Bouncing Back After Layoffs

Nowadays, life has become very unpredictable. Problems come to us as unwanted surprises. Getting laid off that too without warning can be daunting and frustrating.

During the pandemic lockdown, many businesses came crumbling down, due to lockdown restrictions. More than 7.5 million people were terminated from their services across sectors such as hospitality, travel, or tourism just between February 2021 and May 2021, making this the worst-ever job loss in India. This doesn’t stop here. Even now, in 2023, the distress of the layoff crisis is looming over everyone.

A layoff is basically a temporary or permanent termination of an employee. The grounds for such actions are usually an economic crisis, reducing the workforce, or cost-cutting measures. On January 2020, Google CEO Sundar Pichai announced laying off around 12,000 employees. In late 2022, Elon Musk laid off around 50% of the Twitter employees while Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg sacked 11,000 employees. As on May 2023, Meta has started a fresh round of layoffs citing reducing the workforce to save cost as the reason.

These layoffs have significantly impacted employees’ financial status, self-confidence, and lowered job opportunities. Many are on the verge of selling their valuables to pay off their pending EMIs for loans on cars, homes, and so on. Kim who was laid off at Meta is now looking for a junior-level option. Employees who had anticipated layoffs a couple of months ago said that they were sad that they lost their jobs but were glad that they are not anxious anymore. Many who were laid off feel that they no longer trust a regular 9 to 5 job and would rather start a business of their own.

Layoffs have created new entrepreneurs: A silver lining

Many people who have lost their jobs are planning to start startups. According to a recent report, many tech workers who were laid off have since started their own businesses. Meena, a former IT employee has now started a tech-related YouTube channel to support herself financially. Vidya, who faced a similar ordeal has now partnered with an edtech startup. Danny, whose passion was photography and travel has now started a vlogging channel on YouTube. “This has helped me heal from the layoff trauma,” he said. Many have started their cloud kitchens successfully and are delivering food online.

Starting a startup can be risky with a huge possibility of failure but can also be a very rewarding experience. Layoffs are tough and traumatic, but one should bounce back and win their life back.