Seven Things to Do and One Thing not to Do in a Time of Layoffs: A Mindfulness Perspective

Image Credits: Kris Shankar, MidJourney

A workmate from many years back dropped by for a chat a couple of days ago. He’d just gotten laid off from Microsoft after nearly two decades of working there. Ashwin (that’s what we’ll call him) was very unsettled and was struggling to process what had happened. We hadn’t spoken in years and I am not sure why he thought to reach out to me, but I was glad he did.

Like many others, Ashwin had done everything by the book. He had worked hard, developed new skills, moved key business metrics measurably, built a brand for himself. Now, in a spin of the corporate roulette wheel, he had been given the axe. To Ashwin, it felt like a Judgement of him as a professional, as a person, and he had somehow fallen short of expectations. Nobody was going to hire him now. He had applied to multiple positions since late January but hadn’t got a single interview call. More often than not, he would receive a cryptic form email stating that “the position was no longer available”. He was spending his daytime hours scouring job listings on company websites and by the evening, he would get this sensation in the pit of his stomach that he has squandered away his day. Should he be brushing up on his coding skills? Taking online courses to add new line items to his resume? What if he fluffed the first interview that came his way?

As we chatted, it was clear that Ashwin’s self-image had taken a beating. To quote Laurie Swanson, a recruiter, from a recent news article “If you’ve identified yourself with your salary, which a lot of people do, and if you identify yourself with working for a glamorous company like a Microsoft or Google or Meta, then your identity is taking a hit.”

Having been in a similar situation at least twice before in my career, once at Microsoft and once when the startup I’d worked for laid off all but five of its employees, I shared with him how mindfulness had helped me work through the most difficult parts of the experience.

1. Accept the situation

This is a fundamental truth behind all mindfulness and wisdom teachings. It’s not to rise above your circumstances so much as to accept them. This includes accepting your feelings of self-doubt, shock and denial. With acceptance, there is no inner conflict. The Buddhist practice of Vipassana meditation (“special, super (vi-), seeing (-passanā)”) involves becoming aware of and accepting of the multiple painful feelings, uncomfortable thoughts, and bodily aches and pains that we carry unbeknownst to us, just out of reach of our everyday awareness, without attempting to deny or suppress them. You don’t need Vipassana though, the simple act of acceptance will help.

2. Accept the reality of change

We often hear the refrain that change is the only constant. In the corporate world, it is ever-present in the form of managers who come and go, internal reorganizations and abruptly cancelled projects. Then there is Change with a capital C, where you have to contend with losing your job, your health or a near and dear one. “Big C” change is always hard to deal with. Another fundamental truth in wisdom teachings is the inevitability of change. In Buddhism, change or impermanence appears in Pali texts as, “sabbe sankhara anicca, sabbe sankhara dukkha, sabbe dhamma anatta”, which you can translate to mean “all worldly phenomena are transient (anicca), painful in the ultimate analysis, and devoid of permanence.”

3. Accept yourself

In other words, don’t fall into the trap of self-recrimination and self-blame. Like Ashwin, we are all inclined to judge ourselves harshly when our professional abilities are seemingly being called into question. It’s worth remembering that it’s not personal, even though it may feel like it. If it wasn’t you who was laid off, it would be someone else in your position. The Buddhist concept of anatta, often translated as “non-self”, is in this context a helpful reminder that it’s really not about you. A deeper understanding of anatta can also be helpful: almost universally, our sense of self-worth and identity is based on external factors out of our control, and this is what mindfulness teachings are pointing out as “non-self”.

So, beyond acceptance, what can you do? As it turns out, plenty. Mindfulness is not just about finding the right perspective, it’s also about taking the right action. As the famous Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh put it, “The basis of Right Action is to do everything in mindfulness.”

4. Nurture yourself

Start working with a trainer at the gym or enroll in a yoga class. You can also work with a therapist or a mindfulness coach. Some years back, overcoming my preconceived notions about “woo-woo stuff”, I worked with a counselor on journalling and dream analysis. I learned a lot about my inner fears and anxieties…. and had a blast in the process!

5. Shift your focus

Pay attention to all the things you have neglected. Family. Health. Home. Friends. Finances. Fairly straightforward stuff here. You now have more time to spend with family and friends. Schedule that annual health checkup. Fix stuff around the house. Set up that meeting with a financial advisor that you have been putting off for years, especially now! You no longer have an excuse. You can also volunteer in some form or fashion, say by tutoring disadvantaged children over Zoom.

6. Keep your mind fit

Take up an activity that requires both deep focus and progressive skill development where you feel both a sense of enjoyment and achievement. (Hint: That doesn’t mean taking a Python or ML course on Udemy to bolster your resume.) In one of my periods of prolonged unemployment, I took up playing chess for four hours a day and solved calculus problems from an old textbook for another four. Depending on your interests, you might enroll in language or music classes, take up pottery, or woodworking. This is your best bet against those late evening blues, where you feel the entire day has slipped away with nothing achieved. I can’t emphasize enough how much of a difference keeping my mind fit made for me.

7. Network, network, network

Network, both with former workmates who got laid off, and with those who didn’t. If networking is a word with somewhat negative connotations for you, think of it as reconnecting with former peers, managers and direct reports. And if you are an introvert like me, you might realize that you are connecting with some of these folks for the first time, despite having worked with them for years! Make it a goal to connect with an average of two former colleagues each week. When I got laid off from Microsoft about nine years ago, it was a former manager who reached out to me and connected me to several opportunities in his larger organization, helping me land my next role (I haven’t forgotten, Andrew Sinclair, if you are reading this). Most opportunities in a tight job market come through personal contacts. At least in the near term, applying for positions via a company’s website is likely to be a frustrating endeavor. However, don’t reconnect with people with the expectation that they will have a position open for you…you will only set yourself up for disappointment.

8. Don’t set a timetable

Namely, don’t set yourself a date by when to land your next role. You’ll only make yourself miserable. It doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take action, it just means you shouldn’t give yourself a deadline, one that is impossible for you to control. Companies are battening down the hatches at this time and will likely start rehiring only in about 3–4 months. Unless you think we are entering a great depression like that of the 1930s, you should land your next role in a few months’ time. If you worked in hi-tech, you’ve most likely been given a generous severance package…take a break, get yourself in the right frame of mind, get your house in order. Play the long game.

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In the meantime, here are some resources to get you started. You can also reach out to me if you want to (you guessed it!) network.

The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron: Despite its name, it’s a book for everyone, not just for artists. You can start journalling to develop greater awareness of your interests and career path… and unlock your creativity in the process. Believe me, it works.

Psychology.com: Has a directory of counselors in every state. Most tech company severance packages will pay for it, give it a try.

Dhamma.org and Cloud Mountain Retreat Center both conduct Buddhist mindfulness retreats for beginners and experienced meditators. You’ll frequently find folks from Microsoft, Google, Amazon, Facebook and other tech companies at their retreats. I have attended retreats at both centers and can vouch for their high standards. Best of all, Dhamma.org’s retreats are free for first-timers and Cloud Mountain is very favorably priced. Warning: their retreats fill up quickly.

Chess.com — Play Chess Online — Free Games — need I say more?