hey folks. turns out having a soul crushing job and lack of interesting projects to work on can really decrease your blogging output. also, I had a very bad mental health 2019.
i was laid off at the end of march due to covid related sales pipeline issues, leading to a lack of cash in hand, and it turns out to have been the best thing to happen for me in months. don’t get me wrong, it was incredibly nerve wracking but i didn’t realize how drained i was until I didn’t have to go in to work anymore. i start my new job next monday and i’m feeling more empowered and excited than i have in a while.
one thing i wasn’t expecting about my job search is that, because i’d done so little quality coding over the last few months, i was terrified of coding exercises in the job process. my job search probably took longer than it needed to because i would just stare at those codility emails in fear, wondering how badly i was about to screw up my future.
good news- once i started doing them it jumpstarted my brain and i was like “oh, i know how to do this. this isn’t so scary.” so for anyone out there who is also job searching amid the layoffs and procrastinating due to fear of failure, know 1. you’re not alone and 2. it’s unlikely to be as bad as you think. the waiting is the hardest part.
anyhow, that was a whole lot of rambling but i missed Dev and the community here, so i thought i’d dip my toe back in and see what’s up. what’s changed since i’ve been on hiatus? how are you holding up through everything happening with covid? come say hi in the comments. we’re all in this together.
Top comments (5)
Great to hear about the good news part of all this.
I'll personally weigh in on the "how am I holding up" front and just say that I'm really grateful for a life situation that is compatible enough with social distancing and that my family has been generally safe.
Despite all this, there have been good and bad moments in terms of mental health. The true lack of change of scenery when I'm needing it most is tough.
Thank you for writing this. I also haven't been coding as much lately and am equally on a job hunt with a looming dread about my skillset. Knowing that I am not alone in this fear is incredibly validating. Seriously, thanks for checking in.
I'm pleased things are looking up for you and so sorry about the redundancy. Happened to me last year and it sucks....a lot.
I'm like Ben H in that I'm also lucky to have a situation (remote working and living in a small village) where I've been social distancing for the past year anyway so not much has changed. My job is as secure as it can be and my family's safe and sound.
Sorry to hear that you were affected!
I personally have never been employed as a web developer and I started searching on February :D
It is not fun and I almost lost all interest in the whole thing, but I built something to raise my spirits:
single-stroke.nazeh.me
Hey 👋 Sorry to here you were laid off by Covid19! Job searching always takes longer than expected. Good to here you've got a new job lined up.