What’s it like to be laid off? I now know. I was laid off last week. As I thought about it, I wondered if others’ experiences were the same. So why not ask? I put the word out through my social networks and wondered if anyone would be willing to share their layoff story with me. Lo and behold, I got two takers.

This is the Jon of All Trades Laid Off Special!

On the left of that photo is Kyle Krueger. He was laid off from his tech job in 2009. In the middle is Neil Ramirez. He was laid off from his high school teaching position in 2008. And on the right is me, wearing my snazzy new Jon of All Trades branded shirt. I was laid off 8 days ago.

All three of our stories are pretty remarkably different, and yet we’re bonded through the shared weirdness and intensity of feeling of having gone through it. On this week’s show, I ask them to describe the situation leading up to the layoff, what the experience itself was like, how they reacted, and lessons learned from it. It’s an incredibly illuminating chat, and what I seek to do on every episode of this show, which is to explore that which we all know and see, but rarely discuss or plumb with any depth. I think this week achieves that.

You can download the episode on iTunes, stream it on Stitcher, or listen always at the Jon of All Trades homepage.

A couple of programming notes:

* A quick legal disclaimer on this week’s episode: None of us discuss any of the confidential elements of our layoffs. No details regarding severance packages, benefits, or any other pertinent company info is mentioned. In fact, I don’t even mention the name of the company from which I was recently let go.

* The podcast is going on hiatus for the near future. As I’m getting set up in my new business, I need some time to get up on my feet. I’ll be back very soon, but need a short break to get better established on that which pays me. In the meantime, check out the archive and catch up on any episodes you may have missed.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS