<prompt> Human: I had to see another person laid off today, a guy with two kids, a wife and a mortgage. I work on a four person team and somebody had to be cut. Thankfully, it wasnt me this time. Still, sitting in some drab conference room trying to convince this guy in a quiet voice so no other co-workers would hear of course that it wasnt the result of some personal failing of his was tough. He is a first generation Indian immigrant and I imagine that this sort of thing is hard to deal with culturally. We work in technology in a major west coast city as the business people who keep the developers honest and position the company for growth. We had to fire this poor guy simply because we are not Google or Apple. We are the underdog trying to win. The market deemed this cut necessary because we missed earnings expectations and people had to go. Analysts and shareholders deemed that such cuts were necessary. So I had to sit there saying platitudes, knowing full well that I survived this round because this poor bastard was cut.Im old by reddit standards, 32. I was around during 2008 and saw nearly two whole floors of a former employer get wiped out by layoffs while I luckily survived. I saw countless others get axed since then, for various reasons, sometimes deserved and most-times not. I was one of those folks at one point. Through all this, Ive learned one thing:It is highly improbable for someone who is not close to the deal to survive long-term. What I mean by this is that only those people who directly generate revenue sales people with a book or those who are inextricably linked to the development of new revenue-generating products can expect any sort of job stability and wage growth in the long-term.This may seem obvious of course. But think of the huge, huge number of people in this economy that this definition leaves out. I have to admit, I am definitely one of them. Running numbers in a big company, even if it is for stuff like MA, doesnt do enough to insulate you from short-term market forces. This dude on my team got axed because of a 4-MONTH shortfall in the operating expense budget. And if it wasnt him, then it would have been me. Despite amazing performance reviews, despite running three successful MA deals in the last year, I would have been cut if not for this guy.Im at a loss PF. I work very, very hard, learn new technologies, program in my spare time, and put myself in the position to be indispensable to my employer, save and invest. But I gotta be honest, after over a decade in the workforce I feel no more confident in my ability to take long-term financial risks or commitments. Im always waiting for the other shoe to drop, for the pink slip to come, relegating me to some undetermined amount of unemployment. I genuinely dont understand how I, a single, normal, frugal guy living in an expensive city can ever have the security needed to buy an actual house with a yard anymore. I dont understand how anyone can take the seemingly astronomical financial risk of having children and actually sleep at night. Ive seen too many layoffs, too much financial uncertainty, too many articles on the long-term unemployed and too much bullshit over the past decade to ever do anything besides throw all my excess money in savings and a 401k. There are normal folks on here buying homes and starting families and I simply cant fathom how anyone can feel secure enough to do something like that with burgeoning big data and machine-learning nipping at their heels.This question is for the normals on here, the ones who arent 25-year old silicon valley developers negotiating equity grants, the ones who arent the very tippy-top of their field worldwide. How do you convince yourself that it is all going to be okay despite all the evidence to the contrary?  <response>: Im 34, and Ive been laid off twice.What gives me confidence is having faith in my skills and my ability to find work. Its not about the job you have, its about the next job you can get, and the one after that, and the one after that. Its about what you want to do with your future.I had to learn that the hard way after my first layoff. I really liked my job, I was very well thought-of, and the company was doing great. Obviously I thought I would continue working there for quite a while, but the company was doing so well, they got bought out, and the new owners closed our entire office, laying off 13 of the technical staff, the ones who had built the products responsible for that success. Yeah, and somehow the options werent worth anything, either.But it really was fine. The HR staff put me in touch with some recruiters, I polished up my resume, asked my colleagues for references, and I had another job in a few weeks. I hated that job, so I got another one less than a year later. A few months later, my former co-workers at the second job informed me that they had all been laid off. I loved the third job, but the investors pulled out, so I got laid off again. And Ive been doing well at my current job for the 2 years since then -- but the difference is, I no longer assume that will continue. I hope that it will continue, but I plan for it not to.No matter how much confidence you have, youre going to be scared sometimes. Thats normal, it just means youre a self-aware human being. Have a beer with your friends, have dinner with your wife and kids, do whatever helps you process your feelings. Remember, when youre scared is the only time you can be brave.Unless you work for a giant, long term jobs arent really the norm anymore, and even the giants have layoffs now and again. Keep your emergency fund stocked, your skills current, your resume polished, and your interviewing skills sharp. 