EDIT: Also it seems like they don’t like you doing things similar to what they paid you to do, even if it’s not in competition at all… so sounds like after hours coding consulting even in a complete different industry would be frowned upon even if it didn’t affect your performance

So all in all, still pretty strict

And bonus, it’s a direct step from there to starting your own business in that trade then making way more

Of course you could start a software agency too but the competition is way more cutthroat

If NOT, I would start by thinking if there’s ways you could drastically cut down your cost off living, like moving somewhere cheaper or even looking at Southeast Asia etc if that’s your jam

That would give you more options on the financial side of things in case you wanted to start over or have a go at something with a long ramp up time

Understood that not everyone is in the position to switch to lower paying careers, start over, etc - but if you have some leash, what WOULD you do if you were fired tomorrow?

(And I don’t mean short term like take a vacation then find another tech job - mean longer term like what kind of job will you be looking for next, or business to start, etc)

Curious to hear your thoughts and anyone else who cares to share

Have a family and esp these employees in high CoL cities? Very tough.

Speaking from experience. Been there done that.

"We'll have all this new innovation via new startups now!" is such a feel good sentiment to layoffs but in reality is nowhere close to a solution for the affected employees

See also the other hiring post on todays HN front page that’s a Bay Area startup but only hiring for South America for engineering

The current good times for employees are mainly in the economy outside of tech

Kids can’t go anywhere and are stuck at home. None of their friends are within walking distance. What do you expect them to do?