Being #OpentoWork and Stigma

Given recent events, I faced the question posed in this post and came to the same conclusion.

Should you post that you’re #OpenToWork? A tale of two labor markets.

Economic theory suggests that the people laid off or searching for a job in boom times are different from those laid off in a recession. If you are let go or cannot find a job when companies are flush, it might be that you were laid off for performance reasons or can never get past a screening call. On the other hand, someone who suffered from an across-the-board layoff in a time of economic crisis could be perfectly-capable: just a casualty of macroeconomic forces.

The legal tech space is currently littered with companies conducting layoffs. The giant tech companies might be the ones you read about in the press, but tons of smaller, niche companies are doing the same thing. The economy slowed down, but the demands of investors to continue growing didn’t. Cutting expenses is the easiest option, and there aren’t enough low performers to stop there. A lot of these companies started working on some really interesting things, hiring very talented people, but then had the marketability of that work fall short because customers didn’t have the money to spend. Being laid off in that macroeconomic environment isn’t embarrassing. Heck, it might even be a rite of passage. Just about everyone has been laid off at one time or another. This was just your turn.

There’s no reason to feel stigmatized for being laid off from a tech company; in my opinion, being public about that fact makes it easier to find the next thing. Who knows what opportunities are out there? The way you find out is when everyone knows you’re looking. Why not show that on your LinkedIn profile and everywhere else?

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