Ep. 28: Laid Off Twice: How Laura Hubelbank Rebuilt with Clarity & Confidence
What do you do when you’re laid off twice, navigating uncertainty, ego, identity, and the grief cycle—all while building cat social-media stardom on the side? Today’s conversation is a blueprint for resilience, reinvention, and redefining your worth beyond your job title.
In this episode, I sit down with my long-time friend and fellow engineer-turned-high-achiever, Laura Hubelbank, who has built a 20-year career in engineering and program management—and survived two major layoffs with clarity, humor, and the most grounded energy you’ve ever met.
We dive into what it’s really like to lose your job, not once but twice, and how Laura navigated the emotional, financial, and identity rollercoaster that comes with career upheaval. From the shock and grief of 2020 to the more recent 2025 layoff, she shares the shifts that helped her stay confident, connected, and strategic rather than spiraling.
Laura opens up about self-reflection, defining your professional brand, leveraging your network without shame, and why being honest about your gaps is one of the most empowering moves you can make. She also explains why she’s taking a career break right now—and how FIRE, financial prep, and pickleball are shaping her next phase.
And yes, we also talk about her two orange cats, Zoey and Ziggy, their 7-million-view video, and why recording cat content might just be the unexpected interview-prep hack you never knew you needed.
What You’ll Hear
✔️What it feels like to be laid off with zero warning—and what it feels like with a year’s notice
✔️How to use self-reflection as the first step in any job search or pivot
✔️Red flags vs. real fit: choosing interviews, companies, and roles that align with your values
✔️Why networking isn’t shameful—and how to do it even if it terrifies you
✔️How practicing for interviews can start with something as unexpected as… cat videos
“You have to be at peace with yourself. Bitterness doesn’t serve you—clarity does.”
If this episode hit something deep, share it with a friend who’s navigating job uncertainty or a big pivot.
Grab your free Heart-Aligned Career Transition Starter at https://www.leadintact.com/freebies/heart-aligned-career or Book 20-min consultation call https://leadintactwithlaura.as.me/free-consultation
You can follow Zoey and Ziggy’s fun antics here:
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[00:00:00] You are listening to the pivot point where we unpack the defining moments that shift careers and lives. I'm your host, Laura Dionisio, a founder of Lead Intact , and my mission is to spotlight the raw real stories behind career pivots, the fears, the hopes. The messy middles and the bold decisions that follow if you're feeling stuck or quietly wondering what's next?
I hope these stories help you see yourself a little more clearly and inspire you to start moving toward your own dream life. Let's begin.
Laura D: Welcome, Laura to the Pivot Point Podcast. I am so grateful to you for saying yes to this. And just so the listeners know, Laura and I have known each other well. We first met 20.
Laura H: 20 years ago.
Laura D: Oh my God, that's insane.
Laura H: been a while.
Laura D: A little bit, yeah. 20 years ago, the amount of [00:01:00] time we, we've known each other can almost buy alcohol. Um, so thank you for being here.
Laura D: I am just gonna go ahead and read your bio so people get an idea of who you are and what amazing things you've done so far. Laura Hubble Bank joins us from New Hampshire where she has built a 20 year career in engineering and program management, leading global teams as an engineering manager, project manager, and most recently director of program management.
Laura D: As a self-proclaimed grammar nerd, Laura enjoys critiquing resumes and helping her colleagues succeed in their own job searches and career pivots. And this is why I wanted you on here. After personally navigating two major layoffs, including one in 2020 that left her job searching for eight months and another in 2025, she's currently embracing a career break as an outdoor enthusiast.
Laura D: She spends her days mountain biking. Boating and learning how to play pickleball. [00:02:00] Laura enjoys volunteering at her local food pantry and her personal favorite, and also my personal favorite, managing the growing social media empire of her two young cats, Zoey and Ziggy. Thank you so much, Laura, for being here.
Laura H: I'm, I'm thrilled to be on this podcast and honestly, it's because you reached out and I really wanted to support you know, your career endeavor with your career pivot, but also just kind of help other, you know, women and other colleagues in their careers.
Laura D: Yeah, I love that. I mean, I love that you, you just on your own help critiquing resumes and helping your other colleagues succeed. And, you know in case the listeners don't know, I always ask an intention. For the guests, like what their intention is in coming on. And I don't normally ask it when we're recording, but Laura's was so beautiful and so in line with the mission of the pivot point that I'm gonna ask Laura to share.
Laura D: So Laura, what was your intention in coming on here today?
Laura H: I mean, basically I've had my own career [00:03:00] struggles, my own career pivots. So I wanted to be able to kind of give back and just share my personal experiences and knowledge to help others out there. You know, especially women in their, career endeavors because coming from engineering, it's a tough path.
Laura H: I mean, my graduating class of electrical engineering was 10% women,
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: it's, it's a very different journey. And so
Laura D: Yes.
Laura H: basically advocates and mentors on your side makes a huge difference.
Laura D: Yes. Yes. I love it.
Laura D: And I particularly wanna talk about like what you said in your bio, Laura, about personally navigating two major layoffs and that in 2020, it was like eight months before you got it. But I'm sure at that point you didn't know it was gonna be eight months. You probably had no idea how long it it was gonna be.
Laura D: So walk us through that experience. Like what was it like, what was going through your mind, and also what did you do in those eight months when you were job searching?
Laura H: Okay. And so, you know, the very first layoff [00:04:00] I experienced basically I had landed my dream job. In,
Laura D: Hmm.
Laura H: 2018, right? And I went to a big med tech company. There's about 80,000 employees. I was working at a very small self-contained site up in New Hampshire where we had about 200 people.
Laura H: And it was fantastic work environment. I love my colleagues. I love the work I was doing. Career advancement was really where I wanted to be focused on. And I had only been there, I think it was about nine or 10 months. You know, Thursday morning they went and had a meeting with one, section of employees at our site, and they basically said, we're discontinuing your entire product line. All all of you folks are basically losing your jobs. Most of them effective immediately because they're just canceling all work related to that product segment. I was in the other product segment and so two hours later they had an all hands meeting. For everyone at our facility. And you know, first announcement was that they discontinued a [00:05:00] portion of those products.
Laura H: And then the second announcement was we are transferring all of the engineering and manufacturing support work from the site in New Hampshire out to Colorado. And one year from now we are shutting down this entire site. So I actually had a year advance notice that I was going to be laid off because the choices were you lose your job or you move to Colorado. And the complicating factor with that is my husband also worked at the same company.
Laura D: Same same sector, or
Laura H: Yeah,
Laura D: would, would
Laura H: unit, same site in New Hampshire. So all those things that apply to me. Also applied to him,
Laura D: wow. Okay. Walk us through what that was like.
Laura H: Yeah.
Laura D: I really wanna pause there because I am imagining listeners who are, who also have partners, and I'm just imagining, I'm not sure if this was the case for you, but imagining the listener just being like, yes, this is my situation right now. I don't know what to do.
Laura D: Like, what was the conversation like between you and your husband?
Laura H: [00:06:00] I the initial just like shock of
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: what's happening. And luckily for us, we had a full year before it was actually you know, the time when they had the layoffs we were given a pretty generous layoff package. So what my husband and I actually planned to do is we bought a camper and we plan to take a three month road trip across the entire United States then we're gonna come back and find new jobs. Which was a fantastic plan, except our layoff date was the end of April in 2020.
Laura D: Oh wow.
Laura H: we know what happened in March of 2020? Does any, any anyone recall? Small, small, little mishap?
Laura D: Minor detail.
Laura H: Minor details. So basically our grand plan of, okay, we're taking our career break, we're gonna have this amazing experience, you know, as a couple together, and then we're gonna come back and find new jobs and continue our careers, everything shut down.
Laura H: We had camping reservations from New Hampshire [00:07:00] all the way out to California for this three month trip. Everything was canceled. I didn't go anywhere. And so we said, okay, well I guess it's time to find a new job since we're clearly not going anywhere.
Laura H: And you know, I did take a little bit of time off because at the beginning of COVID companies had no idea to run their businesses, how to have remote employees.
Laura H: They certainly didn't know how to hire people.
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: So starting around the August timeframe, so about four months in, I said, all right, I'm gonna start, you know, really looking for a new position. And there was not a lot open. So again, just looking online, LinkedIn checking for basically a similar type of job.
Laura H: I
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: program manager at a
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: I really wanted that similar role because it had been such a good fit for me. And I applied to dozens of jobs. You know, the company I worked for, 80,000 employees International. I reached out to other divisions within my former company saying, [00:08:00] Hey, I, I was an employee.
Laura H: I'm really interested in working for your division. I even had some you know, personal connections, nothing, interviews you know, several positions I was really excited about. But. You know, nothing panned out for the first several months and
Laura D: how did you, how did you keep, how did you keep going and did you, like what was your, I guess, emotional landscape as each time you thought you got excited about something and then you heard like, oh, not, not this. Like how did you keep going and keep staying motivated?
Laura H: a choice, do you? Right. I mean,
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: because we need an income. So it was really just keeping my eyes open, being hopeful. Again, fine tuning, know, my own resume, how I was presenting myself, making sure that I was identifying if there was any gaps in how I was presenting myself or the types of jobs that I was looking for. One of the benefits of getting laid off is we were given career transition services. So you have a [00:09:00] coach to basically help guide you through the process and give feedback, and you can do, you know, mock interviews and they'll, you know, critique your resume. You know, those types of aspects. And so it, it absolutely helps to have a support system as you're going through this.
Laura H: I know in my intro I, you know, I'd said I really love critiquing resumes. I do find it fun.
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: if I asked my husband to look at my resume for me, his eyes would glaze over and he would be zero help.
Laura D: Yeah.
Laura H: So again, this is where you need to have the right network of people. I have basically two women that I worked with the former MedTech company that we also ended up at the same college you know, 15 years prior. And so we had our own little pod of just like women in engineering and project management where we would bounce ideas off of each other talk about job leads and really just have that sounding board. And that was tremendously. Helpful, to have, again, just like close friends and colleagues that you can trust that will give you an honest opinion as, [00:10:00] as you're
Laura D: I love that. I love that I'm thinking of, 'cause I actually I have a client, actually we talked about this. I have a client who is going through job transition right now and one of the things that we are working on is, you know, my client's mindset. Because their mindset is like looking through.
Laura D: 'cause you mentioned you looked at your, your gaps. Right? With my client, this person would look at their gaps and be like, this is why they wouldn't hire me. And just overall have like a pessimistic. Outlook. So like if you were to talk to, like you're mentoring someone who feels that way, who's just like, I am, you know, eight months into, to being laid off, trying to find a job.
Laura D: I'm not hearing anything. I'm, I'm sending out like 10 resumes a day. Like, what would you say to that person?
Laura H: So I, and again, because I just recently had a layoff and so I'm also with these, you know, career transition services and one of the biggest pieces of advice that they give is the first thing you are supposed to do when you're looking
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: career transition is self-reflection.
Laura D: Self-reflection. Say more about [00:11:00] that.
Laura H: Self-reflection. So basically you need to think about what type of role am I interested in? What type of company would be the best fit for me? Do I wanna work with a, you know, domestic team? Do? Am I open to working with a global international team where I'm trying to juggle time zones and you know, coworkers in other parts of the world you know, what type of technology really drives me?
Laura H: And so finding what's the best fit for you and your personal skillset. line up. Again, looking for positions, but ultimately obtaining a position that's the best fit for you and your personality and your strengths.
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: I, I do believe that is step number one because then that drives all of the subsequent activities.
Laura H: Updating your resume, looking for jobs. Because if I say, Hey, I love working remote which. I do. I think it's a great way to have better work life balance and just be able to be more present in your every day to day life as opposed to spending an hour commuting each way. So if I say I'm really [00:12:00] looking for a remote position, but then in my job search, I'm focusing on ones that are, you know, on site four days a week, and it would be an hour and a half to try and get into Boston. That's not gonna ultimately lead to a good end result because there's gonna be this big disconnect between what I truly want for my core values versus. Those companies are offering. And so being able to understand yourself and then align that with the right type of position. And then, I mean, the other thing is you never want to take a job out of desperation. It,
Laura D: That's a hundred percent what I was gonna ask you next.
Laura H: well.
Laura D: Yeah. So the the person though, first of all, I love that you're, you're saying this as of the time of this recording, you're, you're not just saying this from, from a point of, oh, this was 2020, like five years ago. At this point, you're like, no, I'm,
Laura H: now.
Laura D: yes.
Laura D: And, and what I love and what the listeners, I think can take not only with what you're saying, but kind of like the energy, the confidence and calm that you have. And so I'm just thinking about like my client and other listeners out there who are. [00:13:00] Worried, and I love that you, you brought it up. You're like, don't ever just take a job.
Laura D: Just to take a job. So how would you balance like a compromise versus like the best fit for you? Especially like the remote job thing. I hear it a lot, and actually it is true. There aren't a lot of remote jobs out there anymore compared to like 20, 20, 21. So. What would you say to someone who's like, no, but I, I got bills to pay and I, I need to have a job tomorrow.
Laura D: Like, what do you mean? Like, I can't consider what would be best for me. I just need a job.
Laura H: I mean, if somebody is in that situation, you may need to accept a job with the understanding that it's a short-term career move.
Laura D: Hmm.
Laura H: Right. The difficulty is employers don't really have loyalty to their employees anymore. And that can go the other way as well. And so there's, you know, contract positions out there where, you know, it's for a set duration of six, six months, you know, 12 months, something like that, which could be a really good option as you continue your job search to really find something that's a better fit.
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: it's just you [00:14:00] have to be cautious because you don't wanna burn bridges. Right. You
Laura D: Right.
Laura H: back out of a commitment where it's an employer that would be someone you'd have a future interest in.
Laura D: I love that answer so much. 'cause it still goes back to self-reflection, which is like, maybe you do have to take this job that's in person five days a week and requires you to work 10 hour days. But getting real with yourself as to like, what does that mean? And. Have a game plan for like, okay, maybe you save for this amount of time so that you can actually take your time and you know, look for a job that you actually like.
Laura D: So if step one is self-reflection, what would you say? Step two is in this process.
Laura H: I mean, the second step is, again, once you've kind of figured out what you really want is to go and then update all your credentials, that will help you get there.
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: job searching, again, updating your LinkedIn profile, updating your resume networking with colleagues in that particular industry and really just starting to put yourself out there and saying, Hey, you [00:15:00] know, I'm looking for a new role who can help, you know, find, find that connection for me. And,
Laura D: Yeah.
Laura H: and then again, the, the step beyond that is again, starting to go in the interviews, evaluating, you know, the companies and really figuring out, is this a good fit or is this not?
Laura D: I love it. And you know what, you just said something like casually that I don't, that in my experience talking to people who've been in this position don't necessarily say it with such confidence.
Laura D: You just said you just network and tell people that you're out there looking. And I have heard a lot of people, there's almost like a feeling of like shame.
Laura D: Like they don't wanna ask for help or did you at any point. Feel that way. Even about like back in 2020, like you felt weird about posting about it or, and what would you say, if not, what would you say to someone who does feel that way? Because I've heard that a lot. I'm sure you have too.
Laura H: Yeah, I, I really feel that in recent years kind of the stigma around that has changed a lot because there have been a number of layoffs and a lot
Laura D: Hmm.
Laura H: people were let go through no fault of their own. And yeah, [00:16:00] I mean, reaching out particularly to strangers, 'cause you know, you go on LinkedIn, they'll say, oh, here's, here's a second or third level connection. But people will do that. They'll reach out and say, Hey, I've noticed this position at your company. You know, any chance you could tell me more what it's like to work there? The job that I ultimately ended up going out to. You know, one of my, my friends who was part of my little networking team she said, oh, this former colleague is working at that company now.
Laura H: You should reach out to her. I hadn't talked to her in well over a year, year and a half. It was a colleague I barely knew when I was working at my former company and I just reached out and said, Hey, I wanted, I wanna say you know, I'm interviewing with your company. How do you like it? How's the culture?
Laura H: Can you give any, you know, advice, recommendations? And it, it is a bit out of a lot of people's comfort zone, but the reward that you end up getting from it really, really is worth the risk. And the only risk really, that someone says no, or you get ignored.
Laura D: Yeah. That's true. [00:17:00] And I love what you said about how, um, 'cause I think part of the shame is like that there's something wrong with me that I got laid off. But to your point lately, unfortunately, there have been a lot of people who've been a lot of really great employees who've been laid off through no fault of their own.
Laura D: So if you're a listener out there and you are feeling discomfort, you know, feeling a little bit of shame, like Laura said, there's nothing to be ashamed about. And also sometimes you have to do the uncomfortable thing, right, to really get there.
Laura H: nobody, nobody likes interviewing and I mean, I. I do not enjoy that aspect because again, you're just, you're in the spotlight and people are asking
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: questions. It is not an enjoyable place to be. You know, luckily with my career, I've had the benefit of being a hiring manager many times over.
Laura H: So I've been the one doing the interviewing. So I, I at least know kind of what questions to expect and, and how to respond, but. It's never an easy place to be. It's uncomfortable. You're not your natural self when you're in that
Laura D: [00:18:00] Mm-hmm.
Laura H: and it's really just kind of breaking through that barrier to try and show your authentic self when you're putting yourself out there on interviews or networking or any kind of, you know, career endeavors that feel a little bit scary.
Laura D: Yeah. So what are some ways that you have broken your own barriers of like discomfort, whether it's interviews or reaching out to someone, like what are some of the things that you do to help you do that?
Laura H: I think a lot of it's practice, So
Laura D: Hmm.
Laura H: again, the more you practice the, the more you get better, the more comfortable you get. I would say again, things I'm not comfortable with being on this podcast. I, I have never let somebody video me for an hour and say, oh, and I'm just gonna put this out on the internet,
Laura D: Thank you, Laura, for being here.
Laura H: I'm here because again, I know how it can benefit others, but also I'm growing a skill in myself. I.
Laura D: Oh, I love it. I love it. And for, for the listeners, um, since you mentioned you were uncomfortable with this. Again, thank you so much. I mean, we haven't seen or spoken [00:19:00] to each other in 20 years and I'm like, Hey, do you wanna be on camera and recorded and out into the internet? Like, I really appreciate that.
Laura D: Yeah, why not? Seems fun. So tell the listeners, what did you do specifically in the case of this podcast interview to help you prepare, help you settle the nerves? Just so the listeners have an idea of like, 'cause this is basically an interview so they can take what you've done for this podcast interview and apply it themselves for their next interview.
Laura H: so I guess one thing that I did is you know, one of my fun side projects I've been working on these past couple of months, so I've been unemployed, is my two cats have their whole social media accounts,
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: started on YouTube and I just made my first couple of long form videos where
Laura D: Ooh,
Laura H: talking and narrating,
Laura D: have to watch it.
Laura H: So basically the past couple of weeks I said, alright, I'm gonna go and I'm gonna make this amazing cat video. I'm gonna record my voice, I'm gonna come up with a script. It probably took [00:20:00] me eight hours to do a four minute video of the cats because I have no clue what I'm doing. Using the video editing tools recording myself, re-recording, I sent it off to my friend and say, Hey, what do you think? And she comes back and in the nicest way possible is like, you kinda sound like a robot.
Laura D: Oh no.
Laura H: But again, feedback.
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: And again, if you're nervous about interviewing for a job, a trusted friend or colleague do a fake interview,
Laura D: So good.
Laura H: Practice, you know, me about your career, practice, your elevator pitch, like doing things over and over. You get more comfortable with it, and you start to do it without. Thinking about it and worrying about the minute details, and it becomes more natural, more authentic. And so you know, again, these cat videos, I'm like, all right, scrap having a script. I've got a couple main points and I'm just gonna like. Talk from the heart and see what happens. And yeah, I still had to rerecord a couple times, but it was just a lot, lot easier, a lot more authentic, take a lot more natural.
Laura H: And [00:21:00] again, I think in careers it's, it's the same thing. You have to kind of practice and again, understand where am I nervous, what aspects are causing anxiety and become more comfortable with them.
Laura D: It goes back to the self-reflection.
Laura H: Where are your gaps and how can you help address those?
Laura D: I love that. I'm so glad you brought that up, because I think most people, when they think of gaps, they immediately think of like, what certification do I need? What degree do I need? But to your point, it's not just that. It's also like your interview skill gap, like not just the things that you have in your resume.
Laura D: And you know what? I love to, first of all?
Laura H: gap
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: right? It could
Laura D: Yes.
Laura H: I, I'm on LinkedIn, but I only have six connections. Okay. Well get out there and start filling in your network and growing it, because that's an area that should be focused on.
Laura D: I love that you brought this up. What are some other gaps to consider besides the obvious, like resume gaps that we talked about? Could be networking, could be interviewing. What are possible gaps that the listener can think about, like [00:22:00] when they're doing their own self-reflection?
Laura H: I mean, you had mentioned certifications, and again, there's certain hard skills where Yes, if you're targeting a specific role, you, I'm a project manager, right? So having PMP project management professional certification. That's one of those things, you gotta check the box and say, yep, I have that. So again, having those key certifications are absolutely a skill gap that people can focus on. But a lot of times people don't even think about soft skills again, you know, do you have experience giving presentations, doing mentoring? know just again, being able to, to listen and hear colleagues and disseminate information and. so many soft skills you know, people could always use a little bit of extra work on. Yeah, so I mean, those kinds of things, and I'm just trying to think because it's, it's really if, again, if you're looking at a career pivot where it's a different type of work or different skills than what you currently have or you're currently used to, I would. advise reaching out to others who are in those roles [00:23:00] already saying,
Laura D: Hmm.
Laura H: do you do for your job? What are the most important aspects? You know, again, if you wanna go into sales, you better get used to pe people telling you no.
Laura D: Right.
Laura H: it's
Laura D: love that.
Laura H: there are so many people who are afraid of asking for whatever, you know, just because they don't wanna be told no.
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: So again, it's really just looking at how, how can you make yourself a more holistic and you know, just more attractive employee, you know, what, what is your own personal brand that sets you apart from other job candidates? And I
Laura D: Mm.
Laura H: this day and age, one of, you know, the big buzzwords is using ai, right?
Laura H: So, yeah. funny because, talking with, family, with friends I've noticed probably about a 50% adoption rate of people who are starting to use chat GPT and the other AI tools. But it can be tremendously helpful. You wanna fine tune your resume, into chat GPT and say, Hey, here's the job description, here's my resume. do you recommend? Show me how can I improve my. Written [00:24:00] resume, you know, what are some potential questions I'd be asked during an interview. So those types of tools can be tremendously helpful for building your own skillset, but also making you a more attractive candidate when you're, looking for a new job and just saying, Hey, I'm up to date with the latest technology.
Laura D: Yeah, I love that.
Laura D: And you said something that I think is, I don't know if it's fairly new or maybe it's just fairly new to me, but the whole idea of like, what is your personal brand when it comes to, I guess, or would it be, I guess, your professional brand? Can you speak more? On that. 'cause at least for me, like that's something fairly new that I just learned like maybe in the past year.
Laura D: So for those who aren't familiar, like what is a professional brand and why is that important?
Laura H: , if you think of, job searching from the hiring manager's perspective, they get dozens and dozens of resumes and they're gonna look at each one for what? 10, 20 seconds before they kinda make a snap judgment. And so that's where, right up front you need to say, this is what I'm selling you Me as a person. I'm [00:25:00] a program manager, I'm collaborative. I've worked on product development. I've worked in a large international company. I've resolved these types of issues. And so that's building your brand. And once you get past that initial hurdle. when you actually move into the interviewing phase and really having the opportunity to say, okay, well here's the whole picture.
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: brand is your snapshot of yourself to say,
Laura D: And that's in the resume,
Laura H: more.
Laura D: you're suggesting it is like the top part of the resume? Yeah.
Laura H: yeah, it's, you know, the top party, your resume with your kind of career summary and then, but also your LinkedIn profile your general online presence from a networking perspective. Again, if you have a friend saying, Hey, I wanna recommend, Laura here for this position, I've worked with her in the past. These are kind of her main characteristics. So it's, it's, it's the whole picture where, hopefully your day-to-day self aligns with the character that you're putting up as part of your resume and your online profile. I would, I would
Laura D: Yes, yes. Integrity is important here.
Laura D: [00:26:00] Now, for the person who is not really sure what their, their professional brand is like, how would you recommend that they go about, trying to figure out what their brand is and what to put on the resume?
Laura H: It goes back to self-reflection, right? What, what are you really good at? What do your colleagues highlight and say, worked with Laura, she is amazing in these particular areas. When you have, performance reviews, what's the feedback that's come back from your manager, from your colleagues where they say you've excelled And all, all of that really can help shape, what your kind of professional branding is and what you are known for.
Laura H: What makes you unique in the workplace?
Laura D: I love it. And I also like, I, I wrote a note here 'cause I didn't wanna forget it.
Laura D: I just wanna go back to the cat video 'cause I think that's amazing. And for those who were listening, can you, I will put the links in the show notes, but can you just briefly talk about. And I promise this, my question is related to the cats, but I also just wanted to spotlight the cats for a moment.
Laura H: So,
Laura D: Like how did that [00:27:00] start?
Laura H: So we for the past, you know, 16 years, we'd had two cats that knew we had lost recently. And when the first one passed, we said, okay, it's really quiet in the house. We need to get a kit in. Because again, just having a 16-year-old cat who slept most of the day, wa wasn't quite the same level of energy. So went to the local SPCA. And we said, I know we're gonna adopt this 14 week old kitten that's the loudest cat in the shelter. And Oh yeah. Had been put on a 10 day hold because she bit somebody that's the cat we wanna adopt. So that was Zoe. And, again, we got her home and the energy levels were roof. She was pretty insane. So we said, all right, we're gonna get her little harness. We're gonna take her outside, we're gonna put her on a boat, we're gonna see what happens. And again, she just, she has no fear. She loves exploring. She really thought it was fantastic being outside. And after, [00:28:00] of months.
Laura H: She definitely was a mouthy cat. She liked to nibble on her humans, and we write about a single kitten syndrome where if they don't have another young playmate, then they basically pick up bad behaviors. So we literally went and adopted a second kitten to give her a chew toy.
Laura D: Does she attack the other kitten?
Laura H: No, so,
Laura D: Okay.
Laura H: second cat is Ziggy and they're both orange, which was a little bit of a mistake 'cause we can't always tell them apart. but no, they just, they love each other. They, it, it sounds like her of elephants sometimes 'cause they're chasing each other around the house and wrestling and just having a great time.
Laura H: But they, they groom each other. They snuggle, and Ziggy not quite as adventurous. He does, he does like getting out there, but not to the same level as Zoe. So we just started recording all this video and putting it out on you know, on Instagram and on YouTube to just kind of share joy with the world because they're hilarious.
Laura D: I love that. And when did you start doing that?
Laura D: And, and sending it out.
Laura H: in August of last year, so just over a year ago.
Laura D: Okay. Now, I'm, [00:29:00] I'm curious, just over a year ago, was this before or after you got laid off? The last time.
Laura H: This was before I was laid off.
Laura D: Okay. So you're already doing this project before?
Laura H: again, I was doing it, doing on the side. I did not tell any of my work colleagues that these
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: I told, I told a few people once I was laid off. But no, just, again, just very much on the side for fun. Posting just short little clips of the cats.
Laura D: They're adorable. They're adorable. I also couldn't tell them apart, so I feel better knowing that you also sometimes can't tell them apart, but. The reason I bring it up, not just 'cause I love cats, I mean that that is also a true statement. But you, you know what I noticed, Laura, is that when you talked about, like we were talking about like gaps, right?
Laura D: And like how you can become more comfortable. ' cause you mentioned you're not that comfortable with interviewing and you mentioned some of the ways that you practice wasn't necessarily going to interviews, although of course that's an option. But for the listener out there who is so petrified of interviews that they can't even like.
Laura D: They, they're not even [00:30:00] submitting their resume. One fun way to practice the talking is kind of like what Laura did, right? Like it was a transferable skill. It. Looks from the outside. Like it has nothing to do with interviewing, but it does, right? Like having to do a script and then realizing, oh, I do better with talking points.
Laura D: It's like a great way to practice. So I bring up the CAT video because if you're thinking I have to do very strict, not so fun things to fill in the gaps, no. Or to bridge the gap, so to speak. You can do fun things like go in a kayak with Zoe and Ziggy, I think. Does Ziggy also go in the kayak?
Laura H: He does, but
Laura D: Reluctantly?
Laura H: it. So we're working with him. He, he's a much a slower transition.
Laura D: Yeah. I appreciate it. I I would be the same way. I love it. So I wanna go through Okay. 'cause like we, we briefly talked about it. Thank you so much for like you. Have given so much already, and I'm sure the listeners are taking a lot of notes.
Laura D: And now I'm curious this time [00:31:00] 2024, the last time that you got laid off, talk to us about like, oh, 20, oh this year, 2025.
Laura D: August, 2025.
Laura H: Yeah, it was this summer.
Laura D: Okay. This summer. So what was the difference in terms of like how you approached it this time versus that, that first time in 2020?
Laura H: So this time I basically had two months notice where I had actually, I was out of the office for a week and a half on a trip to Portugal. With my mom and my sister and my aunt, fantastic girls trip. get back on, you know, Tuesday night. Wednesday morning, I log into my work computer and that morning my boss had set up a very vague sounding meeting with him for about three
Laura D: Hmm.
Laura H: and I get on the call and I joke, I'm like, nothing good ever happens when I go away on vacation. And he is like, yeah. About that. Hold on a second. I need to have somebody join the call with us and HR pops on.
Laura D: Oh no.
Laura H: And so I, so at my most recent company, I was a manager I had a small [00:32:00] team about seven people. you know, they informed me that my job was impacted and I had, you know, another seven and a half weeks until it was my last day. And then I, you know, my. Very first question was, well, what about the rest of my team?
Laura D: Hmm.
Laura H: And you know, again, 'cause my first layoff, the entire facility was shut down so everybody was impacted. In this case it was only select people. And so my team was actually not impacted. It was myself and then a few other select people in different parts of the organization. Again, from an ego perspective, that one did hurt a little bit. Because I'm like, well, wait a minute, why me?
Laura D: And how did you work past that?
Laura H: it, it just, it takes time to process, right? Because it's kind of like the five stages of grief
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: where, you know whereas it, you know, there's shock and bargaining and really just kind of working through that until you get to acceptance and understanding. it just, it takes a little bit of time. So. My advice would be don't make any rash [00:33:00] decisions. Just take a day or two, or a week or two and really absorb the information, let it settle, and then start to think about, well, where do I wanna go from here? And
Laura D: So what was the last seven weeks like then knowing that you were gonna leave? Like how did you break it to the team? How did you also have the motivation to still, you know. You know what I'm saying? Like to still show up a hundred percent and you know, keep going.
Laura H: so when we were talking earlier about, what's your brand, what are you known for? So for me I was very much known for. Caring about my team, my colleagues, and really helping them succeed. And so my boss, he offered to have the call with my team to let them know what happened. And I said, well, no, I think it should come from me because I'm the one that they work with day to day. And so I actually hosted a call the next morning to let them know that my role is impacted in what the timeline was and, again, I would say [00:34:00] like those last seven weeks, I'm not, volunteering to do overtime and really push myself to go above and beyond. But I made sure that my personal commitments that I fulfilled them.
Laura H: I was really setting up my team and colleagues who are taking over my work for them to be successful when I exited, because I didn't want someone else to be in a bad position just because, my job was impacted.
Laura D: I'm still thinking about, 'cause honestly, deep inside me, there's a little bit of pettiness. So, so I honestly like not, I get what you're saying, like, don't impact Uhhuh.
Laura H: the first layoff that I had five years ago, had to interview my replacement. So my job was impacted 'cause everything was moving out to Colorado and so I was on the hiring panel interviewing people who were taking my job in Colorado.
Laura D: What a,
Laura H: So,
Laura D: did you handle that?
Laura H: was a lot easier.
Laura D: Okay, but let's go back to 20. How, and I'm, I mean, one, I'm curious, but also like, I'm pretty sure there are listeners out there who have actually experienced the same thing [00:35:00] and you seem honestly like really peaceful and grounded to me, Laura, but I'm, I'm sure there are listeners out there and honestly, I can think of like a few clients who still feel bitter and still take it personally that they've been laid off, especially when it's multiple times.
Laura D: And so that's why, I'm really asking these questions because I'm sure there're like, I want what she's having truly though, because you seem happy, you're lit up, you're still passionate about helping people, and you yourself are going through a transition. So let's rewind back to five years ago, right?
Laura H: you have to be at peace with yourself, right? If you're, if you're bitter, that's just a lot of negative energy that doesn't actually benefit the situation.
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: And in the case where again. People were interviewing for, what was my role? It's not their fault they had, they had no involvement in what happened to me personally. and so it's just kind of separating that sure I could be mad at the company and, and mad at the , direct managers that had, made those [00:36:00] decisions. But, taking it out on an, uninvolved third party really isn't fair and, I'm sure I had said, Hey, you know, I don't feel comfortable, I don't really wanna be involved in this process, I'm, I'm sure they would've let me out of it.
Laura H: But I dunno, I guess in the end you just, you want, the company and the overarching team to be successful and so trying to sabotage that, it's just, it's not a good look. And,
Laura D: true.
Laura H: and because again, you don't know who you're gonna run into in the future.
Laura D: That is a very good point.
Laura H: So if you, if if you get laid off from a, from a job and you light the world on fire and just refuse to be helpful, it's not a good professional look and that can come back in the
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: So, so again, it,
Laura D: Yes.
Laura H: there, there's a selfish aspect, right? You, you don't want to blow up your own professional brand because. An unfortunate incident happened and you were impacted by a layoff,
Laura D: So for the listeners out there, follow Laura h and not Laura d Don't let the, [00:37:00] not, not, not that I'm saying I'm letting the petty side win, but, uh, the reason I wanna give voice to that is because I also think it's important to acknowledge that that's how you feel, because pretending that you. Don't, is not helpful either.
Laura D: And to your point, the self-reflection iss really important
Laura H: Yeah. And you need to process those feelings maybe in a more private setting.
Laura D: in a private setting. Yes. Not in the, in the cafeteria via the coffee. And they're like, can you believe they're having me interview my replacement? You know?
Laura H: well, and I know we had touched on this briefly when we had talked before this interview, but my most recent company when I became a manager, I was only the manager for about six months. My boss called me up and said. You know, we're having layoffs and we're laying off half of your team. And so that wa, so that was two years ago where I had to go and be the one on the call with HR saying, Hey, I'm sorry, your, your role's been impacted and was very interesting [00:38:00] because. My team of 10, I believe we had six people that were impacted. And I would say about half of those folks were kind of like, huh, well that sucks, but alright.
Laura H: You know, figure things out, move on. And then there's a couple people who really, again, just kinda lit the world on fire, stop supporting the business, and those individuals had about six weeks notice and, again, as the manager, I could very easily tell who was actually trying to continue to do a good job in those final weeks, and who just like abdicated all responsibility, stopped showing up to meetings, stop trying to transition any of their workload, and they were really just difficult employees.
Laura H: And that's where if someone came to me and said, Hey, would you recommend
Laura D: Mm.
Laura H: person? I'd have to really think about that answer because I saw kind of how that part of their personality emerged when put into a challenging situation.
Laura D: Yeah. Yeah, that is a, that is a very good point. So like there's the, the external possible future impact if you decide to light the [00:39:00] bridge on fire, but also just like the inner feeling of like, I don't know, I feel like when you actually give into those petty thoughts, the intrusive thoughts, that you don't actually feel good, like you still feel just as bad as you did.
Laura D: Maybe worse because you realized you didn't feel better.
Laura H: Well,
Laura D: So, yes.
Laura H: cycle where if you have a bunch of
Laura D: Yeah.
Laura H: feelings and negative actions,
Laura D: True.
Laura H: gonna have more negative feelings and more negative actions and not feeling control of your own life. Where if you kind of say, okay, if. This is the sucky situation, but how can I make the best of it? you're kind of propagating your own positive outlook and you know, positive outcomes
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: because you're trying to say, okay, well how can I make this work? And then you figure it out and it works out in the end.
Laura D: Yes. I love it. Now you mentioned, that you are embracing a career break?
Laura D: So yes, you got laid off earlier in the year, in the summer, but now you're embracing a career break. So tell us all about that. Like [00:40:00] what led to the decision to be like, you know what? I'm just gonna pause, and how are you able to set yourself up so that you could do that?
Laura H: So, aside from being a grammar nerd, I'm also a little bit of a money nerd.
Laura D: Ooh. Fun.
Laura H: that's where it was again, like well over 10 years ago. learned about the the fire movement, the
Laura D: Mm-hmm.
Laura H: retire early movement, you know, basically since I started working, I have been saving a huge percentage of my income to basically open up options into the future. And so at this kind of phase in my life, I have kind of a really just solid nest egg waiting there. I am not, again, kind of like financially strapped to have to immediately take a new position because I have the savings to kind of figure things out and see what I would like to do with my life.
Laura H: And at least this time my husband is gainfully employed. So that. helps our scenario
Laura D: Right,
Laura H: When we were both impacted back in 2020, we didn't have quite as many options,
Laura D: [00:41:00] right.
Laura H: yeah.
Laura D: I love it. I love it. So listeners who aren't going through a career transition right now or aren't even thinking about it, again, follow Laura h and start saving. Just so like you are prepared for the future in case something happens. Or also if you just wanna take a break.
Laura H: Because it just, it opens up options, and that's really about setting yourself up for a lifestyle where you're still having fun, you're still enjoying life, but again, you're kind of saving money in the background so that if something unexpected happens, and again, it could be, medical issues that can be hugely expensive and you need time off from work or a layoff.
Laura H: But basically you have just like a safety cushion that you can rely on. You don't use it now, fantastic. Retire early when you're older, it's, it just, it's good to have that in your back pocket as an option.
Laura D: I love that. So, Laura, what is next for you in this next phase, or you're just still in the break?
Laura H: well right now I'm waiting for ski season to start. I'm, I'm really hoping we get good snow.
Laura D: Me too.
Laura H: And one day I will figure out the social [00:42:00] media thing because I swear it is hit or miss with making these videos. Know, YouTube, with the YouTube shorts, the cats usually get, I don't know, somewhere between 2000 and 30,000 views on a short. had one that got 7 million views, no idea what I did. No idea. But it got 7 million views and it got me about 4,000 new followers. So if I could figure out that formula, then, then I'd be rich, but
Laura D: You'd be rich. You would be rich. And also I love, I love your cat videos. Yes. Listener. Go follow immediately. I will put it in the show notes.
Laura D: So Laura, thank you so much for sharing all your wisdom. You have such positive energy, joyful and fun energy. And before we wrap up, I have one final question that I ask all my guests, and that is, if you were an item in a coffee shop, so you could be a drink or a pastry or anything like that, what would you be and why?
Laura H: First, I'm gonna have the disclaimer that I don't actually ever buy anything in a coffee shop. That's one of the ways I save money. I know [00:43:00] you, you look
Laura D: Oh,
Laura H: I also live in the middle of nowhere New Hampshire. We don't have a million great options like you would in New York City.
Laura D: okay. I love cafes. It's my favorite. That's why I was like, ah, blasphemy.
Laura D: I understand. Mm-hmm.
Laura H: I would say every morning I have my big mug of Earl Gray Tea, and it just, like, it's reliable, it's calming, it's soothing. It's just a great way to start the morning.
Laura D: Accurate to your, your vibe.
Laura H: yeah, no, again, like reliable. I am steady. It just that I think it's a good fit.
Laura D: Yes. I love it. Thank you Laura so much for being on here, for getting past the barrier of your discomfort. I appreciate you so much and, for those who want to know more about you or really more about your cats, how can they find you? I mean, I'll put it in the show notes, but you could just also verbally say it.
Laura H: you wanna follow two crazy orange cats go check out Zoe Zesty clause over on Instagram or YouTube. You can certainly check out their cat antics. And again, we go kayaking [00:44:00] with them. We go boating. Coming up into winter, Zoe has adorable little pink snow booties that she wears, so
Laura D: Lets you put them on. Okay. Kind of,
Laura H: it's a challenge. We're, we're, we're working on it. She usually tries to flick 'em off right away, but
Laura D: do you, are you planning to have a video or do you have a video of, of you attempting to put the booties on? I would watch that. Okay. I will search for that.
Laura H: this past winter.
Laura D: I will watch that. Thank you Laura, again for being here. And listeners, I know you found this helpful. Take notes, follow the account, and come back next time.
Laura H: All right. Thank you so much, Laura.
Big thanks again to Laura Hubelbank for sharing her story so openly. These conversations are such a reminder that no pivot is too messy, too late, or too unconventional. If something she said resonated, don't keep it to yourself. Share this episode with someone you know who needs it, and when you are ready to [00:45:00] start your own pivot.
Head to www.leadinta.com for free resources or book a free 20 minute call with me. I'm here for you.