My mom once told me that I am perfectly designed to deliver bad news because I’m petite, blonde, and non-threatening. She’s not wrong.

On my last day of work at Pfizer, I had to lay people off. There were two long-time IT leaders who didn’t see it coming until I walked in the door. Even then, they were like, “Come on, Laurie, it’s your last day. Are you sure?”

The thing is HR doesn’t make the rules. We don’t necessarily create the layoff list — we help leaders put your name on it. Sorry, friends. Wish it were different.

Want to know more secrets about layoffs? Check out my weekly newsletter where I’m dropping a little wisdom about what to do if you think your name is on a list.

Why do I keep telling you about my weekly newsletter? Because it’s the one place where you’ll find exclusive content written for a tight-knit community who wants to think differently about the world of work. I cover topics like introversion-versus-extroversion, working from home, and how to connect with efficiency and purpose so that you’re not Zoomed out.

I craft stories, produce videos, offer links to articles I’ve enjoyed, and share links to content that’s caught my eye over the week. And I do this for you because — let’s be honest — you’ve been here for me in every conceivable iteration of my career since 2007. It’s my goal to be helpful.

Have feedback on the newsletter or articles you’d like to share? You can always reach me at contact@letsfixwork.com or right here in the comments below! ↓