since i got laid off twice , you can probably tell that I am the kind who doesn't jump on new opportunities and the kind that get attached to their work - so if you are at oracle and settling for no raises / no career path / getting paid below market , then we had something in common at one point.
This is what happened .
in Nov 2017 we got laid off from oracle when Oracle quit the hardware business, we were devastated , lost, I even cried. it was a recorded phone call that ended everything .that was almost the darkest moment in my life. no confidence , even believed that I joined Oracle accidentally and this accident may never happen again at another company , very demoralizing and sh–ty phase.
BUT that was the biggest blessing. I spend few months preparing / writing code and data structures , leetcode a little bit and got a job where I got paid 60k more in the base salary more than oracle , there was yearly raises , sign on bonus, stocks, parties, free perks. I couldn't believe i was working in that sh—hole and i was willing to do anything to go back to oracle when they laid us all off .
2 years later - project failed - got laid off again ,with many others :)
back to the darkest moment again . prepared , worked hard, and landed another job.
making more than what i was making, another blessing .
why I am writing this :
- I was like you , no confidence , accepting any salary just to stay employed, getting used to my comfort zone, scared everyday to get laid off . you are better than that , you can work on your skills and get a well paying job and no need to accept a sh–ty salary.
- interviews are random , and luck plays a big role. experienced talents are hard to find ( recruiters words) , put yourself out there and get back in the game . eventually one of these interviews will work and you will live a better life without all this stress .
- to survive in this area you need to make a good salary. with Oracle you will always be poor while everyone is making money , buying houses and living the good life.
- Most importantly . sometimes things need to get worse before it gets better. i would of never did what i did unless i had to . if you want good salary you need to switch jobs and build a resume that has multiple companies and different skill set , this is a fact . you cant grow or make any money if you keep your job for 10-15 years. recruiters wont take you seriously .
- interviews are not hard, they are just scary. the more you get used to it the easier it gets . think of it as your first day at the gym , you will probably vomit and feel you gonna die, if you keep doing it things improve and your body get used to it . get used to the stress and being put on the spot and asked questions , practice with startups . lose the stress and start running the show.
I hope this help people to get the courage and confidence to face the problem that most companies in the valley will do layoffs ( cisco, uber, oracle ... etc) don't be the victim and be prepared to face this fact.
Good luck