Melody Wilding

And I was laid off because my role was eliminated.

And if I had done some of the things we're talking about today, I think I would have caught wind that that was going to happen much sooner.

It was a product innovation role at a healthcare company.

And this is important to the conversation today, which is I was working on a project that was important to my manager, but wasn't really central to the company's core business.

And so when times for cuts came, I, number one, did not have relationships and people willing to advocate for me.

And number two, my project was seen as dispensable.

It wasn't seen as core to the business and their main revenue drivers.

And I can understand why they made a business decision to let me go.

It makes sense.

Yes, taking that pulse is so important.

And I think so many of us have our heads down in our work so often that we don't lift our heads up for those considerations.

So your one-on-ones with your manager are a really, really valuable time for this.

During those conversations, that's your opportunity to be asking,

Tell me a bit more about what's happening at the leadership level.

What are the types of conversations you're having now about where the organization is going in the next quarter, year?

You don't and probably shouldn't ask directly, are you guys planning layoffs?

Why shouldn't you?

Well, let me say it depends on the degree of the relationship you have with your manager.

If you have rapport and that level of candidness with your manager, then you can.

You can say, you know, I want to make sure I'm positioning myself to provide the highest value here.