How I turned my layoff into $12K (and a new career)

One year ago this week, I got laid off. On October 15, 2024, a mystery meeting with HR and our CEO popped up on my calendar. People on my team started disappearing from Slack. By 9:30 AM, I was logged out of everything — suddenly unemployed. (One week after a big raise, two days before my birthday. 🙃 Rude.) After crying my face off, I went into panic mode. Applied to every job. Reached out to every connection. Cried some more. Aaaand… nothing. Then in November, my former work bestie (now just...