Laid Off Life is a place of respite for the weary workforce. Whether you’re unemployed, underemployed, or just trying to make it through the workday, let this be your 5-minute mental break from the grind of late-stage capitalism.
Have You Got a Case of the "Laid Off and Left Behinds?"
Raise your hand if you were laid off and heard radio silence from some of the co-workers who you considered close colleagues. ✋🏼✋🏼✋🏼
Yeah, that’s what I thought. Laid off and left behind WAVE 1.
Being laid off is a great way to weed out the fair weather colleagues from the real ones. Who is going to treat you like unemployment is a communicable disease and who’s going to treat you like the person they’ve been working with for the last decade minus the job? Only time will tell.
No one wants to be laid off and left behind by their former co-workers, but it’s kind of inevitable. They are busy trying to keep the Titanic afloat — probably taking on a boatload of your old responsibilities. In order to continue to thrive at their job and NOT be miserable, they have to live in the reality of that company. And let’s face it, you are no longer part of that reality. The former co-workers who really matter will keep in touch. But let’s be honest, when you leave a company, it’s not the same old regular degular once you’re gone. And that’s OK.
The antidote to the “laid off and left behind” effect is to create a strong network of friends and colleagues who are living in the SAME reality as you. UNEMPLOYED.
In the absence of real co-workers (ChatGPT doesn’t count), your laid off colleagues become your defacto co-workers. You trade in complaints about stupid meetings for complaints about lame interviews. Instead of bonding over your annoyance at the boss who doesn’t give you proper credit for your ideas, you come together over your anti-cover letter agenda. This makes the whole looking for work thing a bit less daunting.
But what happens when one-by-one, your laid off peeps start to become employed again?
Laid off and left behind WAVE 2. I’ve been experiencing this over the last few months. Several of my closest LOLers have landed jobs. That’s very exciting given that, at times, it seems nearly impossible in this job market, but against all odds, you can’t play the slots and loose forever. Eventually, everyone hits a jackpot of FTE. Of course, they are rad and talented and they fucking deserve those jobs. So, good for them. But still…it can feel lonely when the people you’ve come to rely on for daily “Someday we’ll be employed again!!!” are, in fact, employed again.
You know they’ll soon be swallowed back into the belly of a company and all memory of this blip on the employment radar will recede from their consciousness. Once again they’ll be consumed with endless meetings, bountiful emails, and new co-workers to bond with. When they start their new job, you’ll be left waving goodbye as their train pulls away, telling them to keep in touch as they toss their hanky at you. It’s not that you’ll never hear from them again. You will. It’s just that they’ll be joining another reality of which you’re not part.
So, for anyone out there who is having a case of the “laid off and left behinds,” —WAVE 1 or WAVE 2 — I see you. You are not alone. There are lots of us here, still living in this shared reality where some days we never get our of our pajamas. Let’s connect.
Worthy Time Wasters
Here are my weekly recs to combat doom scrolling.
📺 We’re about to hit peak summer TV time. I’m watching fast and furiuosly but can barely keep up. Of course, I had to watch the part 1 of the new season of Bridgerton, where Lady Penelope Featherington finally gets her love storyline and I’m here for it. Part 2 coming on June 16! Speaking of love, a new season of Couples Therapy is here. Grab tissues and your journal and get ready to dive deep into your childhood wounds. Then you can cleanse your introspective palate by watching Below Deck, my new favorite Upstairs/Downstairs reality show. Finally, engage in some heavy duty Gen X nostalgia with Lolla: The Lollapalooza Story. It will leave you aching for the days when we attended concerts without cell phones. Remember that?
🎥 I’m making an effort to see more movies in the theater because it’s better that way and…popcorn! I highly recommend the documentary Flipside for anyone who’s ever struggled to find the balance between making art and real-life concerns like bills, has a closet, drawer, or hard drive filled with unfinished creative projects, or is currently going through a mid-life crisis. Here’s an article that gives more context. It was sensational and profound. I also loved Babes, co-written by and staring Ilana Glazer, co-starring Michelle Buteau, and directed by Pamela Adlon. It’s the funny, edgy friend-com we all deserve.
🎧 Three episodes in and I’m deeply invested in Death of an Artist: Krasner and Pollock. You’ve likely heard of Jackson Pollock but you may have never heard of Lee Krasner. Krasner was an artist, Pollock’s wife, and the woman who made him famous. She also changed everything about the landscape of modern art.
📚 Former riot grrrls will enjoy Kathleen Hanna’s new memoir Rebel Girl. Her indomitable spirit jumps off the page. Plus, you can hear the story of how she came up with the phrase “Smells Like Teen Spirit” and lots of other tales. And if you’re looking for beach reads, add Just for the Summer to your list. Here’s the setup: Justin has a curse. Every woman he dates goes on to find their soul mate the second they break up. When a woman slides into his DMs with the same problem, they come up with a plan: They'll date each other and break up. Their curses will cancel each other's out, and they'll both go on to find the love of their lives. It was a fun read with well-drawn characters.
Linkapalooza
This week’s most clickable bits n’ bobs.
// Summer reading alert continued//Reconsidering the Brat Pack from one of its own // And speaking of Brats… // A brief but very thorough history of technology's impact on creativity // Unlike people who don’t have kids because of strain on global resources, these people believe that having tons of kids will save the world// did a great piece on Leah McSweeney, her Bravo lawsuit, and the toxicity of reality TV//Have a question, suggestions, or thoughts? Message me!
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Thank you for sharing!