So you got laid off...
Star editor Priska Neely on how to land on your feet after a layoff
I try not to think too much about the day that I got laid off. It was during the early months of COVID. After I got the news I called my union steward. Then I logged off Slack, ignored texts or calls from my coworkers, and half watched a 2000’s thriller while day drinking.
That night a troop of friends arrived at my door with food and beer. We climbed the rickety ladder to my apartment’s rooftop — I was lucky to have semi-private outdoor space during quarantine — and commiserated.
I don’t recommend getting laid off, obviously. It was kind of like getting dumped. I was heartbroken and made some questionable decisions in the heat of the moment.
That being said, having a really shitty year taught me an important lesson: you have to allow people to show up for you.
Literally show up, like my coworker Katherine did the next day with cupcakes, or my friends did with pizza and drinks. My union fought for me to get severance, and to ensure I didn’t have to sign any paperwork that would limit my ability to talk about my work experience. Friends from all over immediately helped me find job leads.
It can be hard to allow other people to help you when your whole job (and identity) is based on being a helper, someone who gets things done. Now I understand that you give people a gift by allowing them to help you when you need it.
In that spirit, and in the midst of another wave of layoffs, I spoke with star editor (and friend of the newsletter) Priska Neely. She posted an incredible thread of advice after NPR announced their layoffs, and I knew that I had to talk with her in depth. Priska is also a hiring manager (she’s hiring right now, see the classifieds section!), so she has advice on how to get a new job when you’re ready to take that step.
P.S. This month marks fifteen years of Rob Rosenthal’s Sound School Podcast (FKA SaltCast, HowSound). It has some pretty stellar resources — free and for the taking, that will challenge and inspire you.
Priska Neely’s advice for landing on your feet after a layoff
Alice: What's your advice to people who have just recently been laid off?
Priska: Breathe. Take a breath. It's going to feel like there's this urgency to find and take any job.
But be strategic. Look at the severance that you have, give yourself a few days to not think about what you're going to do next. Take a beat because there's going to be this urgency to be like: Oh, I have to update my LinkedIn, Oh, I have to do my resume, blah da da.
Try to figure out what you would like to do. Slow it down a little bit in your mind because everything's going to feel like it's so fast and like you have absolutely no time to figure anything out. And sure, the clock is ticking, you need a check, but try to take a day at least. Just breathe and don’t think about it.
If you're in a situation where you're trying to figure out what to do next, maybe you have some options for what direction you want to go in. Something that's helped me in figuring out what I really love to do is doing an energy audit, which is not an original term. I learned that in a leadership program that I did. Think about what you do in the course of a day in your work, think about what gives you energy and what drains you.
I'm a person who's always weirdly been into meetings. I like talking to people and figuring things out. And there were certain other things, like breaking news, that would really drain me. It helped me to refine: Oh, I really just need to be a manager. I actually just need to be figuring things out, big picture, for other people.
Resources
I was in middle school when the great recession started and I was lucky enough to be too young to enter the job market when it felt like everything was falling apart.
Now it feels like we’re in a similar (though maybe not quite so apocalyptic) time. People are getting laid off so often I might just make a line in my budget for Venmoing my friends money for a conciliatory drink or treat.
I know job hunting feels really scary right now, so I turned to people who made it through the last recession for their advice on job hunting when things feel bleak.
Macro economically: In June there was another Fed meeting and for the moment they’ve paused on a new interest rate hike. This will hopefully cause all business sectors to stop freaking out with layoffs. Step one.
Biz advice: generally with big companies their budgets turn over at the fiscal year, which tends to start Oct 1. Often big companies have a deadline for new headcount asks/output (with media) in July. If there hasn’t been another rate hike, and they stop making fetch (the recession that technically isn’t) happen, the panic will stop. Thus, job opportunities for big companies and startups trying to save capital will start opening again. So that’s a version of waiting, but with a timeline pegged to things potentially happening.
Also: we’re getting into an election cycle. That means higher ad spend for news orgs regardless of the economic climate. If you work in journalism, that means more jobs by necessity.
So my advice may sound like “sit and wait, sit and wait,” which is infuriating advice to receive. Here’s something specific you can do now, other than apply for whatever jobs are out there: Send fan mail. Write to the people who have made things that you honestly love. Audio, writing, TikTok, video games. Think widely about the media that’s stayed with you, find out who (or what groups of who’s — yes, this is a Who? Weekly reference) made these things, and tell them specifically what you liked about the work and why it meant so much to you.
Why? Practicing gratitude (I know, that phrase, right?) makes you feel more grounded. But it also makes makers feel appreciated, which they generally don’t feel — no matter how seemingly successful. And, you never know, if it’s a place to work, if it’s the right kind of place to work, you’ll make an impression. And that impression lasts way longer than a “can I pick your brain?” job hunting request, which can be draining for everyone involved. This small, honest way of appreciation may cause your name to have a positive tinge for life — for the maker you reached out to, but also maybe for the company they made it for (if there is a company involved).
That’s much more likely to get you a job — this honest act of giving praise and appreciation — then networking for networking’s sake. I’ve gotten three of my jobs through the “honest appreciation method.”
Last thing: the job you want is working with people you respect and who respect you. Think of ways you can set up your own litmus tests during these weird fallow times to determine where you want to land next that will be best for *you.*
-Anonymous Girl Boss
I took the first job I could get in media — I really widened my net because all the positions I wanted were not hiring me. I ended up being a receptionist at a radio network, but a couple years later I got a job in TV! So, if you have the ability to afford being in an entry level low paying position, it really does help to get a foot in the door. I had found that first job through the job boards my college had online for alumni.
My TV job was sent to me by a college friend who recommended me, and nearly all of my jobs since, have come from some level of networking. I got laid off during the last recession and took a freelance gig in production because it was offered to me as a fill in for a few weeks. Luckily I liked it enough to start a new track, which I stayed on for a few years until I pivoted to my current career track.
The position I have now is because of the experience I got on my meandering journey, so I would say to not limit yourself to only your dream positions! Looking beyond your dream career path can be educational and maybe surprise you with opportunities you’d otherwise never have pursued!
-Kelly
Tell everyone you know that you're looking for work. Think about types of skills you'd like to learn/master and what positions would help with that, regardless of industry or if it's your "dream." Set those LinkedIn notifications so you get notified when new stuff is posted, and apply FAST. Consider creative ways of networking and meeting new people — not just professional orgs, but random things like a book club, ultimate frisbee team, volunteering, etc. I made personal business cards that I carried with me everywhere that had a few key words about my skills, because you never know where you might find an opportunity. It's brutal but you will find something eventually!
-Stef
I graduated college in ‘08. It was a rough two years. I fought it for a while.
My advice would be to not treat professional success like a straight line. Instead treat it like a puzzle where you need to get enough pieces put together to see the whole picture.
Answer for yourself right now how much money you realistically need, in what setting, then geographies, etc. Then take any job that checks off enough boxes, any job.
-Sarah
Thank you to everyone who shared their advice!
Some other helpful resources
As always, I love “Ask A Manager,” especially these columns on job hunting during a recession.
Should you switch jobs in a bad economy?
This advice from back in 2009 (Read this with the caveat that though things are rough right now they’re not nearly as bad as back in 2009)
Classifieds
Internships
News Internship, Houston Public Media, (No pay information given)
Newsroom Intern, St. Louis Public Radio, (No pay information given)
Fellowships
Sports & Culture Reporting Fellowship, The Gulf States Newsroom, ($47,500/year)
The Pulitzer Center's AI Accountability Fellowship (up to $20,000)
Report LA Fellowship, KCRW ($26.93/hour)
Broadcast Engineering Fellow, Audacy (No pay information given)
KCUR's Aviva Okeson-Haberman Internship Program ($15/hour)
Marjorie Welch Fitts Louis Fellowship, KERA ($47,000-$53,000/year)
News Fellowship, WVIK ($15/hour)
Associate/Assistant Producer
Associate Producer, Talk Shows, WJCT Public Media
Assistant Producer, Marketplace, American Public Media Group ($28.12-$33.75/hour)
Production Assistant, Voices Radio
News Production Assistant (Part time), KNX 97.1 FM, Audacy
News Production Assistant (Part-time), 1010 WINS, Audacy ($16.84-$18.49/hour)
Production Assistant (Part-time), ESPN (No pay information given)
Lake Effect Production Assistant, WUWM 89.7 – Milwaukee's NPR ($40,000-$50,000/year)
Associate Producer, Talk Show, WJCT (No pay information given)
If you are hiring interns, fellows or other entry level positions, send your job postings and rates to startingout [at] transom [dot] org and I’ll list them in the next issue. Please note that Starting Out features only paid opportunities.
Priska Recommends
The 13th Step from New Hampshire Public Radio
This episode of Sea Change from WWNO
Sugarland from the Texas Newsroom
The Bag Game from ESPN
Coming up...
Next month: Jonathan Menjivar of This American Life and Pineapple Street Studios on how class impacted his career.
Starting Out will always be a free resource. If you want to support this work you can donate to Transom. The newsletter is edited by Jennifer Jerrett and Sydney Lewis. Interviews are transcribed with help from Elizabeth Kauma.
Great read, thank you so much for sharing!