Just Got Laid Off? Here's What to Do in the First 24 Hours.
Before you sign anything, call anyone, or post anything — read this.
"Between stimulus and response there is a space.
In that space is our power to choose our response.
In our response lies our growth and our freedom."
Viktor Frankl
I didn't see it coming. I had just been promoted months before, and it was nearing the Thanksgiving holiday.
I found out about my job being eliminated the way a lot of people do — not with a long conversation, but quickly, and with finality. It was a first for me. And I felt a sinking in my body — the kind I now recognize as pure shock.
After I heard the news, I had to tell my team because their jobs were eliminated as well. So instead of me consoling them, we were all trying to figure out what had just happened and what would happen next.
So we did what you do when you're in shock on a bright sunny Wednesday — we went to lunch at Bryant Park Grill and sipped wine through the oh-shit-this-is-real moment we shared.
And then I walked from 42nd Street to Lincoln Center in four-inch heels. Because sometimes the body needs to do something when the mind can't process what just happened.
The rest of the night is a blurred memory, but I do remember settling into bed and crying myself to sleep.
And here's what I know now that I didn't know then. Eventually, things are going to be fine — and in some cases far better than previously thought.
But you are not thinking that in the first 24 hours after the news lands.
Some people freeze. Some argue, attempting to make the case for staying as if the decision hasn't already been made. Some go numb and smile through the whole thing. None of these reactions are wrong.
But the person sitting across from you has been prepped for this moment. And you haven't.
Nothing makes this moment easy. But a little preparation, some scripting — maybe even some role playing — means that if and when that moment comes, you can be calm and strategic.
The call is not the end of the world. You can, in fact, handle this moment.
On our Substack, I offer the step-by-step playbook for navigating the first 24 hours — what to say in the room, the exact scripts to use, what not to sign on day one, the first 4 calls to make (and in what order), how to protect your devices and access, and how to control the narrative before anyone else does.
It's the guide I wish someone had handed me that day at Bryant Park Grill.
Read the full issue on Giant Steps with Leilani Brown →
Do Well. Do Good.
Leilani M. Brown is the founder and CEO of Giant Steps, LLC, a strategy, culture, and governance advisory firm. She is the author of Your Next Giant Steps, From Campus to Career, and Your Next Giant Reset, and hosts Giant Steps with Leilani Brown, a podcast featuring some of the world's most talented and accomplished people.
Learn more at giantstepsllc.com.
📥 Download the free guide: Your Next Giant Reset: A Career Comeback Guide
📖 Buy the books on Etsy: Your Next Giant Steps ($15) & From Campus to Career ($12.50)
🎧 Listen: Giant Steps with Leilani Brown podcast on YouTube
💼 Coaching inquiries: info@giantstepsllc.com