Lenny's Newsletter - How to be prepared for layoffs
Below is a peek at today’s paid subscriber-only post. Subscribe today and get access to this issue—and every issue. How to be prepared for layoffsWhat you can do today to avoid getting caught off guard in case layoffs come for you👋 Hey, I’m Lenny and welcome to a 🔒 subscriber-only edition 🔒 of my weekly newsletter. Each week I tackle reader questions about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career.
I imagine many people are feeling this way right now. Grateful they still have a job, but scared of what may be coming around the corner. Not being in this situation myself but with the benefit of a large audience of insightful readers, I went to Twitter and LinkedIn to ask people who’d recently been laid off what they wish they had done to have been better prepared. Here’s the most common advice I heard:
Below, I’ll dig into these suggestions and share specific things you can do within each. If there’s anything else you’d recommend from your own experience, other readers would really appreciate your advice 👇 Thank you to Matt Quinn for encouraging me to write about this topic, and to everyone who contributes their advice 🙏 1. Save your accomplishmentsSurprisingly, the single most common piece of advice was to save details about your accomplishments. Since you’ll suddenly lose access to many of the details, and all of your future interviewers will ask about what you’ve accomplished, this is a high-ROI task. @lennysan Keep detailed records of all of your accomplishments, reflections on things that went well/did not go well with your team or XFN, collect records of any accolades you were given. Helps a LOT with both your resume and your interviews. How to go about doing this: So easy! Go open up a new doc and start dumping a list of times you’ve made an impact at your current job. Include metrics, screenshots, timelines, stories—anything that’ll help you tell the story of your successes. Do it today, while your memory is fresh and you have access to the details. Don’t overthink it. Here are some templates that may help: guide 1, guide 2, guide 3. 2. Build (and freshen up) your networkYou’ve heard this a million times, but it’s still true: it’s not what you know, it’s who you know. Networking sucks, but it sucks more when you don’t have a job. @lennysan Network and build relationships with colleagues and industry professionals BEFORE you need them. @lennysan Also network more consistently, even when things are “good”, because those will be your advocates when things are not! How to go about doing this:
3. Update your resumeResumes still matter, and going through the exercise will help you with these other items. Update your LinkedIn profile while you’re at it. @sevedkim @lennysan I recommend that everyone update their resumes once or twice a year. Its a helpful exercise to zoom out from your day-to-day and reflect on the work you’ve been doing, by trying to present it for an external eye. How to go about doing this:
4. Add some cushion to your savings accountImagine no more paychecks starting next month. What are you spending per month, and how much runway do you have? @lennysan I wasn't, but a few colleagues were. And only one had at least 3 months salary saved up. My goal is to always have the same, or salary equivalent in second income @lennysan Stronger savings & budgeting; kept a personal crm of folks that I connected and had good chats or engagements with How to go about doing this:
5. Explore additional sources of income...Subscribe to Lenny's Newsletter to read the rest.Become a paying subscriber of Lenny's Newsletter to get access to this post and other subscriber-only content. A subscription gets you:
|
Key phrases
Older messages
10 lessons on bootstrapping a $200m business | Patrick Campbell (ProfitWell)
Sunday, February 19, 2023
Listen now (74 min) | Brought to you by Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security: https://vanta.com/lenny | Amplitude—Build better products: https://amplitude.com/ | Dovetail—Bring your customer
Understanding the role of product ops | Christine Itwaru (Pendo)
Friday, February 17, 2023
Listen now (67 min) | Brought to you by Amplitude—Build better products: https://amplitude.com/ | Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security: https://vanta.com/lenny | Lenny's Job Board—Hire the
Growth inflections
Tuesday, February 14, 2023
Stories behind growth unlocks for Figma, Facebook, Airbnb, YouTube, Tinder, DoorDash, and others
Mastering onboarding | Lauryn Isford (Head of Growth at Airtable)
Sunday, February 12, 2023
Listen now (64 min) | Brought to you by Public—Invest in stocks, treasuries, crypto, and more: https://public.com/lenny | Miro—A collaborative visual platform where your best work comes to life: https:
Leading with empathy | Keith Yandell (DoorDash, Uber)
Thursday, February 9, 2023
Listen now (56 min) | Brought to you by OneSchema—Import CSV data 10x faster: https://oneschema.co/lenny | Amplitude—Build better products: https://amplitude.com/ | Coda—Meet the evolution of docs:
You Might Also Like
Best channel to grow ecommerce in 2024?
Friday, April 26, 2024
See what Ezra Firestone says , Do you know that more than 100 million Americans like to shop online? It's no wonder that the ecommerce market is on track to hit a jaw-dropping $6.3 trillion this
MicroConf Atlanta — My Biggest Learnings — The Bootstrapped Founder 315
Friday, April 26, 2024
MicroConf 2024 is over, and you get to learn what I learned.
What to expect at Sifted Summit 2024
Friday, April 26, 2024
Haven't got your ticket yet? Here's what to expect over the two days. View this email in your browser. 1200 x 380 (Desktop & Tablet) (2)-1 Hey there, Is it just us, or is the Summit Summit
The problem with VC: Reason #384
Friday, April 26, 2024
We have brunch with HelixNano cofounder Carina Namih, Isomer enters secondaries market and the startups mitigating AI's impact on the climate. View in browser Notion flagship logo final Good
SaaSHub Weekly - Apr 25
Thursday, April 25, 2024
SaaSHub Weekly - Apr 25 Featured and useful products 12 Foot Ladder logo 12 Foot Ladder Prepend 12ft.io/ to the URL of any paywalled page, and we'll try our best to remove the paywall and get you
Editor’s Brief: The Robotics Renaissance
Thursday, April 25, 2024
Why we're entering into an automation supercycle. ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
Converso, Mood Board AI, For Future, Editor.do, and AI Chat
Thursday, April 25, 2024
Help solve humanity's existential risks with your talent/money/time BetaList BetaList Daily Win a $100 Amazon gift card? Fill out this one-question survey about domain names. Marc Converso AI
Partnering with Dropzone: Automating Security Operations with AI
Thursday, April 25, 2024
Tomasz Tunguz Venture Capitalist If you were forwarded this newsletter, and you'd like to receive it in the future, subscribe here. Partnering with Dropzone: Automating Security Operations with
if I were starting over today…
Thursday, April 25, 2024
Read time: 1 min, 20 sec A lot of people ask me: “Pat, what would you do if you were starting all over today?” Most of the time, I think they're looking for a quick fix. (hint: there's no such
Free ecomm coaching from multi-7-figure founders >
Thursday, April 25, 2024
Sign up for foundr+ to learn more > , Here at Foundr, we believe that taking initiative should ALWAYS be rewarded. That's why YOU, as a summit attendee, will get to join an exclusive 4-week