There’s a different kind of quiet that settles over an office during a round of layoffs.
It’s not the normal hum of focused work. It’s the quiet of uncertainty. The kind where conversations get softer, inbox notifications feel heavier, and everyone seems to be wondering the same thing without saying it out loud.
This week, several people I know were let go. It has impacted our local office directly. Last year’s merger brought together two companies with overlapping roles, and now it appears the organization is trimming duplicated positions. From a business standpoint, I understand the logic. From a human standpoint, it’s harder to process.
Layoffs create an invisible tension. You find yourself wanting to keep your head down, avoid attention, dodge every possible “bullet.” There’s an instinct to hide — to just do your job quietly and hope your name never comes up in a conversation you’re not part of.
But here’s the hard truth: hiding doesn’t actually bring peace.
What it does bring is anxiety. It shifts focus from doing meaningful work to self-preservation. It makes you question your value, replay conversations in your head, and measure every interaction.
The reality is that mergers often come with restructuring. Duplicate positions are reviewed. Roles are evaluated. Decisions are made in rooms most of us will never sit in. And while it’s easy to internalize those decisions, they are rarely personal.
Still, that doesn’t make watching colleagues pack up their desks any easier.
Moments like this force you to reflect. On your contributions. On your adaptability. On your resilience. They remind you that while job titles can change, your skills, experience, and work ethic travel with you.
Uncertainty tests us. It reveals whether we will shrink or steady ourselves.
Right now, I’m choosing to steady myself.
Because while layoffs may be outside my control, how I respond to them isn’t.
And sometimes courage isn’t loud. Sometimes it’s simply continuing to show up when the ground feels shaky.
