There’s No “Right Way” to Handle a Layoff
Productivity Doesn’t Look the Same After a Layoff
I’ve been thinking a lot about productivity lately.
Not the kind you track in a planner or measure in completed tasks—but the kind people expect from you after something like a layoff.
Because the truth is…
people process this kind of experience very differently.
Some people hit the ground running.
Updating portfolios, applying to jobs, launching new ideas.
Others are still trying to recover—
from months (or years) of working in systems that didn’t know what to do with them.
From environments that drained them, undervalued them, or quietly burned them out.
And some people—honestly—
were hoping to be part of the next round of layoffs.
Not because they didn’t care…
but because staying felt worse.
I’ve Always Been a Dreamer and a Doer
I’m someone who tends to move.
I start building.
I create structure.
I look for momentum.
That’s how I process things.
So lately, that’s looked like:
Working on case studies
Starting to offer UX consulting
Applying my work in more real, tangible ways
From the outside, that probably looks like productivity.
And it is—but it’s also just my way of coping.
But That’s Not the Only Way
What I’ve been reminded of—over and over again—is that there is no single “right” response to this.
Productivity can look like:
Applying to 10 jobs a day
Or not opening LinkedIn at all
It can look like:
Starting a business
Or taking time to rest for the first time in years
It can look like:
Building something new
Or grieving what didn’t work
And all of those are valid.
We Only Celebrate One Version
The problem is, we tend to only celebrate one version of this.
The “go-getter.”
The “bounce back.”
The “turned it into something amazing” story.
And don’t get me wrong—that path is real.
I’m on a version of it myself.
But it’s not the only version.
And it’s not always the healthiest one to rush into.
Because what doesn’t get talked about enough is the need to:
process
rest
decompress
and sometimes… just be still
Especially if what you’re coming out of wasn’t sustainable to begin with.
Rest Is Not Falling Behind
If anything, rest might be the most productive thing someone can do in this moment.
Not in a performative way.
Not as a step toward “getting back out there.”
But as a way to actually recover.
To reset.
To figure out what you want next—without carrying all of the weight from before.
There Is No One Way Forward
For me, moving forward looks like building.
For someone else, it might look like slowing down.
For someone else, it might look like starting over entirely.
None of those are wrong.
If You’re In This Right Now
If you’re in this space—
whether you’re moving fast, standing still, or somewhere in between—
You’re not doing it wrong.
You’re just doing it your way.
And that’s enough.