Laid Off

Laid Off is the coolest place on the internet to talk about being laid off. Have a tip or juicy story? Hit reply. A few months ago, I reached out to apartamento 710 creator Florencia Ornelas about creating a print for the Laid Off community. Florencia has a style that’s so fresh and fun. She also organizes and hosts packed creative meetups in Vancouver filled with massive floral centerpieces, stunning jello cakes, and piles of glitter glue.

Laid Off is the coolest place on the internet to talk about being laid off. Have a tip or juicy story? Hit reply. In today’s issue, I talk to a former Robinhood content designer on what it’s like to get laid off and have a 60-day countdown start. In August 2022, Robinhood laid off 23% of its workforce, blaming the crypto meltdown and inflation, and citing that the company had overhired during the pandemic.

I’ve done a lot of reporting on the experience of getting laid off, and the immediate aftermath. I’ve asked you about paying over $600 a month for COBRA, getting boozy milkshakes with your coworkers on your last day on the job, posting a crying video on your finsta, being let go when your company has over 110 billion dollars in the bank, the first thing you did after the news (overwhelmingly: crying), and what you named your group chats.

Laid Off is the coolest place on the internet to talk about being laid off. Wanna collab? Have a tip? Hit reply. I’m working on the next Laid Off trend report and I want to know… how are you actually making money after losing your job?

Laid Off is the coolest place on the internet to talk about being laid off. To keep weekly interviews free for all 4ever, you can buy readers coffee (aka sponsor a weekly issue). Appreciate you <3 Have a tip or juicy story? Hit reply. Before we dive in… Pen Pals is back! 💌 I matchmade friends who don’t dream of labor last week. There are over 100 of you from all over the country (and world), repping media, marketing, entertainment, fashion, tech, government, finance, design, and product.

Laid Off is the coolest place on the internet to talk about being laid off. To keep weekly interviews free for all 4ever, you can buy readers coffee (aka sponsor a weekly issue). Appreciate you <3 Have a tip or juicy story? Hit reply. Before we dive in… Pen Pals is back! 💌 I’ll be matchmaking new friends this weekend, so if you want to join the winter program, grab your spot soon.

A lot of you have asked when I’m bringing the Pen Pal program back, and… it’s back. Time to matchmake new friends who don’t dream of labor <3 If you’re new here: earlier this year I ran a Pen Pal match-up for Laid Off readers, and it was one of the loveliest experiments I’ve done with this community. I asked the ~50+ folks that joined the pilot for their feedback on how to improve this (one-person) operation, so this winter round is a little different: Less structure, more connection.

In today’s issue, I talk to the former senior social and culture editor at IndieWire on the state (and evolution) of the social editor. On a Friday morning in October, four years into his role as IndieWire’s senior social and culture editor, Vincent Perella was on the delayed L train heading to a friend’s apartment to work from home. The train was (unsurprisingly) delayed. While he was waiting, a meeting invite popped up on his calendar: his new boss wanted to meet in twenty minutes.

In today’s issue, I talk to a former Style Editor at Teen Vogue on what it’s like being at the center of media headlines this week. When the Teen Vogue news dropped, it didn’t feel like just another media layoff. It felt like a collective heartbreak. My feeds were full of people mourning — writers, editors, readers, even friends in completely different industries. Former staffers’ posts went viral across LinkedIn, X, and Instagram. There’s a GoFundMe for the laid-off team.

Laid Off is the coolest place on the internet to talk about being laid off. To keep weekly interviews free for all 4ever, you can buy me a coffee or buy readers a coffee (aka sponsor a weekly issue). Appreciate you <3 Before we dive in, a media friend texted me this afternoon about layoffs at Teen Vogue. For context, the publication is being folded into Vogue.com.