After the Big Tech Layoff: Brutal Interviews, Early Retirement Fears, and What Comes Next

Hello, world.A little over a week ago, I shared a vlog about being laid off from Big Tech after twenty-five years in the industry. I didn’t expect what happened next. The response was overwhelming, in the best possible way. Messages of encouragement, thoughtful advice, shared stories, and hard-earned wisdom poured in. I want to start by saying thank you. Truly.I also want to acknowledge something important: this is an extraordinarily difficult moment for laid-off engineers everywhere. I know I’m one of the fortunate ones. Years of saving, investing, and a bit of luck have given my family some stability. Many others don’t have that buffer. Life intervenes (illness, obligations, timing…etc) and suddenly survival mode replaces reflection. And for junior engineers just entering the field, my heart really goes out to you. You’re facing forces far beyond your control, and that’s an especially brutal place to be.Because of my circumstances, I have options. Over the past few weeks, I’ve been exploring three broad paths forward, weighing each carefully.Option One: Back to Big TechThe first option is simple, at least in theory: get back into the grind. Apply for another Big Tech role. For me, this path has exactly one upside: staggering compensation.Out of habit and inertia, I started applying. Dozens of applications disappeared into silence. Some were rejected within minutes by automated systems. Eventually, I landed a single real screening and moved forward to a technical interview.While preparing, grinding through Java problems on LeetCode, I paused and remembered someone from my past.In 2010, freshly promoted and full of confidence but short on wisdom, I interviewed a man I’ll call Bob. He was in his fifties, gray-haired, intense. I grilled him relentlessly. Design patterns. Concurrency. An LRU cache from scratch. He handled everything effortlessly. Only later did I learn he had worked on the original Java language and JVM at Sun Microsystems, experience he’d removed from his résumé just to stay employable.In the debrief, everyone agreed Bob was technically excellent. But the verdict was clear: “not a cultural fit.” Looking back, I don’t think Bob was aggressive. I think he was desperate.Now, years later, preparing to interview with someone half my age, I realized something uncomfortable: I had become Bob.That insight ended my Big Tech job search. The cost to dignity, identity, and peace simply isn’t worth the paycheck.Option Two: Early RetirementThe second option is early retirement. After nearly seventeen years of living below our means, my family has built enough of a cushion that paid work is optional. Time, real time, has become mine again. Time for family, health, friendships, and simply being present.There’s a lot to love about this option. Compounding works quietly in the background. In theory, wealth continues to grow while life slows down.But two concerns linger.First, the system itself. Capitalism, as we know it, isn’t guaranteed. AI investments, economic shocks, black swan events, any of these could reshape the world in ways that make passive income less reliable. A backup plan feels prudent.Second, meaning. Most men, once their basic needs are met, feel an internal pull to build something to create, contribute, matter. Leisure alone doesn’t satisfy that drive.Option Three: Meaningful WorkThat leads to the third option: doing work that actually matters.Not hustle-for-hustle’s sake. Not grinding endlessly. But building something meaningful whether with others or on my own. Projects, tools, ideas that make a dent, however small.This path isn’t easy. It requires a shift from executor to creator, from employee to founder. There are no guarantees anyone will care about what I build. Still, this option feels alive in a way the others don’t.The Path AheadWhere does that leave me?Somewhere between option two and option three. Semi-retired, but curious. Financially independent, but still driven. I plan to experiment, to throw ideas at the wall and see what sticks. Build slowly. Learn openly. Stay human.If you’re morbidly curious about how this unfolds, you’re welcome to follow along. I don’t have answers yet but I’m finally asking the right questions.Until next time. Get full access to AsianDadEnergy's Newsletter at asiandadenergy.substack.com/subscribe