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What to Do If You Get Laid Off: 11 Steps to Recovery

What to Do If You Get Laid Off: 11 Steps to Recovery

rickykoocoaching
July 15, 2025

When I look back on my career, I’ve really chosen industries and roles where there was never a dull moment. Having experienced a global crisis and recession while working in the world of finance to leading teams through the huge boom in the tech industry and the complete disruption of all things AI and layoffs—I’ve had to learn the hard way about being resilient through huge transformational changes.

Sadly, all of these layoffs we hear about (and continue to hear about) across all industries, is nothing new to me. Throughout my career, I’ve had the unique experience of leading large, global, Fortune 500 companies through challenging financial situations as a corporate finance professional. The reality is, even though these shocking headlines and jaw-dropping consequences of widespread layoffs can feel so abrupt, they are strategically planned way in advance and meticulously orchestrated to minimize risk for the overall company. But what happens with the people? They are left feeling lost, scrambling, and often bitter and resentful for not having a clue this was coming.

Even though I have been behind the scenes on many large-scale reorganizations for corporations throughout my career in finance and tech, seeing the impact they have on people never gets easier. In fact, it seems the more years of seeing how these are planned and executed, the more painful it is when the day of announcement finally comes and the general public hears about it. On one hand it feels like a relief from carrying this secret burden for so many months (sometimes years). On the other hand, it makes me feel dirty. Complicit. On the side of profits and not the people. It makes me feel as though I’ve betrayed all of the people who are impacted.

The reality is, each time I go through and am part of the planning, anticipating, projecting, forecasting, and executing of these layoffs, I have a thought in the back of my mind that whispers: “Is this the time? Is this when it’ll be my turn too?”

Even though I have been behind the scenes on many large-scale reorganizations for corporations throughout my career in finance and tech, seeing the impact they have on people never gets easier.

What I mean by that is—I’ve seen in the past where people in my exact positions were doing all of the work to plan and execute layoffs. Only to find out that on the final day—the day of public broadcast—they themselves receive news that they are impacted. It’s no longer a shock to me when I see this. So each round that I go through, I’ve mentally accepted the fact that I work for a corporation. Which means everyone is replaceable. Me, you, Jennifer from HR, Jonah from Sales, Elsa from Marketing, the CFO, the CMO, even the CEO. Everyone. Is. Replaceable. As long as it either helps or doesn’t jeopardize the profitability of the company and the health/future growth projections of the business. After all, it’s a business. And when push comes to shove, I’ve seen time and time again decisions are made by prioritizing the profits and growth versus the people.

I’ve had time to consider what I would do and how I would manage to pick myself up after collapsing onto the floor from the dreaded news that my role has been eliminated.

So why am I sharing all this? Because I’ve had a lot of years to think about this. And I’ve come to terms with how I would react and what I would do if that day came. I’ve had a lot of countless hours pondering about the guilt that I carry when I see the list of names and their employee IDs and how many years they dedicated their lives at these companies. How many family events they must have sacrificed to climb that ladder. That meeting they took while on a beautiful beach on vacation with their family. That school play they missed because they forgot they had to stay late and finish that slide deck before the deadline. That argument they got into with their significant other (again), because they were being short and impatient at home since work was so stressful lately.

I’ve had time, unlike many people who are caught by surprise when they suddenly get that same-day meeting set up by a random HR person to talk about “next steps”. I’ve had time to consider what I would do and how I would manage to pick myself up after collapsing onto the floor from the dreaded news that my role has been eliminated. All of the financial stress, the personal self-doubt, the chipping away of self-confidence—I’ve had time to think about how I would manage.

So I’ve gathered what I’ve learned through these challenging situations, and I’ve put together a step-by-step guide of what I would do if I were to be laid off tomorrow. This way, when and if that day does come for me, I would have this to rely on myself and be able to remain objective. Because when we experience change and shock, our brains don’t allow us to be objective. And objectivity is absolutely what we all need in situations like this.

Most importantly, I put this guide together in hopes it will reach someone out there who may be struggling with their news of layoffs. Or someone who is constantly feeling beat down and stripped away of confidence because they’ve applied for hundreds of jobs, only to keep hearing silence or that voice in their head that says “you’re not good enough”. This is for me, if I were to ever need to use it, and for you.

Here is an 11 step guide on what I would do if I got laid off tomorrow (in order, by day):

Day 1:

1. Run Microsoft Copilot and submit these prompts (or save manually before losing access):

“Scan my emails for the past 36 months and summarize a list of all accomplishments and projects that I was involved in.” Save this list (you will use it later for resume & job interview prep).
“Scan my emails, chats, etc. and put together a list of my top 100 people that I communicated with most over the past 36 months”. Save this list (you will use it later)
“Find the PowerPoint presentations, PDFs, and any other key documents of all of the accomplishments and projects that I created over the past 36 months.” Save all of these documents so you can access it later.

2. Copy/send this text to my significant other

“Hi, I just got laid off. I’m okay, just need a little time to digest but I wanted to let you know first. I am going to close my computer for the next couple of hours so I can gather my thoughts and plan. We can talk more later today. Love you.”

3. Completely shut down laptop

Choose from one of these (replace this list with activities that bring you joy):

Go outside for a 30 minute walk
Take a paper & pen to write a poem
Do a 30 minute full-body workout on YouTube followed by 15 minutes of meditation
Pull up a blank canvas on iPad or paper and doodle, with color
Go to a familiar restaurant/cafe and treat yourself to brunch/lunch/dinner

Day 2:

4. Reflect & document

Open laptop. Sit down and write out from start to finish, how the notification of your lay off transpired. Include any and all details as vividly as possible, including exact times and dates.

5. Ground yourself – Core self

Read and update this core values list as needed and keep it handy for when you begin applying for jobs:

Authenticity
Trust
Kindness
Health
Purpose

6. Ground yourself – Employer

Read and update this “future employer” list and keep it handy for when you begin applying for jobs:

Remote
Has a culture code or statement on diversity, equity, & inclusion
Profitable earnings & healthy future financials
Connection to product purpose
Fair pay for job scope & role
Has ERGs or intends to create (if it’s a smaller company)
C-staff is well rounded in experience and diverse

Day 3:

7. Community connection

Open the list of top 100 people that you saved from Day 1. Add all of these people (if you’re not already connected) on LinkedIn.

8. Fresh action

While it’s still somewhat fresh in your mind, open your resume and bring it up to date (ideally, it should have been updated within the past 6 months)

Open the list of accomplishments and projects that you saved from Day 1 and use it to add in bullet points and revise as needed.
Run it through ChatGPT to refine and compare versions. Fine tune to your narrative, style, & voice.

Day 4:

9. Prioritize and define

Define a timeframe for a break. This should be the # of months that you’re okay with not actively looking for a new job and still remain financially + emotionally stable and comfortable.

10. Consult with circle

Discuss timeframe with significant other and set the “end” date on your calendars. Share your news and plan with close friends & family.