The Dos and Dont’s of Losing a Tech Job
How To Bounce Back
Losing, or even just leaving, a job in technology is tough. It is a jarring experience that leads to an overall feeling of “what’s next?” In this chaotic period, the last thing you want to do is flounder around and make mistakes you’ll later regret. Being there recently myself, I’ve compiled the following list of do’s and dont’s to help fast-track you in your search for that next big opportunity.
DO: Figure out your worth
This is hard and inexplicably intimidating. Is there any more vexing question on a phone screen than “what is your desired salary?” You don’t want to go too high and risk disqualification, nor go and then have to back track or accept an undesirable salary. The only way to avoid this uncomfortable situation is to actually know what you’re worth. But how to know?
Foremost, you should never go backwards in pay (in the same geographical market). Did you make $100k at your last job? Then ask for $120k. Someone thought you were worth $100k then, so you’re probably worth $120k now. Next, try to use a salary resource tool like GlassDoor and PayScale. Finally, remember that especially at big companies, some engineers make a ton of money. Here’s a kid in his 20’s for example who made more money at Facebook (and other places) than you’d ever think. And while he’s certainly exceptional, he would have never gotten it if he never asked.
DONT: Forget to apply for unemployment/COBRA
For some reason, many of us are conditioned to think of unemployment as a handout — it’s not. Even if you can afford to forego it, why would you? Your taxes paid into the pool and its time for some return on that investment.
It will take several weeks (or months in Covid era) to get the process going. It was so frustrating for me that I wrote an entire article about it! So start immediately. Also, remember to ask your former employer for their UC account number; you’ll need this for the application.
PS: COBRA is an Obamacare program that lets you retain your current healthcare (may have to pay a premium) for certain amount of time after a job loss or other qualifying event.
DO: Stay on a schedule
With life disruptions such as job loss, it is paramount to stick to a routine. Try to wake up and go to sleep at the same time; disruptions to circadian rhythm contributes to depression. Dedicated time to skill sharpening, resume-building and job hunting. Treat these activities like a new job. This will help you stay focused and level-headed during an otherwise stressful period.
DONT: Make major lifestyle changes
While this may be a good time to reflect and take up new hobbies, don’t bite off too much. For example, it’s a great time to start jogging more regularly. But probably not the best time to sign up for a non-refundable CrossFit program or buy a new piano. Remember, this period is only temporary so rash decisions and frivolous spending should be avoided.
DO: Keep your resume small
Last year my company hired 5 engineers, and in doing so I reviewed dozens of resumes. A clear trend emerged: more experienced engineers had huge, and often bloated resumes- often 6 pages or more! I HATED these resumes.
The most important aspect of a resume is not that its comprehensive. It is that it is succinct and aesthetically pleasing; your resume should pop. While you may envision an impressed recruiter carefully reading your resume from end-to-end, remember these people read hundreds each week and likely won’t spend even 10 seconds on yours. As such, your resume should convey a basic skillset and competency in the shortest amount of time possible. The details can be filled in later during the interview.
Try to create a one page resume. It should tell a recruiter everything she needs to know in a single glance. Having only one page will force you to be succinct, listing only the most important achievements and taking more care of the organization and layout.
Great starter resume templates are available online. If you are versed in LaTeX, Overleaf is a solution. For non-TeX folks, ResumeGenius and Zety are great starting points and worth paying for.
DONT: Forget what is actually on your resume
A great advantage of a small resume is that it limits what the interviewer will likely ask you about. Maybe there are only 9 bullets in your job experience. Make sure that you can confidently speak to all 9! There is nothing more deflating in an interview that missing a layup question like “tell me more about this point” because they’re referring to a job from four years ago that you’ve completely forgotten you even had. Protip- Practice out loud in front of a mirror or spouse, elaborating on every single piece of information in your resume. Try to anticipate likely follow-up questions and encourage others to ask you about your resume.
Oh — and if there’s a technology you’ve used but aren’t confident speaking about it, avoid the temptation of including it on your resume. An interviewer is not going to like seeing Apache Airflow on there, only to hear you say “it was in a project I worked on, but I don’t know much about it”.
DO: Update your LinkedIn
If a company is seriously considering you, they 100% will check out you on LinkedIn. Now imagine this scenario: a recruiter being sufficiently impressed by your slick resume hops over to LinkedIn only to see a barren, generic, faceless profile page. Unfortunately, you only get one chance to make a first impression, so don’t blow it because you were too lazy to upload a professional-looking headshot.
Take it a step further and make sure any public social media accounts (eg. Twitter) aren’t painting you in a negative light. Have you ever Googled yourself? Your recruiter will.
DONT: Continue to use company property (this includes code)
One of the biggest mistakes of my life involved keeping code after leaving a company. In a similar vein, don’t hold onto company property after you’ve left, and stop using all emails/accounts associated with them. And certainly do not use your company laptop to canvas job boards or begin the unemployment process. Your IT department is quite likely to find out about it and you’ll have some serious explaining to do.
DO: Allow yourself to enjoy some downtime
While it is important to keep to a schedule and set goals, it is ok to enjoy your time off too! Don’t feel guilty. This is not laziness, its an opportunity for reflection and self-care. Take more walks; go to that doctor you’ve been putting off; paint the playroom. Take a minute to smell the roses and appreciate what is really important. This is only a temporary. Spend some of this time recuperating and refocusing. You’ve earned it.
DONT: Wait too long to apply to jobs
This is paramount for tech jobs as the turnaround time can be lengthy. Don’t wait until your resume is perfect, or until you’ve finished that React course before putting in your applications. Get some applications in just to feel out the waters. If a lot of interest comes back, then you can slow down and build a relationship with your first choice company.
When I lost my job during summer 2020, the market was tough. So many quality engineers were let go at the same time, so I had to apply to dozens of jobs before getting a single offer. All-in-all, it took me three months to get back on my feet giving 100% effort. Regardless of market conditions, if you are slow out of the gate, you’ll regret it.
DO: Apply to jobs in a systematic way
If you have savings and can go without a job for a while, use this time to chase your dream job. For example, maybe your ultimate goal is to get a job at Google or Slack. These would be tier 1 prospects. Make a list of tier 1, 2 and 3 employers. Think of it like a college application: you start with top schools early, and then gradually cast a wider net as the time window narrows.
In the first month, limit your applications to a few tier 1 employers. Maybe sprinkle in some tier 2 applications as well. If you get a hit, eg. Google, give it them your undivided attention. You don’t want to be having interviews with five other companies the same week. Repeat this process until all tier one companies have been exhausted, or until your timeline necessitates dipping into tiers 2 and 3. The point is to do this in controlled phases instead of randomly applying to any and every job.
DONT: Burn bridges
Losing a job is a deeply emotional and stressful experience. Chances are you’ll be angry and fantasizing about telling off your manager in a glorious, scorched earth walk-off for the ages. Please, do not do this. Up to 85% of jobs are filled via networking, and you never know when a past colleague or boss will be your ticket to a new opportunity.
DO: Skill Sharpening
Technology moves fast, and being between jobs is a great time to tap into new trends and technologies. Kubernetes, Serverless, Terraform, GraphQL, NextJS — chances are there’s a laundry list of cool technologies you’re familiar with but haven’t had time to actually use. Now is a opportunity to learn, especially if these are appearing on hot job postings.
Don’t be afraid to invest in yourself a bit. Spending $99 on Skilled.dev, $149 on Interview Cake, or $9.99 on YouTube Red so that you can practice problems while on an airplane is a paltry price to pay for an edge in tech interviews. And if system design is on your radar, I’ve already put some free resources together for you.
DONT: Beat yourself up
I’ve saved the most important point for last. Things like this happen. They happen often and to everyone. Don’t let this drag you down or define you. These events are often blessings in disguise — life’s proverbial compass correcting course. Take it for what it is, learn what you can, and keep moving forward, friend.
BONUS DO: Open Source Projects
An open source presence is a great way to stand out from an already crowded applicant pool. I am routinely asked about my open source work, as if some rite-of-passage, despite it being written early on in graduate school and not representative of my current abilities.
In our company we even offer applicants the option to bring sample work instead of giving a take home project. Not unexpectedly, the applicants questioned on their own work typically perform better. The point of the story is that having any sort of open-source presence or side project may ultimately be the differentiator that sets you apart.
Did I miss something? Leave a comment and it may end up in the article!
