8 Hard truths I learned when I got laid off from my SWE job

Re:8 Hard truths I learned when I got laid off from my SWE job by Jagerbizzle on Wednesday December 28, 2022 @12:14PM (#34163187)

"A year of unemployment? Lonely, depressing, and not good on a resume."

A year of unemployment seems significantly less depressing than this statement. What if you were to travel (or hike/explore your local area), focus on quality time with your family, friends, or dog? This to me seems way less depressing than grinding on some meaningless side-project, and as a hiring manager at a FAANG I would absolutely look at a year on someone's CV spent on these activities as a positive rather than a negative.

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Re:8 Hard truths I learned when I got laid off from my SWE job by geekbird on Wednesday December 28, 2022 @12:44PM (#34163568)

I've had bouts of unemployment lasting a year and a half. It's really hard to focus on side projects when you are worried about being able to pay the rent and health insurance and your pittance of unemployment insurance has run out.

My advice to anyone in the tech field is to try to have a lot of reserves, because tech is cyclical, and layoffs are inevitable, like every two to five years.

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