How to explain a layoff, what to say in the first ninety seconds, how to read an offer honestly.

Guides in this section

1. 01
   How to answer "tell me about yourself" after a layoff →

   Use the present-past-future structure in about ninety seconds. Start with your current role or background in one sentence. Move through the relevant arc of your career in two or three sentences. End with why this conversation, at this company. Do not start with the layoff. Do not give a chronology. Do not list hobbies. The answer is the frame for everything else in the interview.

2. 02
   How to ask about layoff risk in an interview →

   You can ask about layoff risk directly if you phrase the question around the business, not the team. Three questions surface most of what you need to know. What is the funding runway or profitability story? How has the team changed in the last twelve months? What happened in the last reorganisation? Ask each of a different interviewer. The answers, taken together, tell you what the next year is likely to look like.

3. 03
   How to evaluate a job offer when you're desperate →

   Six criteria actually matter when you evaluate an offer: the manager, the scope, total compensation, growth, the company's stability, and your gut. Three feel like they matter and rarely do: title, prestige, and office perks. After a long search the temptation is to accept any offer. The frame below sorts the offer that works from the one you will be searching out of in nine months.

4. 04
   How to explain being laid off in an interview →

   Use three sentences. One factual sentence about what happened. One neutral sentence about what it meant for you. One forward-looking sentence about what you are looking for now. Do not explain who else was cut, why the company struggled, or how you felt. The interviewer is not looking for a story. They are looking for a calm, short answer that signals you are ready for the next role.

5. 05
   How to negotiate salary after a layoff →

   You can still negotiate after a layoff, even without a competing offer. Avoid naming a number first. When pushed, give a range based on market comp, not your last salary. Wait for the formal offer before countering. Counter on total compensation, not base alone. The phrase that buys you the most room is, 'I would like to come back to you with a number once I have all the details.' Use it.

6. 06
   Red flags to watch for in interviews after a layoff →

   Three patterns are worth more attention than candidates usually give them. Burnout signals — a team that has not shipped in months, or that talks about being busy more than about being effective. Chaos signals — three different versions of the role's priorities across one loop. 'We are a family' signals — language that hints boundaries are weak. Each is askable without sounding suspicious if you frame the question around the work, not the people.

7. 07
   The thank-you note after an interview: when it helps, when it hurts →

   A short, specific note within 24 hours helps you in most interviews and rarely hurts. The version that moves the needle is a callback to the actual conversation — one thing you took away, one thing you wanted to add. The version that hurts is the generic 'thank you for your time' card that signals you have not thought about what you discussed. Skip the long version. Skip the hand-written one. Send a short email.

8. 08
   What to do if you get a lowball offer →

   You have three honest options with a lowball offer. Counter with a specific number and a reason, decline cleanly, or accept knowing it is a bridge. The right answer depends on the gap, the runway, and the rest of the offer beyond base. A counter using market data — Levels.fyi, Glassdoor, a published band — converts most lowball offers into reasonable ones. Decline only when the gap is too large for one counter to close.