Sadly earlier this year I was made redundant from my Software Developer job. Looking for a new job has not been fun, but a few common themes have emerged that I wanted to share. My hope is that these will help others to put things in place that may help them in the future.
Go to events and meet people
Something I have said often is that I enjoy going to events or conferences, like NDC London . These are great places to hear interesting talks, however that is not all they are good for. When you are at a conference or user group you are in a room full of like-minded people, each of them has unique experiences of being a software developer.
I am not very good at networking, I tend to stand in the corner or look awkward. However the more of these events I go to the better I get. Even if you only talk to one new person, that is one more person that you have spoken to. Want an advantage in meeting people? Volunteer. If you are a volunteer at an event, you will need to interact with other people, you may need to help direct people or assist one of the speakers. I have found this gives me a tiny bit more confidence to go and start speaking with someone or ask a question. Check out my Volunteering at NDC
User Groups often have the same people coming week after week, take advantage of this and be one of those people as well. You will start to get noticed and remembered even if you barely speak to anyone. For me I don’t have any really local user groups, however I am enjoying spending time at LeedsSharp .
If you genuinely had a good conversation with someone, find them on LinkedIn (or other social media) and send them a quick “It was nice chatting with you” message, this helps solidify the connection and helps you remember it.
So far during this job search I have met a recruiter who I would not have met without going to events, I have had jobs suggested to me to apply for that I would not have received otherwise, and one hiring manager is someone I have met previously at an event.
Build a blog and write about what you are learning
Almost every interview I have had has featured a comment about my blog. Now building a blog is for the long game. If you are unemployed now and don’t have a blog this won’t help you today, but if you start one and write about your experiences a few times a year it may help you tomorrow.
Back in 2014 when I started blogging I wasn’t even a Software Developer, I was just an IT guy at a small company and I wanted to write about some of the cool things I was learning. I kept writing, some years I wrote more than others, there have been some big gaps where I didn’t write anything. But somehow I keep coming back to it and writing a short piece about a new version of X or a conference I have been to, or a trend that is happening.
My blog is a great talking point during interviews, it helps me talk about why I think sharing information with the community is so important, what technology I have used over the years, some of the things I have learnt. My blog is featured at the top of my CV, and hiring managers have said they love it.
When redundancy hit, refreshing my CV and LinkedIn was one of the first practical jobs I did: update the headline, add recent projects, link to the blog and projects page, and make sure nothing still implied I was in my old role. Mundane, yes — but recruiters and hiring managers check both before they ever speak to you.
Today blogging isn’t the only way you can share your ideas. You could create videos, start a podcast, or have an active social media channel. I think the key is consistency, if you do a lot of it, it can easily look impressive if you look back after a few years. I personally prefer the well written blog post that I can refer back to, or search for again and again.
Some ideas to get you started (but there are loads more):
- What have you learnt today/this week
- What do you think about technology X
- How do you solve problem Y
- Compare two approaches to the same problem
- Your experience at a conference or meetup
Build side projects
Side projects are a great way to learn. You can create a side project with the goal of learning technology X, you can also blog about your journey, what problems you solved and what insights you gained from it.
I personally feel there is a lot of value from getting your side project into the wild and letting users interact with it. Users will find your edge cases and ask questions you hadn’t considered. Publishing onto the internet is not free so consider your architecture carefully.
What you can deploy depends on what you build. For simple websites you can do a lot with Github Pages or Azure Static Web Apps. For example this website is built with Hugo which is deployed to an Azure Static Web App for pennies per month. If you have more complex needs small Linux VMs can be created for not a lot more.
I have learnt more from running a side project in production than I have the original idea. Things like DNS, SSL certificates, authentication, SEO are all very important for running a project but they would have been missed if you only ever ran your side project on localhost. I think having a rounded experience gives you a leg up when it comes to talking about your skills in an interview scenario.
If you are between jobs, it is tempting to start something ambitious — the next big SaaS idea, a full-stack app with every feature you can think of. I have fallen into that trap myself. A small project you actually finish is worth more than a grand one that never ships. Pick something you can complete in a weekend or two: a CLI tool, a simple API, a static site, even a useful script. You will have something concrete to talk about in interviews, and the momentum of finishing one thing often makes the next one easier.
My personal side projects can be found on my projects page. My inspiration came from various places, my hobbies and interests, problems I am facing or hear about, or just stuff I want to learn.
Keep learning deliberately
Between applications there is often more waiting than interviewing. Use that time deliberately: look at the job descriptions you are targeting, spot a recurring skill gap, and focus on one thing rather than trying to learn everything. I listen to development podcasts on the commute and dip into courses — I have written before about using Pluralsight while doing the washing up. You will not become an expert in a fortnight, but being able to talk about what you are learning still comes up in interviews. For more general advice, see Tips for Developing Yourself .
Closing thoughts
Being made redundant is not something I would wish on anyone, and I am still in the middle of finding my next role. Some days the job search feels slow and frustrating. On the better days, I remind myself that the things I have been doing for years — showing up at events, writing on this blog, shipping side projects, keeping my skills current — are not wasted effort. They are what give me stories to tell in interviews and reasons for people to remember my name.
None of this replaces the practical side of job hunting: refreshing your CV and LinkedIn, talking to recruiters, applying properly, and working through the admin that comes with redundancy. I went through redundancy before, in 2021, and wrote about recruiters, interview rounds, and the spreadsheet I used to keep track of it all in my 2021 story . Visibility helps people remember your name; applications still get you in the door.
But small, consistent habits compound. You do not need to do everything at once. Pick one thing you can start this month: a user group, a blog post, a course on something job ads keep asking for, or a side project you can actually finish. If you still have a job but worry the ground is shifting beneath you, even better — start now while you have a bit more energy and headspace.
If you are going through something similar, I hope this helps. If you have found other things that worked for you, I would love to hear about them in the comments.
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