I've never been in this position myself but I have been made redundant in another industry. It's crap! It's being thrown in the deep end and that's always gonna feel bad but with the information provided in the question, I assume you've spent time in the deep end before!

As far as answering your question goes, I can only advise you recognise your awesome skillset completely and get back to job hunting! Use the network you've built at that company as a helping hand if possible, but if not, put yourself back out there and I'm confident (even more than you, maybe) that you'll find yourself happy and busy in a new role in the not too distant future.

Not very specific advise I know but you seem extremely employable and your core (soft) skills seem great!

Good luck with the hunt and reach out if there's any way I can help ✌🏻🙂

I am sorry to hear about that Robert. As someone who has had a long(ish) career as a developer, it is almost a right of passage in our business. Things change so fast and layoffs are so common that I rarely talk to anyone who hasn't been hit at some point. Though, I doubt that makes you feel any better right now.

I, myself, have been laid off multiple times. In some cases, those companies no longer exist (though they did at the time I was laid off...but it was a sign). I've also been at big companies where I thought I would be laid off and wasn't somehow and not necessarily because I was the best. I learned that in many cases - especially at the big companies - it's less about your ability and more about where you were on an org chart. I've seen many hugely talented, smart and hard-working people laid off at places where others who were far less deserving stayed.

My point is, don't let it define you. Don't let it dissuade you from doing what you enjoy. If you truly love learning, that is a key skill for being a successful developer and you'll have other opportunities in no time.

Sorry for what happened to you, it sucks!

Keep an eye on the hiring threads (also check those back a month or two, positions are not always filled).

That's definitely a kick in the pants, as you say, but sounds like you're in a pretty comfortable position to find the next thing. You can probably take some time to figure out the next thing, maybe do some consulting in between. Everybody's looking for good experienced developers.

You might want to check out the hiring thread: