I am a Java programmer who has worked in Beijing for 6 years. This article records my change in mentality and my mental journey of finding a new job after being laid off in this cold winter in November 2019. (PS: 15 hours after this article was published, the number of views was 6458 and there were over 100 comments. What a surprise)
Unemployment comes as scheduled
Why do you say that "unemployment is coming as scheduled"? This has to start on November 18, 2019. That day was the last day of my holiday. It was not easy to sneak a break home from my busy life and rest for three days. I didn't start to pack my luggage until I had to catch a train back to Beijing at night. Suddenly, a message came to my mobile phone. When I opened it, it was a "secret notice" from a colleague. He said that he had received internal news in advance that the company would lay off employees in the near future. The news was confirmed and would be announced soon.
After reading the news, I saw my wife walking towards me from the corner of my eye. I heard the sound of children and grandma playing behind me. I turned off my phone as if nothing had happened. I arrived at the train station 30 minutes early. While in the waiting hall, I received news from another colleague. She also indicated that there might be a situation in the company, and the information they gave was similar, so it seemed that the news of layoffs was confirmed. At this time, I was not "worried" or "unhappy", because I had already experienced the uncertainty of life, and my heart was like a calm sea, calm and calm.
Arriving in Beijing the next morning, I got off the bus and went straight to the company. I arrived at the company 40 minutes earlier than normal work, so I went downstairs and had a leisurely meal. Then when I returned to the company, my colleagues were all there, lively and busy, as if the company's business and personal development were booming. The sloppy colleague was still walking around casually with a glass of water, and the unsuspecting colleague was still writing code.
At about 11 a.m., my colleague opposite me left the workstation. When I came back a few minutes later, I saw that his expression was not quite right. Through his nearsighted glasses, I saw that his eyes were moist! Yes, he was interviewed, and as I received from the "grapevine" at home, unemployment was coming as scheduled.
Leave immediately or fight for compensation
The colleague with moist eyes was a muscular man who had just joined the job and was on probation. In fact, almost all of the colleagues who were laid off this time were on probation, and some were only a day or two or three to five days away from becoming regular. We all signed a 3-year contract when we joined the company, followed by a 6-month probation period. Now it seems that this six-month trial period has to be suspected of having ulterior motives, and the company's attitude also confirms this point. They are using professional "personnel cutting methods" to divide people and batches. Negotiating with us one by one, hoping to drive away us donkeys who have finished loading, on the condition of "10 days of compensation", which does not comply with a plan of the labor law.
For those of us who are about to pay for layoffs, there are two questions here: whether to leave immediately or fight for compensation:
Should we strive for reasonable compensation in accordance with the labor law? If we do, it means we have to negotiate with the company, It takes time and has an unknown time cost.
There are less than two months left at the end of the year, and I have to hurry up and complete the formalities and continue to find a job. If we continue to negotiate with the company, will it be possible that the money will not arrive and the time to continue looking for a job will be wasted?
Faced with these two choices, many of our colleagues agree that "we are the weaker party." We all understand that according to the Labor Law, layoffs during the probation period require compensation of 0.5 months 'salary, and one month's notice is required in advance. If you want employees to leave immediately, you can replace this "one-month's advance notice" with a waiting notice payment, that is, give the employee 1.5 months 'salary and let him leave immediately.
What is the use of knowing these legal provisions? Knowing that the company is operating illegally, what can we do? Continuing to negotiate with the company means wasting time. If we go to labor arbitration or something like that, it will take time and effort, and the final result will not be known. At present, there is less than February left before the Spring Festival, and there is news of layoffs everywhere. We need enough time to find a new job and find the next job before the Spring Festival.
There is no so-called "stability" in the world, and we have to be prepared for changes and surprises all the time. At the moment, we must weigh "how to maximize the benefits." The current way to maximize the benefits is: take 10 days of compensation and leave immediately to find a job. If we find a job next week, everything will be less difficult to accept. So starting from the 19th, some colleagues accepted the "10-day compensation" and signed off, and immediately made an appointment for interviews in the next few days. On the 20th, another group of people accepted the "15-day compensation" and signed off.
Do you want to continue to brush questions and find a job?
On the afternoon of November 21, I signed the resignation agreement and left work early and went home. I knew that I wasn't fired because of ability issues, and I also knew that I would definitely find a job next. Although this year's media and news in various fields have criticized the "economic winter", I am immune to these brainless, unscrupulous editors who like to deliberately incite and hype topics. I can judge the current general situation based on my own experience and knowledge. I know I can find a job. It's just a matter of time, it's just a matter of good and satisfied.
From the moment they were interviewed, experienced colleagues began to brush the questions. That's right, it's common sense to "build a rocket for an interview and screw the screws for entry". Everyone was very skilled at sorting out the must-ask points for the interview and began targeted reviews. For Java interviews, commonly used data structures such as HashMap and ArrayList implementation principles are almost mandatory; tool libraries related to concurrent programming must be reviewed; JVM memory models, class loading mechanisms, garbage collection, etc. must be prepared at both advanced and intermediate levels; Spring framework has been used for so many years, so you need to know the DI/AOP principles, SringMVC principles, Spring transactions, some Spring source code, and the use and principles of Springboot; At the same time, since they are all advanced, you must understand distributed applications and microservice applications, right? You must understand the use of Dubbo and related principles, and the related modules and principles of SpringCloud, right? Have you read the dubbo source code? Haven't seen it? -- Garbage! What's the difference between Mybatis and #? This is not the end. You have to understand the use of caching. You have to answer questions such as redis master-slave, sentinel, cluster, and basic sring, hash, list, zset and other aspects of Redis.
After answering these questions, is your mouth dry? It doesn't matter, let's continue. MySQL's transactions, indexes, transaction isolation levels, dirty reading, and scenarios played on site by the interviewer, database and table separation, master-slave synchronization, SQL optimization and many other questions can be asked for another half hour. After asking so many questions, it's not enough for you to only know MySQL. You also need to know something about pg. It's best for Hbase to ask too. Have you ever used a search engine? Solr、ES? OK, continue asking about the ES principle again. Have you used MQ? Let's introduce activemq and kafka, and explain some principles by the way. Docker, can K8S know it?...
It seems that I have finished asking all the questions. Shall I ask you the design pattern again? What design patterns do you know? What design patterns do you use every day? What design patterns do you see in which source codes? What are the principles of object-oriented design? Is the TDD model recognized? Do you understand DEVOPS? OK, OK, your answer is okay, how about this? You design an MQ and explain the ideas. Come, I will give you a piece of paper, and you will write down the rotation of the red and black trees. If you design a website now that needs to withstand 1 million concurrent users, what should your server configuration be?... Then the next step is to ask you in a serious manner: Why did you leave your previous company? (In fact, he himself changes jobs extremely frequently) What do you think of overtime work? (In fact, he slipped off after work or joined the time-consuming team before becoming a regular employee to show a positive work attitude)
This is roughly the current situation of interviews nowadays. I know all this well and I understand it. Now that the industry is mature and there are more talents, companies can select better talents. It would be fine if people could make the best of them. In fact, it would be mostly "interviewing to build rockets and screwing the screws for the job." Of course, you can't blame the company for this, you can only blame yourself. Your various plans and development routes have caused you to remain a screw-twisting person.
Frankly, I feel tired of reading these every time I prepare for an interview. As a person who has worked for 6 years, he has come into contact with and used many of these things, and has read some of the source code. Coupled with his own daily thoughts, he has an understanding of the development of distributed applications and microservices. But what's the use of these? Even if you become a so-called technical expert, you are still not "working for others" and enjoying the blessings of 996.
What should I do? Do you continue to brush questions and find a job? Join a startup that crazily squeezes young labor, or enter a medium-sized and stable company to paddle with greasy leaders and comfortable colleagues, or enter a large company to enjoy 996 blessings? I find that I can't get interested. Should I continue to brush up on topics and find a job?
2 days of leisure
I feel in terrible condition! On the one hand, unemployment is still a bit depressing. When I first chose this company. Have thought about it:
- The industry in which the product is located does have a market, so if the product is done well, it will definitely be profitable.
- The company's environment is very good, and it has other businesses that are profitable and its own funds.
- Individuals actually have a plan to join this company.
Therefore, being laid off more or less disrupted my own plans, and I was a little depressed. Coupled with the above thoughts, I couldn't get interested in looking for a job. I can't seriously write my resume and prepare for interviews. Therefore, I think I should rest for two days first. I dare not do anything for these two days, relax and think.
I tried to put down all stress and anxiety, cook, watch movies, shop online, browse Weibo, and B sites. I also edited several videos I took together and watched idle books that had nothing to do with technology. It was really a day of wanton and decadent. Frankly speaking, it's cool to forget pressure, self-discipline, self-improvement, and struggle, waste time wantonly, and do things that make you feel relaxed. Maybe human nature is to like playing, eating, and being lazy.
However, after playing for a day, the result is empty and there is no sense of guilt for gaining anything. In the evening, I chatted with my roommate next door and exchanged views on various aspects such as personal careers. My roommate works in decoration design and drawing. I asked him: How did you decide to do remote work from home like you are now? He said: I didn't do it deliberately. The current situation is just natural. I currently work remotely for two companies and occasionally go to the company or the construction site.
The reason why I asked him this question was because I had considered doing remote work before and wanted to "just work and not go to work." However, it has never been implemented. On the one hand, there are few opportunities for remote work, but you can usually see some front-end remote opportunities. There are very few in Java, and it is difficult to find reliable remote work; on the other hand, based on the experience of people who have been there, remote work is not easier than going to work, it is just freedom, and the income is most likely much less than going to work.
The next day, I still didn't feel completely relaxed. I would occasionally think about what I wanted and what I wanted to do, and sort out my previous reading notes about developing side businesses and making products. In the evening, I went out to make an appointment, to make an appointment with our group of unemployed colleagues. During the banquet, we complained about our dissatisfaction with the company's layoffs but not paying normal compensation, our frustration at being ruthlessly fired after working hard on product research and development, talked about the pressure of our respective lives and yearning for the future, and also told jokes and expressed our appreciation for the friendly feelings during our work.
People are still emotional animals, and communication and exchanges with each other are still very important. In this cold winter, we ate, drank, talked, and laughed easily and happily. Gradually, everyone seemed to be venting. A relaxed and happy smile bloomed between pushing and changing cups, and was also buried in the hustle and bustle of the house. What is certain is that everyone was really reluctant when parting. In this cold winter, such a gathering allowed each other to express their feelings and bring them closer together. We changed our previous work WeChat group to a small partner group. Some colleagues said,"This group can never be disbanded"-just like a first love couple making a vow.
Responsibility and pressure brought by mobile phone lock screen wallpaper
After two days of leisure, the new week began. When I woke up in the morning, I glanced at my phone. The wallpaper on the screen is a photo of my daughter and I. This photo was taken a few days ago when we were home from vacation. The photo doesn't have any beauty, but this photo is really perfect. We didn't close our eyes, and our expressions were so natural and so happy.
Suddenly I felt a responsibility and pressure. I needed to work, I needed to make money, and I needed to provide protection for my family. No matter how confused I am, no matter how entangled I am, no matter whether I am tired of my current job, no matter what thoughts I have, I cannot stop... I will continue to move forward and continue to find a job. Why can I be different from others? Why can I find a way to balance my work and life in such a short period of time, not having to work 9 to 5, not having to waste 3 hours on the subway commuting, and having freedom? Why can I find a direction, make a product, make a profit, and independently and freely control my work and life? No, I can't do it right now.
I need a job, which is the most practical thing. My family, my children, need me to provide them with a guarantee. All men do this, and I cannot make an exception, and there is no better way to make another exception. Yes, I'm going to start looking for a job.
Just use these 5 resumes
When I decided to start preparing for the job search again, my colleagues were already interviewing non-stop, and some were even ready to join the job. I wasn't in a hurry, I just really started taking action. I compiled a resume and uploaded it to the Boss Direct Recruitment APP. I applied to several companies in the morning, but there was no response. This version of my resume helped me find a job before, but I remembered that the interviewer did say that my resume layout was not as intuitive as the regular format. So I rewritten a resume in the pages manuscript that came with MAC, changed the typography, adjusted the skill keywords, carefully optimized the project introduction, and also revised the upper, lower, left and right margins, font size, and line spacing., making the content streamlined to only 2 sheets of paper, but everything that should be written down.
Finally, it was saved in PDF format and printed for a preview. If I don't worry about whether the projects in my resume are shining or whether the academic background is strong, I think it's already very good from the overall performance of my resume. So I updated my resume and selected a company to deliver based on the company's recruitment requirements, company business, distance, salary range, etc.
However, I didn't get an effective response in the past two days. Many recruiters questioned my experience of being laid off. Many recruiters didn't read my news. Many recruiters read my news but didn't respond. Many recruiters responded with cold words,"Sorry, the academic qualifications don't match." Other recruiters stopped talking after asking for my resume attachment. I began to be anxious, worried, and stressed. I understood that my academic qualifications were indeed not competitive. Technically, I should be able to defeat a large number of job seekers, but after all, I was not very competitive. Although there is no exact data, I can think of: There are tens of thousands of Java engineers at the same level as me. Why am I better than them? What are my advantages, and what are my highlights?
Suddenly, I found myself so ordinary, so mediocre, so ordinary, so small. I indulge in countless ideas in my heart, think I have some talents, and have received recognition from many people, but no one has asked me for an interview at this moment. I even had the image of the personnel manager on the other side of the APP shaking his head, sighing, unremitting, and throwing it into the trash when screening my resume. For a moment, I felt as if I was useless and worthless.
Finally... I received my first interview invitation and was very excited. I checked the interview time again and again to make sure that I had not read wrongly, and checked the map again and again to confirm the distance and time schedule. I began to carefully read the recruitment requirements of the company that invited me to interview, and briefly understood the company's situation, while sorting out my knowledge map.
Between reviewing and preparing for the interview, I went to the neighborhood committee office in the community and asked them to help me print my resume. The staff of the neighborhood committee asked me how many copies I would print. After thinking about it, I wanted to say: Print 5 copies!
At that time, I was thinking: Just use up these 5 resumes! Prepare well and seize every opportunity.
no choice
My first interview should be said to be quite good. After arriving at the interview site at 10:30 in the morning, I found that there were many job seekers like me. They also sat there gracefully and talked humbly and amiably with the interviewer. Hearing their answers, I realized that some people came for interviews and were wasting time, while others were really strong competitors. After I had two rounds of interviews, it was already past 12 o'clock in the afternoon. The interviewer said that the next round would have to wait until 2 p.m.. The interviewer had no intention of sending me away, but he thought I would have to wait for an hour, so he took me out to eat. The interview in the afternoon went well, and it was time to discuss salary.
On the third day, I received a reply. The HR girl confirmed my salary expectations on the phone and added me to WeChat. At that time, I was really happy, but I didn't expect that "one battle would determine the world" and I was very excited. The previous loss, anxiety, and doubts about yourself were all swept away. Since I didn't want to be suppressed, I replied to the HR girl via WeChat with a higher salary than the current salary at the appointed time and waited for further response from the other party.
Later, I received several interview invitations intermittently, but there were not many opportunities, so I seemed to cherish each time. After all, the goal set a few days ago was to "use up 5 resumes". In the next few days, I fell to a low point again, and I didn't receive a new interview invitation. However, the company in the first battle did not receive a new response. There is no doubt that this company was ruined. I was just one of their suitable candidates. During the period when they did not respond further to me, they should have a suitable candidate with a better value for money.
It was the morning of December 9th, which was the 19th day since I had been unemployed. How were the results of my job search? First of all, not counting the re-examination, I have interviewed a total of 6 companies in the past few days. Two of them didn't provide resumes because they felt that the company seemed unreliable when I came to the front desk of the company, so I still have one resume. So what about the opportunities I currently have? The salary negotiation of the first company failed and failed; the second company, I went home for the first trial and found the company's CEO to give a speech. I felt that I didn't like the boss's philosophy very much, so I didn't go to the re-examination; the third company, after a detailed chat, found that it was a foreign blockchain business. The other party's HR told me that "the salary may not be as high as you expected, but the wealth will definitely grow in a fissile manner after starting the currency circle." Two days after I came back, the other party's HR still contacted me on WeChat, and I declined; The fourth company had discussed the salary once before, but the negotiation was not good, but it was not completely yellow...
There is not much time left for me, and there are only two new interview opportunities. There is still one day before the middle of the month. If you don't get hired this week, you will have to apply for social security payment. It's getting colder and colder these days, and the cold wind blows on the way to the interview makes your forehead hurt. The current situation is obvious. I have no choice but to accept the fourth company. In this situation, I seem to have no choice. I am already lucky to win the fourth company. So, at noon on the 12.9th, I responded to the fourth company and expressed my willingness to join the company according to the original salary standard. The other party agreed and said that the offer process would be started and the offer would be issued before the next day.
temporarily come to an end
12.9 On the afternoon of the 12.10, I was waiting nervously all day, afraid that the offer would not be issued. I continue to hire my boss directly and continue to submit my resume in case an accident occurs and I have new opportunities. However, I scrolled around many companies that I was familiar with, those companies where I had submitted resumes but the other party ignored me. I had to be cheeky and continue to send new messages. However, the other party "read it" but still did not respond...
Finally, I received the offer on 12.10. At this point, the job search has come to an end, and I have been unemployed for 19 days.
However, what holds for the future? I don't know, I can only say that it's just temporarily over.
supplemental content
I didn't expect that this article would receive so many likes and comments after it was first published in the Blog Park. I can see from the comments that many colleagues are also facing the problems I have experienced, and they also feel the same way about my experience, anxiety, and pressure. I think maybe each of us has a different story and journey, but we have the same goal through different paths. What if I wrote your stories? Interested students are welcome to leave a message.