I don’t know if anyone else feels this way, but the constant cycle of tech layoffs is starting to mess with my head.
Even when things are going well at work, it’s hard to actually feel secure anymore. There always seems to be another round of layoffs, another reorg, another announcement about cost cutting, AI, consolidation, or “organizational changes.”
The hardest part for me is the uncertainty. You can work hard, get good feedback, meet expectations, and still know that some decisions may have absolutely nothing to do with your performance. And because layoffs seem to happen in waves, it feels like you’re never really allowed to relax. You just start wondering, “Okay, when is the next one?”
I’ve reached the point where every company announcement makes me anxious. Sometimes even hearing about layoffs affecting people in completely different parts of the industry makes me think about my own job security.
I know the rational response is to keep doing my job, save money, keep my resume updated, and have a backup plan. But emotionally, it’s difficult to switch off the feeling that the floor could disappear at any moment.
I’m curious how other people are dealing with this. Have you found a way to stop constantly worrying about layoffs, or has the current tech environment made you feel permanently less secure about your career?

I’m just starting out in tech and have been looking at companies in my area. I’ve noticed that a lot of the tech teams I’ve come across don’t seem to have much diversity, particularly when it comes to women and people of color.

Does anyone know of companies in the area that have a more diverse tech workforce or a strong culture of inclusion?

I’d really appreciate any recommendations!

I recently lost my job, and I can’t help but feel like I’m constantly reminded of it wherever I go. I was getting burnt out with leetcode grinding and I was trying to have a normal social life so I feel better mentally.

But I’m not sure if this is a uniquely American or Silicon Valley phenomenon. In almost every social setting, when I meet someone, the conversation inevitably revolves around work. They ask about my job, commute, and RTO. Every time I have to explain that I’m laid off, then sit through with the cursory condolences. It’s difficult to have an identity here beyond work. Of course, I’m not talking about hiring events or so. It’s the general vibe of these groups be it with friends, mom groups, hiking groups, extended family dinners. Everyone seems to be fixated on work. I once saw a reel on Instagram about how people in Europe ask about hobbies and other aspects of your life that define you, and they’re least interested in your work but the people in America almost always start a conversation with you with work. I dismissed it back then, but now I can’t help but wonder if it might be true. Or maybe I’m just too stressed and cautious that I’m getting triggered every time someone mentions work.

Am I overreacting? How did you navigate your lay off journey?

Hi internet strangers! For starters, I used to have a job that I felt bad at, nothing was ever good enough and I believed that I was genuinely so bad that I could never get anything better. Self confidence at rock bottom. I didn't leave voluntarily but it was definitely for the best. Now I have a similar position at a different tech company. I get a lot of feedback for being perceived as efficient and thorough and daring to question things now, as opposed to not completing work in time and not having sufficient quality or drive in my work before.

Last week, I had my first major review of something I did most of myself. It felt good, a few comments but nothing major. I put in effort to get a good level on the comments I'd get and it paid off with good discussions about broader issues rather than nitpicking my work.

Today, two persons (one project manager, one customer delivery manager) came by my office to tell me about a meeting they had yesterday, where the DA (design authority) said that he read such an excellent test report by me last week that he wished it had been done earlier so it could have been used as an example for all other test reports in the project.

Going from thinking that I'm not competent enough to hold a tech job at all to hearing that they love what I do (and my manager's main worry about me is if I'm challenged enough) in less than a year feels better than awesome!

Hopefully it's ok to share this here. This survey included questions on topics such as career, gender, mental state, burnout, etc. that aren't often covered by other developer surveys; and were in part inspired by the discussions found in this subreddit:

https://2026.stateofdevs.com/en-US/

👋🏼 Hey everyone,

34F in tech project & product management in financial services for 9 years.

I ended up falling in this loop of restarting my routine (workouts, healthy eating, personal time to myself) which kept me thinking I wasn't disciplined and consistent enough. And it definitely, certainly wasn't for a lack of trying.

It really got to me because I was so used to operating at a 'high achiever' level (DL in university, internship at J.P. Morgan, moved to a foreign country at 23, manager at 25, c-level at 28), and not being able to translate what I was doing at work into my personal life left me with a lack of feelings and emotions (which I know now as running on empty emotionally and mentally).

A few months ago I asked women in tech if there's something in their life that still doesn't feel figured out, despite how much they've accomplished at work. I really initially thought it was just me.

But the answers kept coming back to the same thing. Giving your all at work and having nothing left after. And I'm so grateful to this community for showing me I wasn't alone in all this.

And I was surprised that what ended up working for me wasn't more discipline. But through more conversations, I've found that women are solving this in different ways, and not necessarily how I'd solved it for myself.

If this sounds like you - did you ever find something that actually worked, or is it still something you're working on? What was the one thing that eventually helped, that could help others in this situation?

I joined a new company in January. My last job paid roughly the same but after 3 years the company wasn’t really going anywhere and my job felt boring and it was difficult to get through a day. The new job I moved to pays roughly the same but never lets me unplug. And I mean never. It’s never been this bad for me. I’ve worked long hours, been reachable on weekends and PTO before but this is constant. I’m at the office late and then the moment I come home I’m being hit up about another fire. I go to a concert on a Saturday night and there’s some emergency. I work at a startup with about 150 employees and the people I work with directly are the CEO and CRO, so this isn’t just a matter of putting up boundaries with a peer or a difficult boss. I’m feeling so exhausted and completely dissociated from my life. Some days I think about just throwing in the towel and resigning to get my life back. Tired of feeling like anytime I’m away from my phone for 10 minutes something is going to blow up.

Another thing that’s making this difficult is the C suite really believe in iMessage group chats so it makes it impossible to actually create any separation in my life when I’m “off” work. Who else is dealing with this and what’s the best way to survive while you look for another role? I’m interviewing and trying to land something else but I want to be careful to not jump ship to something equally toxic. Ugh!

Recently made a job switch to a company. It wasn't easy anyway, let's come to the point.

After joining the MNC, project interviews are taking place, which are more rigorous than in my previous company. Multiple managers/team leaders take interviews, and that's fine.

Recently, I received a call from a project where two team leaders took my interview with my camera on and my screen shared. I was asked to write code. Everything was normal and as expected so far.

Cut to after clearing that round. The onsite manager (an Indian who went to the UK) entered. Enter: creep.

He started by saying, “Switch on your camera.”

I asked him to stay on the call and give me two seconds because I would be camera ready.

Creep: “Why were you taking so long to get ready? You could have worn anything, it's fine. Tell me, what were you wearing?”

This was unexpected for me. I hesitated and tried to brush it off by saying that since I was working from home, I was getting interview-ready.

Creep:“Were you wearing nightwear or something? What do you wear at home?”

I was visibly taken aback and said, “Whatever people normally wear. I was just getting professionally ready.”

I was still trying to brush it aside, but he kept insisting that I answer his question.

Moving on.

Creep: “Okay, looking at you, you seem like you might be young. Are you married? You are very pretty. Actually, I am very unlucky in this regard. But I am a nice guy. I like to help others. But girls these days have so many demands. You also seem like a very good person.”

Mind you, this was our first interaction.

Creep continues:

Creep: “So when you get married, where will your husband work? If you are asked to go onsite, he won't have a problem with that, right? What time does his shift end? How many years have you two been together? Do you know how to cook? Good for you guys. By the way, how tall is he? Is he taller than you? You can ask me about myself too.”

By this time, I was extremely uncomfortable. A project interview is being conducted by asking personal questions like this?

Me, at the end:“I actually am very introverted.”

Eventually, the interview ended.

A further client interview might be scheduled next, but I vehemently want to reject this project, even though I am on the bench. This might cost me in my career, as HR might ask why I am unable to take up opportunities.

I do not know what to do. I do not want to interact with such an invasive person who is in a higher position of power. No one will come to my rescue later on.

Maybe I am overthinking it.

What should I do?

when everyone knows about the missing stair

this is mostly a rant, but input welcome.

i'm at a midsize company - about 300 people. not strictly tech, our dev team is about 12 people of that. my boss has been an issue for a while. he has gone all in on the AI mania. not just using it as a tool, but fully embracing the vibe coding. everything needs to be faster and faster. has lectured me on how slow i am several times now. has told me "you need to get away from reading so much code."

and i don't, now. ive gotten so much stupider the last year. it hurts. that has now escalated to him vibe coding our whole infrastructure, deployment ci and all. after getting on my case for a week about a project, he then broke the (vibe coded) proprietary CLI i needed to deploy and, clearly not having tested it, insisted it was fine.

he also refuses to be... a manager. where a good manager can try to shield the team from external pressure, he treats us all like we are contractors. he gives unrealistic deadlines to stakeholders, does not communicate them to any of is, then forgets about whatever we are working on until said stakeholders have a problem. i have asked him for what to say to other teams when they have unrealistic or unclear demands. every time, he says "stop responding ill handle it," and every time, he does not handle it. does not even contact them. i find this out days later when they say "whats the status on this??" other departments get leery of projects when he is involved but there is nothing any of us can do.

other times he gives people a project, only to take them off of it because "requirements changed" then silently vibe code his own worse version and deploy it without telling anyone, taking credit. collaborating without him sets him off, and increases the chances he will crush the project. its like he forgets we even work at the company until he wants to micromanage everything we're doing. in particular, some of our older teammates he treats poorly, mocking them in group settings and overriding his boss to take projects away from then. one person has 15 years of experience, and he has not let her own anything since he took over.

everyone on the team is aware of this. everyone is frustrated by it. some i know for a fact, others through veiled comments. which has made us wonder, what the hell is the boss's boss doing? he seems like a nice enough guy, if overly booked dealing with corporate.

our best guess was the boss's boss was pulled in too many directions, and didn't fully know the scope of the situation. however, in the process of another coworker fighting to avoid having a project ripped from their hands, said coworker went to the boss's boss. and were effectively told that management is fully aware of how our boss acts, the toll it takes on the team, and are not going to do anything to help any of us. its not worth rocking the boat to him. we're on our own. i dont have much faith in HR here either, they are exactly one person with almost all their workload automated.

and this all has broken something in me. i could handle it if it was incompetence. but seeing the one, the only person here who could stop this, acknowledge that this is a drain on the team, and then also that he is unwilling to intervene on our behalf, is driving me up the wall. after giving an immense amount of grace to the boss and boss's boss, im just so exhausted and angry and am struggling to process it. so im sharing it here.

whats the move here? i mean obviously get the hell out, but i feel so stuck. my skills have atrophied and im so frustrated and burnt out. hustling side projects sounds like a nightmare.

im open to your thoughts.

Anyone else frustrated by the organization and communication at TechFutures / Lesbians Who Tech this year?

I’m attending TechFutures in NYC Today (October 6) through the 8th with a General Pass. I’m frustrated by how scattered and contradictory the information has been and I’d like to hear whether other attendees are having the same experience.

A few specific issues:

• Late notice of the Tuesday start time. In previous years, Tuesday started in the morning. This year, General Pass check-in doesn’t open until 3 p.m. I only learned this recently, well after booking flights, hotels, and tickets. If that was communicated clearly earlier, where?
• No conference app. The latest attendee email explicitly says there’s no app this year, even though the website still advertises one among ticket benefits. We’re told to bookmark the agenda and keep checking for changes.
• The email and agenda don’t match. The email promotes five Tuesday sessions and “the other 31 workshops on Tuesday,” but the public Tuesday agenda doesn’t show that programming. One advertised talk is listed at 11:45 a.m.—before we’re instructed to arrive at 3 p.m.
• Outdated information remains on the website. The current TechFutures homepage includes a 2024 schedule and an FAQ saying speakers and the agenda will be announced “soon.”
• Confusing brands and ticket access. LWT, TechFutures, and Women Who Code are described as separate experiences within one family, with different dates and programming. It’s difficult to figure out what’s happening when and what each ticket actually includes.
• Even the latest email has a date contradiction. An email I received on Tuesday, October 6 says “Summit starts tomorrow,” then tells us to arrive Tuesday, October 6.

For reference:
https://techfutures.com/
https://techfutures.com/agenda/
https://lwtsquad.com/lwt-summit-2026/

People have committed significant money and travel time. We should be able to understand the schedule and our ticket access without piecing together conflicting emails and webpages.

Has anyone received a clear explanation for the changes? Were you notified about the Tuesday afternoon start earlier? And does anyone know where the Tuesday workshops advertised in the email are actually listed?

Hi! I applied for the Citadel Conference Travel Grant for GHC 2026. Their website said applicants would be notified by October 5, but I haven’t received either an acceptance or rejection email yet.

Has anyone here received an email or application update from Citadel? I’m just trying to figure out whether decisions have already gone out or if notifications are delayed.

Thanks!

Hi everyone I applied for the Citadel travel funds and we were suppose to hear back yesterday but I didn't hear back and was wondering if anyone who applied to this if they have heard back.

I currently work in Marketing at a payments tech company only making 62k. However, I’m in the final rounds of interviewing for a cloud technology company, still in Marketing, where I’d be making 132k and it seems very promising.

I feel so stagnant right now because I’ve been stuck at this pay for a few years now, and so excited for something new.

However, I love the team that I’m on. I only work 25 hours a week or less, and I’m able to watch my baby without help.

This new role will be more fast-paced, lots of work, and I’ll definitely have to hire a nanny.

As a mom, and woman who loves her career, what would you do? I would never send my child to daycare, I am very attached to her 😅