When the Bottom Falls Out: My Journey from Layoff to Unexpected Purpose
The email landed on a Tuesday afternoon. Or maybe it was during that all-team meeting where your manager couldn't quite meet your eyes. However it happened, the result was the same: despite your dedication, despite pouring your soul into understanding and succeeding in your role, you were let go.
If you're experiencing this right now, know that you're not alone. The path after a layoff isn't just about finding a new job—it's about finding yourself again.
The Crisis Mode Trap
When faced with sudden unemployment, our first instinct is survival mode. We frantically update resumes, apply to any open position remotely matching our skills, and push away the complicated emotions triggered by the experience.
I know this dance all too well. After being let go from a position where my manager and I clashed during a company reorganization, I immediately launched into what I call the "spray and pray" method—applying everywhere, to anything, figuring I'd process my feelings later, after securing income.
But as weeks turned into months with no promising leads, I realized something profound: my frantic approach wasn't just ineffective—it was actively preventing me from landing where I needed to be.
The Hidden Opportunity in Career Disruption
What I discovered (only after slowing down) was that for years, I'd been playing a role that wasn't authentically aligned with who I am. I'd built my identity around being a numbers-oriented, technology-savvy professional, climbing the ladders across healthcare, government, and technology services.
The truth? I wasn't precise enough — or to be more precise, I didn’t care enough about precision — to truly excel in those roles. I didn't connect with for-profit objectives to be strategically driven in those environments. Most significantly, I had a HIGHLY repressed entrepreneurial spirit constantly chafing against institutional hierarchies and controlled information flows.
The real revelation came when I admitted that what I thought was "working my butt off to make my dream job work" was actually "surviving in a hostile work environment that induced self-doubt and kept me in constant anxiety."
From Crisis to Clarity: A Different Approach
If any of this resonates with you, consider that your layoff might be the universe hitting pause on a path that wasn't serving your highest potential. What if this disruption is precisely the interruption you needed?
Instead of rushing into the next position, what might happen if you:
Pause for emotional processing - Acknowledge the trauma of the layoff experience, especially if it involved unfair accusations or was handled poorly
Examine your patterns - Look for recurring themes in your work history. Where do you thrive? Where do you consistently struggle?
Honor your authentic strengths - Not the ones on your resume, but the natural abilities that make you come alive
Question your assumptions about "safety" - Sometimes what feels secure (like a large organization) actually creates more stress than alternatives you haven't considered
When I finally followed this path, remarkable things happened. Rather than force-fitting myself into another corporate box, I reconnected with former colleagues and designed a role tailored to my actual strengths and working style. The result wasn't just employment—it was alignment.
The Whole-Person Approach to Career Transition
A layoff isn't just a professional crisis—it's an identity crisis. It's the sudden removal of how you've defined yourself, often for years. This is why addressing only the job search aspects of unemployment is insufficient.
The whole-person approach recognizes:
The emotional landscape - Grief, anger, relief, and fear may all be present simultaneously
The loss of identity - When "what do you do?" becomes a complicated question to answer
The trauma response - Especially if the layoff involved unfair treatment or public humiliation
The scarcity mindset - How financial pressure can lead to poor career decisions
The opportunity for rebirth - Using this interruption to discover what truly lights you up
What does that actually look like in practice? Something like this, and here’s a specific guide if you’re a working parent
The Unexpected Gift
Here's what I discovered, and what many others have found as well: sometimes getting knocked off your expected path is the very thing that leads you to where you were meant to be all along.
After reconnecting with old colleagues and designing a role tailored to my authentic strengths, I found myself in a position that actually fit who I was. The work felt energizing rather than depleting.
And remarkably, after eight months of trying during my previous (VERY stressful) employment, within two weeks of starting my new role, I discovered I was pregnant—with twins.
That was nine years ago. The journey from career crisis to a vibrant, thriving sense of purpose continues to unfold every day. What looked like career disaster became the catalyst for authentic alignment in all areas of my life.
Your Next Steps
If you're navigating a layoff or career transition right now, I invite you to:
Slow down - Resist the urgency to leap into the first available position
Feel deeply - Your emotions contain wisdom about what you truly need
Question assumptions - About what work should look like, what you're "qualified" for, and what success means
Connect with support - You don't have to figure this out alone
Remember that the fastest way to find your power again isn't rushing into another ill-fitting role. It's pausing long enough to discover who you truly are.
Are you navigating a layoff or career transition? Visit my resources page for DIY guides, eBooks, the full blog, bites and bites on the ‘gram, and support specifically designed for working parents experiencing career disruption. You'll find guides for emotional processing, career clarity exercises, and strategies for designing your next chapter from a place of authenticity rather than fear.
