Latest / DevQuestions with Tim Corey / 204. 5 Proactive Measures to Survive Job Uncertainty

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204. 5 Proactive Measures to Survive Job Uncertainty · DevQuestions with Tim Corey

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to the Dev Questions Podcast with Tim Corey.
• 0:03
  SPEAKER_00: Join us each episode as we tackle the questions you are asking about a career in software development, understanding the industry, and new technology.
• 0:12
  SPEAKER_00: If you're just starting out or you want to grow stronger as a developer, this is the place to get your questions answered.
• 0:19
  SPEAKER_00: Now, here's your host, expert developer and online educator, Tim Corey.
• 0:25
  SPEAKER_02: How do I prepare to lose my job?
• 0:28
  SPEAKER_02: If I think I might get laid off soon, how do I start preparing?
• 0:32
  SPEAKER_02: Are there certain tasks that we should be doing now to get ready?
• 0:36
  SPEAKER_02: Yes, absolutely.
• 0:38
  SPEAKER_02: In fact, every person in a job currently should be doing five things to prepare yourself for losing your job.
• 0:46
  SPEAKER_02: So let's talk about it in today's episode of Dev Questions.
• 0:50
  SPEAKER_02: Now, first, let's address a reality of the job market today.
• 0:56
  SPEAKER_02: You are in danger of losing your job.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_02: That's hard to hear, but it's the reality.
• 1:01
  SPEAKER_02: It doesn't matter if you work for a really successful company like Microsoft or a family-run small business.
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_02: In 2023, over 262,000 tech workers were laid off.
• 1:15
  SPEAKER_02: Now, that's number one, but number two, seemingly the opposite.
• 1:19
  SPEAKER_02: The role of software developer is rapidly growing.
• 1:23
  SPEAKER_02: The US Bureau of Labor and Statistics projects a growth in software development jobs of 22% over the next five years.
• 1:32
  SPEAKER_02: Now, to put that in perspective, the average job growth is 4%.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_02: So it's a major growth in the market, which seems contradictory.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_02: If there's so many layoffs, why is growth actually going up, not down?
• 1:47
  SPEAKER_02: And the reality is because the market is volatile.
• 1:50
  SPEAKER_02: Okay.
• 1:51
  SPEAKER_02: So some companies, like Microsoft and the other big tech companies, had high overhired because of COVID and because of that era we went through.
• 2:01
  SPEAKER_02: And then they're starting to restructure.
• 2:03
  SPEAKER_02: But also part of it is just a restructuring based upon new technologies and new market factors.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_02: And some of it's just companies being run poorly.
• 2:13
  SPEAKER_02: But whatever it is, yes, there will always be layoffs in the tech sector.
• 2:20
  SPEAKER_02: But there is also major growth.
• 2:24
  SPEAKER_02: So with the job openings and the existing job being eliminated or shifted, the likelihood of you wanting to be wanting to or being forced to change roles has never been higher.
• 2:39
  SPEAKER_02: So with all that happening, what should you do to prepare?
• 2:44
  SPEAKER_02: Okay, number one, maintain a current resume.
• 2:48
  SPEAKER_02: Be prepared.
• 2:50
  SPEAKER_02: So this is really important.
• 2:51
  SPEAKER_02: Let's talk about what happens when you get laid off.
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_02: Let's just say you work at X Tech Company.
• 2:57
  SPEAKER_02: You know, we're not gonna, okay, not X, yeah, it's already a tech company.
• 3:00
  SPEAKER_02: Let's talk about Acme Tech Company.
• 3:02
  SPEAKER_02: How about that?
• 3:03
  SPEAKER_02: I don't think there's one of those.
• 3:04
  SPEAKER_02: But Acme Tech Company, and they have a thousand developers, and they decide to lay off a quarter of their staff.
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_02: This has happened at multiple tech companies recently.
• 3:17
  SPEAKER_02: So a quarter of their staff from a thousand developers, that means 250 developers are hitting the marketplace right now.
• 3:25
  SPEAKER_02: Okay, you're one of them.
• 3:27
  SPEAKER_02: So you're one of 250 people looking for a job in your area.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_02: And the other people that are looking for a job are also looking for a job in your area.
• 3:40
  SPEAKER_02: So how do you stand out in that extra amount of people in the market?
• 3:47
  SPEAKER_02: Because there's already people in the market looking for a job.
• 3:49
  SPEAKER_02: And now there's a lot more.
• 3:52
  SPEAKER_02: Well, the first way, the best way is to be prepared right away.
• 3:58
  SPEAKER_02: Because there's some people, and you may be in this category currently, that if they were to get laid off today, they have no resume that's been updated, they have no portfolio, they have no anything ready to go.
• 4:13
  SPEAKER_02: And so they're going to spend the next three, five, seven days working on that.
• 4:18
  SPEAKER_02: Or even worse, and please don't do this.
• 4:21
  SPEAKER_02: Their tech company has been super generous and gave them six months of severance.
• 4:26
  SPEAKER_02: And so what they decide is I'll get to it in three months, or I'll work at it over the next three months and then I will start applying.
• 4:36
  SPEAKER_02: Well, guess what?
• 4:37
  SPEAKER_02: That's what a lot of people do, and the jobs that are open now are going to be filled by the people who decide to go more quickly.
• 4:45
  SPEAKER_02: So, number one, maintain a current resume.
• 4:49
  SPEAKER_02: That way you can start looking for a job right away.
• 4:52
  SPEAKER_02: Now, number two, continue to create new portfolio items.
• 4:57
  SPEAKER_02: You have a portfolio, right?
• 4:59
  SPEAKER_02: So having a portfolio is really important because it shows off what you can do.
• 5:04
  SPEAKER_02: This will help when a hiring manager says, I'm not sure.
• 5:10
  SPEAKER_02: This resume looks like everybody else's resume.
• 5:12
  SPEAKER_02: How do I know they can do what they say they can do?
• 5:15
  SPEAKER_02: How do I see if they stand out from the crowd?
• 5:18
  SPEAKER_02: A portfolio can be really helpful for this.
• 5:21
  SPEAKER_02: So having a current portfolio where you continue to update new items in it.
• 5:28
  SPEAKER_02: That's really important.
• 5:31
  SPEAKER_02: So again, if you have those two things day one, you can start applying for new jobs day one.
• 5:38
  SPEAKER_02: All right.
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_02: Now, number three, continue to grow through training and practice.
• 5:44
  SPEAKER_02: So this comes back to the number two, which is the portfolio.
• 5:49
  SPEAKER_02: If you're training and you're practicing what you're training, you can put those practice things, the best versions, into your portfolio.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_02: So it kind of goes hand in hand.
• 6:00
  SPEAKER_02: But here's the deal: if you don't know you're gonna get laid off and it just happens, well, then it's too late to start training because you can't just cram it all in in a day and then add a new skill to your resume.
• 6:15
  SPEAKER_02: So if you've been working on old technology, because let's face it, if you're working in an established company, you're working on older technology.
• 6:22
  SPEAKER_02: But if you're working in older technology, then you get laid off and you want to get into the newer stuff.
• 6:28
  SPEAKER_02: Well, what do you have to show for yourself?
• 6:31
  SPEAKER_02: What can you show that says, yes, I know this latest technology if you don't have something in your portfolio, if you don't have something that you've practiced and worked on.
• 6:40
  SPEAKER_02: So you can't just pick that up in a day, which means that if you do have about six months, maybe you're thinking, oh, I'll spend four months learning and then I'll apply.
• 6:50
  SPEAKER_02: But now your runaway is running out.
• 6:52
  SPEAKER_02: Like you're you've got to take off pretty quick.
• 6:54
  SPEAKER_02: So now you've kind of committed to looking for a job for two months, not six.
• 7:00
  SPEAKER_02: So I would encourage you to always be training, always be improving.
• 7:05
  SPEAKER_02: Now, number four, build a network of context.
• 7:10
  SPEAKER_02: So knowing people is really important when it comes to a new job.
• 7:16
  SPEAKER_02: And there's ways to do this, even if you're an introvert.
• 7:20
  SPEAKER_02: Personally, yes, I'm an introvert.
• 7:22
  SPEAKER_02: So when it comes to getting out there and putting myself out there and meeting new people, it can be difficult.
• 7:29
  SPEAKER_02: But user groups are a great place to start.
• 7:32
  SPEAKER_02: You're growing your skills, number three, which you can then put in your portfolio, number two.
• 7:37
  SPEAKER_02: Um, but also you're meeting people and you're building contacts and you you now know people in the area in other jobs that do development.
• 7:48
  SPEAKER_02: So there's somebody you can call.
• 7:51
  SPEAKER_02: But also your existing coworkers, the people you work with right now, they may not be here forever.
• 7:57
  SPEAKER_02: In fact, they may have been laid off in the last round of layoffs.
• 8:01
  SPEAKER_02: Well, if they were laid off in the last round of layoffs, where are they now?
• 8:05
  SPEAKER_02: Do they have a job somewhere in the area?
• 8:07
  SPEAKER_02: Because you know them and they know you.
• 8:11
  SPEAKER_02: And so if you reach out to them and say, hey, I lost my job at Acme Corp again, um, do you have a position?
• 8:18
  SPEAKER_02: And they're like, yeah.
• 8:19
  SPEAKER_02: You know, at X, Y, V, Z, Anvil's, we've we've got lots of developers.
• 8:24
  SPEAKER_02: We're looking for people like you.
• 8:25
  SPEAKER_02: Okay, so knowing people and building that network of contacts is really valuable.
• 8:31
  SPEAKER_02: Number five.
• 8:33
  SPEAKER_02: And this is one that people often overlook because they think that it will never happen to me, I'll only ever move up, and so on.
• 8:42
  SPEAKER_02: But number five is live within your means if at all possible.
• 8:47
  SPEAKER_02: And what I mean by that is let's just say you're in a great tech job for you and and you're making$100,000 a year.
• 8:55
  SPEAKER_02: And so you decide, hey, we're we're doing great, we have extra money left over, let's go ahead and buy a car, buy another car, a better car.
• 9:05
  SPEAKER_02: And so you buy a better car and you finance it for five or six years because you can't afford to pay for it outright.
• 9:10
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, who can, right?
• 9:12
  SPEAKER_02: So you buy an expensive car, but you can definitely afford the payments.
• 9:16
  SPEAKER_02: They're very easy to make for you until you get laid off.
• 9:20
  SPEAKER_02: And then all of a sudden, those payments, they're a big deal.
• 9:25
  SPEAKER_02: Now, again, you have to make some choices because you have to live somewhere and you do have to drive something.
• 9:32
  SPEAKER_02: But let me tell you a little story about how we did it.
• 9:36
  SPEAKER_02: Okay, so I have been a software developer since, well, since I was 17, actually.
• 9:42
  SPEAKER_02: I was a, you know, working for a company doing software development.
• 9:46
  SPEAKER_02: But all during that time, okay, um, I started living kind of at my means.
• 9:53
  SPEAKER_02: Okay.
• 9:54
  SPEAKER_02: If I made money, I spent money.
• 9:55
  SPEAKER_02: And I got married, and you know, we started to realize that, hey, we have less money because we've got more expenses.
• 10:03
  SPEAKER_02: And at one point, what we ended up doing was we moved into a mobile home.
• 10:07
  SPEAKER_02: I was a software developer.
• 10:08
  SPEAKER_02: I was making decent money.
• 10:10
  SPEAKER_02: And I was even working side jobs, but we lived in a mobile home because we wanted to pay off as much as possible.
• 10:17
  SPEAKER_02: And that wasn't convenient.
• 10:18
  SPEAKER_02: It wasn't always fun.
• 10:20
  SPEAKER_02: There was a lot of uh problems with that.
• 10:22
  SPEAKER_02: But we also drove beat-up vehicles.
• 10:25
  SPEAKER_02: In fact, for a long time we drove one vehicle, even though we had kids, because that's what we could afford and stay within our means.
• 10:34
  SPEAKER_02: And then, you know, I bought a really ridiculously cheap vehicle that barely ran, but it did as a second vehicle, because I wanted to stay within our means and not go into further debt and pay off the debt we had.
• 10:51
  SPEAKER_02: It was something we had to do for a long time.
• 10:55
  SPEAKER_02: But because we did that, we set a foundation up where we didn't have debt.
• 11:00
  SPEAKER_02: And so then when we bought an actual house, a bigger house at a, you know, I don't even want to call it, it's still an actual house if it's a mobile home.
• 11:08
  SPEAKER_02: But, you know, bought a real house with a foundation and all the rest, um, we could better afford that.
• 11:16
  SPEAKER_02: And it was not even close to our means.
• 11:20
  SPEAKER_02: We still had money left over.
• 11:22
  SPEAKER_02: So when I changed jobs and all of a sudden I didn't have as much income, it was okay.
• 11:29
  SPEAKER_02: And we weren't kind of grasping for things.
• 11:33
  SPEAKER_02: We were able to make decisions that were more calm.
• 11:38
  SPEAKER_02: Because when you are running out of money, you have to make decisions that aren't as pleasant.
• 11:44
  SPEAKER_02: You may be working at places that, you know what, don't fit within your desired category.
• 11:51
  SPEAKER_02: For example, you might end up working at Taco Bell, even though you're a software developer, because you just need to make some money because you need to pay for what you have.
• 11:58
  SPEAKER_02: That's a totally valid choice, but you don't want to get there if you don't have to.
• 12:02
  SPEAKER_02: And one of the ways to not get there is to continue to set aside savings so that when the rainy day does happen, you're prepared and you don't have to depend on your company to give you severance, or you don't have to prepare for, you know, or don't have to depend on the generosity of others in order to survive until that next job.
• 12:23
  SPEAKER_02: Okay.
• 12:24
  SPEAKER_02: So there's a lot of things you can do to prepare to get the job more quickly, but also living their means will allow you to live longer without the job yet, which will allow you to be more choosy.
• 12:38
  SPEAKER_02: If you're offered a job and you have no money, you're more likely to take it even if it's not a great job.
• 12:45
  SPEAKER_02: Because you just have to do something.
• 12:48
  SPEAKER_02: So by as much as possible, building up a savings account, building up some things that will help you when you do lose your job, that will give you a cushion that will allow you to say, you know what, that's not in line with what I'm looking for from a job.
• 13:04
  SPEAKER_02: I'll keep looking.
• 13:05
  SPEAKER_02: Okay.
• 13:06
  SPEAKER_02: So those are the five things that I would recommend doing.
• 13:10
  SPEAKER_02: Maintain a current resume.
• 13:12
  SPEAKER_02: Continue to update your portfolio.
• 13:15
  SPEAKER_02: Continue to train and practice, and then put practice into the portfolio, build a network of contacts that you know.
• 13:23
  SPEAKER_02: And then number five, live within your means if at all possible.
• 13:26
  SPEAKER_02: Okay, so those five things will help you when it comes to the potential of losing your job.
• 13:33
  SPEAKER_02: You don't know when you might lose your job.
• 13:35
  SPEAKER_02: It might happen at any time in any company.
• 13:39
  SPEAKER_02: So being prepared for that will be really helpful because it will give you a leg up when it comes to your quote unquote competition.
• 13:48
  SPEAKER_02: The other people that will let up, let go, and will allow you to transition into a job you're looking for.
• 13:54
  SPEAKER_02: And remember, I said that, yeah, there's been a lot of layoffs in tech, but there's also a lot of growth in tech.
• 14:00
  SPEAKER_02: These same five steps will prepare you for if you find one of those growth jobs where you're like, hey, you know what?
• 14:09
  SPEAKER_02: That company is growing.
• 14:10
  SPEAKER_02: I like where they're going.
• 14:11
  SPEAKER_02: I like to work on that, or they have a position that really fits me better and is a better salary.
• 14:17
  SPEAKER_02: Those things will allow you to more quickly take advantage of those situations where maybe you find out on a Friday that a job is opening up on Monday and you're prepared.
• 14:28
  SPEAKER_02: Or even can make a call to somebody you know to get in ahead of time and say, hey, can I bump the line?
• 14:34
  SPEAKER_02: Can I kind of be first in line here?
• 14:37
  SPEAKER_02: And that can be a huge difference between not getting the job and getting the job.
• 14:42
  SPEAKER_02: All right.
• 14:43
  SPEAKER_02: So that's how you prepare to lose your job.
• 14:46
  SPEAKER_02: Thanks for the question.
• 14:47
  SPEAKER_02: And as always, I am Tim Corey.
• 14:49
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you for joining us for this episode of Def Questions.
• 14:52
  SPEAKER_01: Tim is committed to making it easier for you to become a developer.
• 14:56
  SPEAKER_01: If you would like to help make more content like this possible, please like, subscribe, rate, and share Dev Questions.
• 15:03
  SPEAKER_01: You can also send your questions to questions at IamTimcorey.com.
• 15:08
  SPEAKER_01: Until next time, remember, you are too smart and your time too valuable to waste it making all the mistakes Tim did.
• 15:15
  SPEAKER_01: When you're ready to learn to think and code like a professional developer, head over to imtimcore.com and enroll in a course.