Andy B 🐝

My new Twitter mantra 👇

@destraynor Every. Single. Time. 😂

The "homemade limoncello" video is up there with the very best of the internet. 4 years later and I still laugh at it on every play.

@wbetiago Extend your stay

I have 24h to see London. I would like to experience good food, must see places and cool London artistic vibes What shall I do?

@djgregwilson & @SteveMasonKBT thank you both 🙏🏻. I've Seen It All Before really is a work of art. That is all.

@eddiejaoude Yep, quite often, mostly for technical issues that I know I'll have to get back to. I use @Pocket - such a great user experience 👍🏻

Do you ever actually look back at your bookmarks?

@AuthorOnTheSide Sorry to read that you got laid off Hassan. However, this a fantastic read and it sounds like you are gonna be just fine! When one door closes.. Thanks for sharing 🙏🏻

I just got laid off and I'm relieved about it (sort of). This is a fairly long and personal post. I'm publishing it mainly as a Q&A 'note-to-self' so that I can look back at it in the future to understand my thoughts and decision-making process. It might also help someone who could be going through a similar experience. Here's the backstory I recently got laid off from a senior leadership role at a technology company. Although I was there for only a year, I loved the job. My boss was one of the best leaders I've worked for, and I had a lot of autonomy in the role. I helped produce solid financial results for the organization and I would like to believe that my net impact was a positive one. Was I shocked that I got laid off? Yes, in the micro, but not in the macro. For this particular role, under those specific circumstances, and during this specific time, I did not expect to be laid off. So in the micro, it was a shock. However, in the macro, I wasn't surprised at all. In fact, I 100% expected it. I knew there was a good chance this would happen to me at some point in my career. I had no idea about what role or what company I'd be working for when I'd get laid off, but I've witnessed so many 'Turkey before Thanksgiving' stories that I just knew it was statistically inevitable. There are so many factors that could affect a seemingly stable job (economy, business strategy, politics, etc.) and most are out of anyone's control. In fact, I was so convinced that getting laid off was bound to happen that I had been actively preparing for it for years (more details on this later). How did it feel to be laid off? I'll break this down into five sub-answers. 1. First, my initial reaction was relief. I'm not sure why I felt that, but I'm guessing it could be a survival mechanism (to avoid stressing out) or an internal signal that someone made the decision on my behalf to do something I've always wanted to do. I'm still trying to figure this one out. 2. Second, I didn't feel ashamed. I bring this up because that's something that many people feel as an initial reaction (which is understandable). I didn't view getting laid off as a reflection of my performance, and I'm perfectly fine talking about it openly (publishing this post is a case in point). However, I noticed that I tend to avoid bringing it up in some conversations or contexts because I'm not always in the mood to discuss what happened and I'm more interested in discussing what I'm doing about it. 3. Third, I feel different during the day vs. at night. During the day, I'm almost euphoric. It feels amazing not having to answer to anyone or deal with things I'm not always excited about dealing with. However, at night, my sleep patterns are completely disrupted. Both my quality and quantity of sleep are off. I wear an Oura ring and have seen some of my worst readiness & sleep scores recently. Although I'm not actively thinking about work at night, I’m guessing the uncertainty about what's going to happen is affecting me subconsciously. 4. Fourth, I don't have any negative feelings toward the company or anyone working there. In fact, my separation discussion was very cordial, and I accepted the fact that this was a pure business decision. 5. Finally, I'm not super-stressed about finances (yet) because I have some runway. I’m fortunate that I received a severance package and most importantly, I've had a side hustle that has been bringing in an income. That's enough for me to survive on for a while, but not enough to thrive on in the future, so I need a longer-term plan. What did I do to prepare for getting laid off? Here's what I've been doing for years while having different jobs: • Wrote books • Published courses • Created digital products • Ran live webinars • Delivered cohort-based courses • Coached & mentored others • Gave professional talks I got paid to do all the above. The biggest return wasn't a financial one though. It was the skills I gained in learning how to do those tasks. The motivator was mostly passion but partially fear—fear of potentially losing my job and then having to figure out all this stuff when I didn't have the luxury of time. Here are a few other things I did to plan ahead: • Started an LLC • Bought life & disability insurance (independent of employers) • Hired a VA • Hired a professional tax & accounting company The relief I felt after getting laid off was probably due to the fact that I knew I had a system in place to rely on in case this ever happened. What will I be doing now? I'll be focusing on three key areas: 1. I'm starting my own thing. I decided that I was not going to look for another job, and I'm going to try and build my own business. I launched a consulting/thought practice that helps businesses use AI at work. This is a topic I'm really passionate about and have been researching, applying, and writing about for over a year. Incidentally, I started an 'AI for Leaders' free newsletter a few months ago, so I decided I'll just use that as the home base of my new business (check it out on AIWorkTalk.com). 2. I'll continue to write and publish books on the side. In fact, the next course that I was already working on was about applying AI in the workplace, so I think that would help with my business. 3. I'll focus on health and getting in shape. This should probably be number 1 on the list. I figured that if I can't prioritize this now, I'll never prioritize it later. I've been out of shape for a while and that's unacceptable. Eating healthy, working out, and getting good quality sleep (without relying on any meds) will be something I'll focus on heavily. Will I ever apply to another job? The short answer is I don't know. I've always been employed, so I have no idea how it'll feel after a few months of being self-employed. I should also clarify that I never hated being employed. I realize I'm in the minority here (maybe because I've had a lucky streak of good companies, roles, and leaders in the past). So I might be open to getting another job later. However, what I can say is that since getting laid off, the thought of applying to a new job hasn't crossed my mind. The bottom line for my decision would be this: I have a family to take care of, and providing for them will be the primary deciding factor about what I'll do in the future. In the meantime, I'm excited about this new chapter and will be publishing a lot more about my journey. I hope you'll join me on it.

Amen @achesonchris 😀

@dylanbeattie @KevlinHenney @dddsw And Kevlin being the one person who doesn't need to worry about people finding him amongst others 😉

@ryanseanbadger Hi Tailwind, looking good! ....I don't feel good

*Knock knock* Who's there? Tailwind. Tailwind who? Tailwaind relative inline-flex items-center px-2 py-2 text-sm font-medium text-gray-500 bg-white border border-gray-300 cursor-default rounded-l-md leading-5 dark:bg-gray-800 dark:border-gray-600 relative inline-flex items-center px-4 py-2 -ml-px text-sm font-medium text-gray-700 bg-white border border-gray-300 leading-5 hover:text-gray-500 focus:z-10 focus:outline-none focus:ring ring-gray-300 focus:border-blue-300 active:bg-gray-100 active:text-gray-700 transition ease-in-out duration-150 dark:bg-gray-800 dark:border-gray-600 dark:text-gray-400 dark:hover:text-gray-300 dark:active:bg-gray-700 dark:focus:border-blue-800font-medium text-gray-500 bg-white border border-gray-300 cursor-default rounded-l-md leading-5 dark:bg-gray-800 dark:border-gray-600 relative inline-flex items-center px-4 py-2 -ml-px text-sm font-medium text-gray-700 bg-white border border-gray-300 leading-5 hover:text-gray-500 focus:z-10 focus:outline-none focus:ring ring-gray-300 focus:border-blue-300 active:bg-gray-100 active:text-gray-700 transition ease-in-out duration-150 dark:bg-gray-800 dark:border-gray-600 dark:text-gray-400 dark:hover:text-gray-300 dark:active:bg-gray-700 dark:focus:border-blue-800font-medium text-gray-500 bg-white border border-gray-300 cursor-default rounded-l-md leading-5 dark:bg-gray-800 dark:border-gray-600 relative inline-flex items-center px-4 py-2 -ml-px text-sm font-medium text-gray-700 bg-white border border-gray-300 leading-5 hover:text-gray-500 focus:z-10 focus:outline-none focus:ring ring-gray-300 focus:border-blue-300 active:bg-gray-100 active:text-gray-700 transition ease-in-out duration-150 dark:bg-gray-800 dark:border-gray-600 dark:text-gray-400 dark:hover:text-gray-300 dark:active:bg-gray-700 dark:focus:border-blue-800font-medium text-gray-500 bg-white border border-gray-300 cursor-default rounded-l-md leading-5 dark:bg-gray-800 dark:border-gray-600 relative inline-flex items-center px-4 py-2 -ml-px text-sm font-medium text-gray-700 bg-white border border-gray-300 leading-5 hover:text-gray-500 focus:z-10 focus:outline-none focus:ring ring-gray-300 focus:border-blue-300 active:bg-gray-100 active:text-gray-700 transition ease-in-out duration-150 dark:bg-gray-800 dark:border-gray-600 dark:text-gray-400 dark:hover:text-gray-300 dark:active:bg-gray-700 dark:focus:border-blue-800font-medium text-gray-500 bg-white border border-gray-300 cursor-default rounded-l-md leading-5 dark:bg-gray-800 dark:border-gray-600 relative inline-flex items-center px-4 py-2 -ml-px text-sm font-medium text-gray-700 bg-white border border-gray-300 leading-5 hover:text-gray-500 focus:z-10 focus:outline-none focus:ring ring-gray-300 focus:border-blue-300 active:bg-gray-100 active:text-gray-700 transition ease-in-out duration-150 dark:bg-gray-800 dark:border-gray-600 dark:text-gray-400 dark:hover:text-gray-300 dark:active:bg-gray-700 dark:focus:border-blue-800font-medium text-gray-500 bg-white border border-gray-300 cursor-default rounded-l-md leading-5 dark:bg-gray-800 dark:border-gray-600 relative inline-flex items-center px-4 py-2 -ml-px text-sm font-medium text-gray-700 bg-white border border-gray-300 leading-5 hover:text-gray-500 focus:z-10 focus:outline-none focus:ring ring-gray-300 focus:border-blue-300 active:bg-gray-100 active:text-gray-700 transition ease-in-out duration-150 dark:bg-gray-800 dark:border-gray-600 dark:text-gray-400 dark:hover:text-gray-300 dark:active:bg-gray-700 dark:focus:border-blue-800font-medium text-gray-500 bg-white border border-gray-300 cursor-default rounded-l-md leading-5 dark:bg-gray-800 dark:border-gray-600 relative inline-flex items-center px-4 py-2 -ml-px text-sm font-medium text-gray-700 bg-white border border-gray-300 leading-5 hover:text-gray-500 focus:z-10 focus:outline-none focus:ring ring-gray-300 focus:border-blue-300 active:bg-gray-100 active:text-gray-700 transition ease-in-out duration-150 dark:bg-gray-800 dark:border-gray-600 dark:text-gray-400 dark:hover:text-gray-300 dark:active:bg-gray-700 dark:focus:border-blue-800font-medium text-gray-500 bg-white border border-gray-300 cursor-default rounded-l-md leading-5 dark:bg-gray-800 dark:border-gray-600 relative inline-flex items-center px-4 py-2 -ml-px text-sm font-medium text-gray-700 bg-white border border-gray-300 leading-5 hover:text-gray-500 focus:z-10 focus:outline-none focus:ring ring-gray-300 focus:border-blue-300 active:bg-gray-100 active:text-gray-700 transition ease-in-out duration-150 dark:bg-gray-800 dark:border-gray-600 dark:text-gray-400 dark:hover:text-gray-300 dark:active:bg-gray-700 dark:focus:border-blue-800

@supabase @madewifsupabase (for reach)

Ok @supa_community, does anyone test their edge functions by attaching a jwt token (in order to work with RLS)? If so, how do you go about it? I'm looking to do this locally + within GH actions. Or am I approaching this the wrong way? (as I don't see much online about it)

@shanselman I like to think we did, so that those that have come after us didn't have to. At least that's what I told my therapist.

Real ones remember

I've only just discovered @HuachaoMao's brilliant Rest Client VS Code extension. I feel like a complete amateur having continued to wrestle with GUI API clients and version control for so long. Well, no more.

@natekontny 😂

Some days I’m like “Nate, you know some stuff. Good job. You shouldn’t feel like a dummy. Hold that head up high!” And then some days I need to use terraform to create things at AWS.

@that_igor_ @jimmiejephson Definitely. Personally, having had the the benefit of using MVC frameworks previous to the glut of SPAs, I got disillusioned with their opinionated approaches. More (and often not better, esp in Reacts case) ways to try to overcome the same challenges. Doesn't help the industry

@_thunk_ @jimmiejephson That is my guess too! But I'd advice devs to at least learn the alternatives on some more-or-less practical level

I will never understand why so many people choose React over the other frontend frameworks

Really enjoyed your talk Conor 👍🏻 @productiveprog

@supabase See you there!

@tinlicker_nl you guys rocked it in Belfast!

What cloud provider do you recommend for app hosting and why? I'm looking for a new provider to host my backend services and want a flat (low) price without hidden costs for staging & prod envs

*The night is always darkest before dawn* Originally from a Thomas Fuller poem and probably quoted in many a film. Well suited to legacy codebase refactoring.