This is part of the Layoff Diaries - a personal series about navigating life after a layoff, building a business, and figuring it all out in real time.
A lot of people are getting laid off right now. Whether it's new technology replacing roles, restructuring, or something else entirely, it's happening, and it can hit you out of nowhere.
I know because it happened to me. In 2024, I was laid off right before I opened the doors to Perspective Studio Productions. I found out the way nobody wants to find out - a text from a colleague at 8:45 a.m. saying "I'm so sorry you got laid off yesterday." I had called in sick. I had no idea. But that 9:00 a.m. meeting with my manager suddenly made a lot of sense.
It has not been an easy journey. When you've worked hard, built yourself up, and built a lifestyle around that income, a layoff doesn't just affect your bank account. It affects everything. I'm sharing these tips because I wish someone had shared them with me. Some of these I did. Some I learned the hard way.
Note: I am not a financial adviser or legal professional. Please consult the appropriate experts for advice specific to your situation. This is just one person's experience.
Before We Get to the List: Get Legal Advice Immediately
This isn't on the official list, but it's the first thing I did and I don't want you to skip it. The moment you find out you're being laid off, do not accept the first offer they give you. Reach out for legal advice right away. Ask colleagues, former managers, or your network if they can recommend an employment lawyer. You want to understand your options before you sign anything. You may have more room to negotiate than you think.
1. Get Credit Card Insurance - Right Now
If you don't have credit card insurance on your credit cards, stop reading and go add it. Seriously.
Credit card insurance pays your minimum monthly balance if you lose your job and can't make payments. It can cover you for an extended period, sometimes 12 to 18 months or more, while you figure out your next steps. The last thing you want during a job loss is to also lose your credit standing.
I had it on my largest card and not my others. I don't even remember why I made that choice, but that card's insurance was a lifesaver. The first time I was laid off, back around 2016, I didn't have it, and I called the credit card company asking to lower my payments. They told me no. That was not true. Which brings me to tip two.
2. Negotiate Your Monthly Credit Card Payments
If you find yourself unable to make your full minimum payment, call your credit card company and ask about hardship programs. They exist. Credit card companies would rather keep you as a customer than lose you entirely, and many have programs that can reduce your minimum payment temporarily.
If the first person you speak to says it's not possible, ask to speak to someone else. Go to chat. Look it up. It is possible - I was able to do it in 2024 even while my credit card insurance was active. Know your options and use them.
3. Break Up with Food Delivery Apps
Delete Uber Eats. Delete Skip. Unless you're planning to become a driver, in which case keep the app, those food delivery services are quietly draining your account in ways that are easy to ignore when you have a steady income and much harder to justify when you don't.
I'll be honest: I only deleted it recently, and I've been laid off for two years. I kept justifying it - sometimes a two-can-dine deal felt comparable to buying groceries. But most of the time you're ordering something your body doesn't need, paying a delivery fee, a service fee, and a tip on top of it. Get into the kitchen. If you need help with that, I have another video on five healthy tips for when you lose your job.
And while you're at it, Uber One? Cancel it. I was paying for a membership to get discounts on a service I should have been using less. I later realized Uber personalizes pricing based on your spending habits. Big spenders get bigger discounts because the platform knows they'll spend more anyway. Don't be that person.
4. Negotiate Everything in Your Severance Package
Do not take the first offer. Negotiate the number of weeks. Negotiate the lump sum amount. And critically, negotiate your benefits.
In Canada, severance is typically calculated based on years of service, but many employers will offer more if you ask. A few extra weeks of pay can make a real difference. More importantly, negotiate to extend your health care, dental, and vision coverage for as long as possible, months beyond what they initially offer if you can.
Use that extended coverage strategically:
- Get your teeth cleaned. Book both appointments for the year if you can.
- Fill prescriptions and ask your doctor for multiple refills on anything you take regularly.
- Get your eyes checked and order glasses or contacts while coverage is active.
- Extend therapy coverage - even if you don't think you need it right now. You might in six months.
Get everything in writing. On company letterhead. In email. Not over the phone. If your benefits get cut early and you have it in writing, you have recourse. If you don't, you have nothing.
5. Protect Your Mental Health - Find What Calms Your Nervous System
At some point during my layoff journey, I felt like everything was on fire. The business was making money, but it couldn't compare to what I was making in corporate. The financial pressure was real, and stress has a way of showing up in your body whether you acknowledge it or not.
I stumbled across somatic breathing on TikTok - guided sessions, sometimes just 60 seconds - and I noticed an immediate shift in how I felt. Calmer. More centred. I started going deeper into it and it became part of how I manage stress.
Your version might be different. The lake. Journaling. Prayer. Meditation. Exercise. Find your mix and get into it before you're in crisis mode, because when your finances are under pressure, your nervous system will feel it. You need tools already in place.
And your friends and family are not your therapists. If you can extend therapy coverage through your severance negotiation, do it - and use it.
6. Audit and Cut Your Subscriptions
Go through every subscription you pay for and ask: have I used this in the last six months? If the answer is barely, cut it or downgrade it.
Amazon Prime. Netflix. Paramount. Canva Pro. Digital tools. Streaming services stacked inside other streaming services. It adds up fast and it's easy to ignore when money is coming in regularly. When it's not, every $20 matters.
Ask yourself: can I get the same value from the lower tier? Can I pause instead of cancel? Where can I save $20, $40, $100 a month? Small cuts compound quickly.
7. Protect Your RRSP Opportunity (Canada)
This one is for anyone receiving a significant severance lump sum. Before they issue you the money, during negotiations and not after, find out how much RRSP contribution room you have and request that a portion (or all) of your severance be directed there before it's taxed.
If you receive $50,000 in severance and it gets taxed at 40-50%, you could lose $20,000-$25,000 to taxes immediately. But if you direct that money into your RRSP before it's issued, you receive the full amount and only pay tax when you withdraw it later, ideally in a lower-income year.
Talk to your investment provider before negotiations are finalized. Confirm your contribution room. Make the request in writing as part of your severance agreement. This is one of the most impactful financial moves you can make in this situation, and most people don't know it's an option.
The Most Important One: Your Identity Is Not Your Income
This is the hardest one. And it takes time. I'm still working through it.
When you've spent years building yourself up in a career, growing in your role, earning more, leading teams, hitting goals, all of that becomes part of how you see yourself. And when it's taken away, it can feel like you've lost a piece of who you are.
Being laid off is not a reflection of your value. It is not a verdict on how hard you worked or how much you grew. The skills, the leadership, the experience - none of that disappears. It comes with you.
Whether you go back to corporate or build something of your own, give yourself grace. It took me time. It might take you time too. That's okay. Just don't let the income number define the person.
I hope these tips are helpful. I hope you don't need them. But if you do, you're not alone, and you're going to be okay.
If you're building something new and want to tell your story, share your expertise, or start a podcast, we're here. Come visit us at Perspective Studio Productions. Let's get your voice out there.