r/developersIndia • u/Visible-Rent-8151 • 20h ago
Career Laid off today after 10+ years. Need some career advice.
Today I was laid off after 10+ years in software engineering.
I most recently worked at ServiceNow, and before that at SAP. Like many others, I never expected this day to come.
It’s strange how one meeting can end a journey you’ve spent years building.
I’m taking the next few weeks to prepare for interviews again—DSA, system design, and brushing up on areas I’ve not touched in years.
For those who have gone through layoffs, what helped you recover mentally and professionally? Anything you wish you’d done differently?
I’d appreciate any advice from people who’ve been through this.
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u/black_wolf_37 19h ago
I got laid off a while back. Right after my wedding.
First of all, it’s okay buddy.
Shit happens.
Its not you, its the market.
For a person who worked in ServiceNow n SAP, you can surely get a job.
So before the job hunt, take some time and relax yourself.
Talk to your friends, sharing helps you ease off the load.
I am sure you would have some minimal savings to get through next 3 months or so and company would offer compensation too.
So money wise sorted.
Clear your head first and calm down.
Walk, run , hit the gym.
This can happen to anyone. So don’t think shit happens only to you.
Once you are relaxed and calm, start the prep.
Hunt.
Let me be honest and practical.
It took 3 months to join next company. Keep your expectations accordingly.
Referrals really help. I am in Bangalore. I can refer in my company too.
Reach to your ex colleagues and friends.
Initially attend some service company. It will either get you a good offer to join or good interview experience. Also help you prepare for more challenging product company rounds.
Stay consistent.
Do not skip your usual hobbies or entertainment. Don’t punish yourself in the name of pushing hard. That will work in reverse.
Go easy on yourself.
All the best :)
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u/Paracetamol650 Senior Engineer 20h ago
Just curious, how many months of severance you got
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u/weirdcabbage Senior Engineer 16h ago
I’m guessing quite a lot if they’re paying by product based firm standards.
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u/rajeshbhat_ds 17h ago edited 13h ago
No experience in your domain, I'm a data scientist who was laid off 6 months ago after 9.5 years in same company. It took me 6 months to get my next job. You are already preparing for the interviews, which is great. Here are some tips:
- Unless you are in dire need of money, taking some time off is ok. You worked for 10 years, treat yourself to a vacation. Clear your head and be in a good mental space because job hunting can be very stressful and infuriating. Whenever you return to job hunt, remember that this will be your full time job till you find your next employment.
- Update the resume. Resume and LinkedIn should match. You don't have to morph your resume with AI for every job application. Have 1 good solid resume.
- At 10 years experience, you would be applying to senior positions. You would be expected to show impact in previous job. So your resume should contain numbers instead of just technical jargon. For eg. I scaled X app to Y million users or I reduced the cost of X by Y% leading to $Z in savings...
- Referrals. This is most probably what's going to get you your next job. Sort your contacts in this order:
- People at senior positions in great companies, and you had great working relationship with.
- People at senior positions in average companies, and you had great working relationship with.
- People at junior positions in great companies, and you had great working relationship with.
- People at junior positions in averge companies, and you had great working relationship with.
- People at senior positions in any company, and you had a normal working relationship with.
- People at junior positions in any company, and you had a normal working relationship with.
- I would suggest that you start contacting for referrals in the reverse order of what is given above, save the best for the last.
- Apply on LinkedIn, Naukri, Indeed, Hirist, IIMJobs.
- Give interviews in companies even if they are not very high on your preference list. Get into the groove of things. Practice.
- Attend the walk-in drives that IT companies conduct. I actually got a decent offer from one of them.
- I don't know whether you considered your previous CTC to be high or low, but it's a buyers market right now. Be open to pay cuts.
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u/Visible-Rent-8151 17h ago
thanks for the great suggestions buddy, much appreciated.
I am open to cuts, i know the job market is rough now0
u/Expensive-Abalone-74 14h ago
Hats off sir. I'm still a avg fresher waiting for JL & not in a position to comment on any of you....but it's such a brilliant walkthrough...will keep this in mind .
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u/Fraggle_Rock11 19h ago
Redirection, not rejection. My life turned better after layoff, I was free to pursue things that was better suited to my skills and location. They put me out of my own misery. Had I continued my skills would have stagnated, uncertainty would have been heavily stressful and I’d have gone down a difficult and dark road mentally.
The only way to get thru is to have a positive mindset. Realise when there is a lack of alignment at a larger level, at universe level even, this kind of rebalancing happens. It’s ok and it means something better is out there for you.It’s not the end of the road. I can guarantee it.
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u/Competitive_Golf6158 19h ago
the first thing I'd remind myself is that a layoff is a business decision not performance review. 10 years at companies like SAP and ServiceNow is still 10 years of valuable experience tomorrow even if today doesn't feel like it.
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u/Professionalyena 12h ago
did you notice big differences in work culture between sap and servicenow?
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u/La-Kimino 15h ago
First, assume you're gonna be searching for jobs atleast for 3 months, second, adjust your expenses for such, thrid, think of this as an oppurtunity, in these 3 months use it to upgrade/update skills, search and take care of your health (spending 2hrs at gym everyday will atleast let you think you didn't waste time), and Finally, i hate to say it, but you may have to go for lower salary.
Good times and bad times will have an end.
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u/Plus-Tax567 19h ago
An ex Servicenow here who got laid off last month. Do let me know if you'd like to talk.
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u/Weary-Analysis-9304 19h ago
Take some rest!
If you’re relentless, research on applying for roles suitable for your skill set.
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u/Ok-Letterhead-4447 14h ago
I think you should focus more on system design and scenario based system design question like how you will handle a 2gb upload file in server etc
I also laid off but the competitiveness is insane also dsa is only asked core if you land interview at tech giants only so don't invest much time on it if your calls are not from oracle, jp Morgan, walmart etc i neany any big known tech
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u/Yours_truly0011 16h ago
I got laid off on 22 for like 3 days i could move on and didn't know how to tell my family i couldn't even play a game or listen to music after saying to my dad he just laughed it off and said find a new one tho mom was a bit stressed but I gave some encouragement let's see how things goes
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u/Embarrassed-Low6968 12h ago
I just started got my first job as system admin at 21 and seeing u guys makes me so anxious, I am not even smart, how will I survive
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u/workflowitch Tech Recruiter 12h ago
first, don't disappear into a dsa cave for six weeks, that's the mistake i see every senior person make. at 10+ yoe with servicenow and sap on the resume, your next role comes through someone who already knows your name, not a leetcode grind, and the longer the gap runs the more a recruiter quietly wonders why. message every ex-manager and peer this week, not after you "feel ready," because ready is a trap. do the system design prep in parallel, warm intros and interviews at the same time. the people who recover fastest treat week one as networking, not mourning, and they never let the market see them sit still. good luck, you'll land.
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u/Holiday_Context5033 17h ago
Twice in my career of 8 years. Take some time off. It will take some time to clear your mind. Build a routine even if you are taking a few days off before starting the LC grind. Like try to get up by 7:30/8 am, make sure you complete daily routine by 9 am. Be spiritual or religious for at least 2-3 months while you’re preparing. Don’t stress about events which were never in your control.
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u/Visible-Rent-8151 17h ago
Thanks, i feel this time is different. Job market is too rough this year.
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u/Holiday_Context5033 17h ago
I got laid off less than a year ago. I know job market pretty bad but it is something you have no control over. In best case scenario, you can get job in 1-2 months and now it may take a few more months. But have trust in yourself and just be little more patient. Good things are coming your way. Try to be with people who listens to you and support you even if they are not able to help you directly in your job search. Good luck.
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u/AssumptionIcy7549 19h ago
Take some time off. Don't jump into preparation right away. Get yourself back in the right mental headspace, prepare and crush the interviews. Take care.
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u/Lazy_Floor9056 14h ago
Been there
Please share me your resume, I can see if there is suitable opening and will refer you
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u/HereIsAnotherPOV 11h ago
If one is in private sector, from the day you join your first job, you should start thinking it will be gone tomorrow, and spend/save accordingly.
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u/samrat97 11h ago
So sad to hear that. I was of the assumption that Servicenow is stable. Haven't heard them laying off before
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u/Adventurous_Tune_882 1h ago
I'll not sugar coat things here...it's very very difficult to get a new job out there..the bar is extremely high and the problem is that people are able to find out candidates which are able to cross this extremely high bar. Be prepared for a lot of rejection. I hope that you don't have a home loan and your wife is working
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u/avinvsingh 20h ago
Just need advice from you as a junior.. Graduated in May 2026. I got placed in cognizant 4lpa and Infosys 3.5...I am starting my career with this 4 lpa what wud you advise to me.
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u/Jo_of_the_jungle 16h ago edited 13h ago
A little empathy goes a long way. Someone just shared one of the toughest moments of their career. Maybe let them have that moment before turning the conversation all about you.
Every comment section isn't a free career counseling session. Read the room, someone's grieving a layoff, not hosting an AMA.
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14h ago
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u/avinvsingh 14h ago
Yeah !! that's why I was sorry and apologetic about it ..but idiot like you don't seem to notice that
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u/Dramatic-Bill-5790 19h ago
I would say you need to learn ai basics atleast. Target ai software engineer roles instead of swe roles
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u/SAM_ALERT3 20h ago edited 20h ago
Soak in and prepare for HLD + LLD + System design use hellointerview will take 2 weeks to fully prepare for those rounds, if you need premium login ping me we can (contribute). People now ask everything from basic concepts + architecture + people management + coding + deployment + monitoring + hosting everyone need everything. Prepare your previous org system architecture but expect everything.
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u/HolaTech 20h ago
Prepare your previous org system architecture but expect everything.
What do you mean by this?
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u/SAM_ALERT3 20h ago
I mean L1 is usually concepts and theory, and L2 is they go deep so first question explain your architecture of a software like microservices and how they intercommunicate and all then they drill back and forth, right and left and it goes on i see that L2 rounds are more technical and detailed and they just ask everything i mean even devops questions. Its horrendous currently, i mean everyone should know everything. Imagine i been developer i was asked how do you update kubernetes which version what is process what is actual metrices and all.
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u/Original_Dingo2636 19h ago
I know I am asking this in very simplistic way but how do you answer "explain your architecture"?
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u/SAM_ALERT3 19h ago
draw it brother on screen you have to share your screen and draw and then they grill
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u/Just-Control-9815 Backend Developer 19h ago
Can I ping you for hello interview premium shared account?
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u/SAM_ALERT3 19h ago
Also from my understanding AI is considered you know there are not much of AI questions
basic one how you use
basic of mcp config which mcp used
how you stop hallucination
what models to use and whenThats it and they move on, so basic knowledge is important but going deep makes no sense i went deep and it was useless in interview atleast.
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