buy whatever it is anyways. But also, passive income is kind of a myth. Having a low base cost of living and lots of savings is best.
College savings got exhausted during the 6 months. (It was a small amount tho, from internships and TAship) But I have started saving now. Living very frugally (borderline miserly). Thanks for the advice! Will start investing once I save sizeable amount.