When a Layoff Steals Your Leverage
This is actually my biggest problem of being laid off
The most annoying part of being laid off isn’t just losing your income. It’s losing leverage. Sometimes you also lose momentum, which makes it feel even worse.
You could have spent years building relationships, context, trust, and a solid reputation in your previous company. But once you're out, that work often doesn’t carry over. Your next employer doesn’t care. Worse, they might even see you as desperate.
And when you’re seen as desperate, everything you’ve done before feels like it doesn’t matter. The achievements you were proud of? They suddenly feel like they were just internal noise. Things that don’t mean much to the outside world.
It makes you stop and think. Why work so hard? Why even try to prove yourself? What’s the point of pushing through challenges?
Over the past few months, I’ve been talking to fellow designers who were laid off or actively job hunting. Most of them, eventually, settle. Maybe for a lower title. Maybe for less pay. I’m in that group …
