This has been bothering me for quite a while. Not because I've ever been fired or unemployed (currently a phd student finishing my thesis and starting work in 3 weeks), but because of all the comments I tend to read on how awful it is when a gaming company is hit with layoffs or even worse closes down. It seems that getting fired/laid off is one of the worst things that can happen to someone. And maybe it is.
But I recently gave it some thought after hearing from old classmates of mine who are 28 at the moment and still don't have a full-time job. Getting fired/being laid off from a job means that you no longer have a stable income but it also means that you have made some money over the period that you were actually working and your CV looks much better than someone else's who's been unemployed. It's also likely that your networking while having a job will help you get another one down the road. After being unemployed for years, on the other hand, it becomes less and less likely for someone to hire you. It just looks bad on your CV.
This hit me after reading a comment online about a cancelled tv show. Someone said something along the lines of "glad (the tv-show) Community is cancelled" and everyone started attacking him for being a "hater" and a terrible person. Well, in my opinion, when he replied he actually made a good point. The way he phrased his reply makes me think that he wasn't entirely serious, but still. He said "what about all the actors that don't have a job and their pilot is not picked up so that x show can get yet another season despite its terrible ratings?". And I have to kind of agree. The cast of Community has made some money from the show and also some of them made a name for themselves through the show. I'm also sure they got some roles thanks to becoming bigger names because of the show. And then there are guys whose pilot never gets picked up because the networks have enough shows. In my opinion, those guys have it worse. So, a show getting cancelled or someone getting fired could be a good thing for someone who needs a shot to prove themselves.
Does anyone agree? Any relevant experiences that you wanna share?
