Mass Layoffs, Uncertainty, and the Truth About Career Pivots in the Legal Field

We’re living in a time when having a job feels more like a privilege than a guarantee. Every week, new headlines announce more rounds of mass layoffs, thousands of people suddenly uprooted from roles they’ve dedicated years of their lives to. Job security, once the foundation of long-term career planning, has become increasingly unstable across industries, especially in tech and corporate environments.

Economic disruption always triggers career disruption, and the Great Resignation of 2021 made that unmistakably clear. Remote work gave people a taste of flexibility they never imagined possible. It showed them that they could be productive without sacrificing their well-being, and it revealed just how much of their energy had been spent simply surviving work rather than thriving in it. That forced pause gave many professionals a level of clarity they hadn’t accessed in years. People realized that they wanted something different -- more balance, more autonomy, more alignment. For many, the conclusion was simple: they didn’t want to return to the old way of working.

Yet employers resisted this shift. Slack’s Times Square billboards captured the contradiction perfectly with slogans like “Never going back 🥳” and “Where the future works.” It was bold, aspirational messaging that resonated with millions. Yet, only months later, many of those same companies began enforcing return-to-office mandates, undermining the very autonomy they had publicly celebrated. This abrupt swing between empowerment and control has left professionals feeling confused, discouraged, and uncertain about their next step.

Right now, a lot of people are clinging to jobs they’ve outgrown, not because they’re aligned or fulfilling, but because fear has become their decision-maker. They’ve convinced themselves there are no jobs available simply because they’ve seen so many layoffs in the news. Their nervous system responds to headlines of thousands losing their careers with one message: “Don’t move. Stay put. Do not take a risk.” When fear feels like protection, many settle into roles that drain them, convince themselves that they “should be grateful,” and quietly endure work that no longer supports their mental, emotional, or financial well-being.

The hesitation makes sense. In the last few months, many professionals have left long-term roles they've held for six, eight, or even 10 years, only to be laid off from their new jobs after 12 to 18 months. This trend has created an understandable fear that leaving a familiar environment means stepping into instability. While this does happen, it doesn’t automatically mean that every pivot leads to the same outcome.

The truth is that staying in a job you’ve outgrown is not security. It’s simply familiarity. Familiarity can keep you stuck in environments that drain your confidence, stretch your bandwidth, and quietly take away your momentum. Staying in a misaligned job can be just as risky as leaving one. Performance slips not because you aren’t capable, but because you’re exhausted. Confidence erodes because you feel undervalued or underutilized. Opportunities pass by because you’re too depleted to pursue them. Ironically, staying in the same place for years has never guaranteed safety; long-term employees are often among the first to be impacted during restructures or layoffs.

This is why career pivots in today’s world require more than hope, more than urgency, and far more than inspirational messaging. They require intention, structure, and clarity. Not just clarity about your why (although your why matters) but clarity about what to do, how to do it, and what you’re actually looking for in your next chapter.

This is precisely where Simply Thrives approach differs from the traditional career coaching you may have seen online. Many coaches spend significant time helping clients talk through their 'why,' and there is nothing wrong with that. Understanding why you want to make a change can be grounding and insightful. But in our coaching practice, we don’t stop there. When clients work with us, they receive more than reflective conversations. We go deeper, and we build tangible steps. We help you create the actual structure, strategy, and readiness you need not only to make a pivot, but to make one that is sustainable and aligned with your life, your values, and your future.

One of the most powerful tools we use to support this process is the CareerLeap Matrix™. This matrix is not just a reflective exercise; it is a comprehensive, strategic framework that gives you a clear picture of where you stand before you make a move. It helps you measure your alignment with potential roles, evaluate your transferable skills, understand your readiness for change, and stay grounded throughout your job search. Instead of guessing or reacting under stress, the matrix provides a structured way to make decisions that support your long-term goals. It becomes your compass during a market that often feels unpredictable.

The CareerLeap Matrix™ also gives you something most professionals never consider: the ability to evaluate employers the same way they assess you. Companies use assessments all the time, sometimes formally, sometimes informally, and they assess candidates based on criteria like experience, communication, work style, and cultural fit. You should have your own version of that. When you walk into interviews with a clear understanding of what you want, what you expect, and how you will measure alignment, you shift from hoping an employer chooses you to deciding whether an employer deserves to choose you. You step into interviews with intention rather than anxiety, clarity rather than guesswork, and confidence rather than fear.

A significant part of the CareerLeap Matrix™ process includes exploring job descriptions in detail, not just job titles. Titles vary wildly between companies, but job descriptions reveal the skills required, the responsibilities expected, and the environment you’d be walking into. As we work through your CareerLeap Matrix™ together, you’ll learn how to break down job descriptions strategically, identifying the skills you already have, the ones you want to use more often, the ones you’re ready to let go of, and the ones you can intentionally develop without feeling like you're starting from scratch. You’re never starting over with Simply Thrives. You are translating your experience and expanding your options while building your personal brand.

This entire process includes alignment work, the system, the role analysis, and the transferable skills mapping, which begins during our very first call together. In the strategy session, we walk through the foundations of your CareerLeap Matrix™. We explore what matters most to you, what you want from your next role, what patterns you don’t want to repeat, how aligned you currently are, and what the most strategic next steps are for your pivot. Most people finish this conversation with relief and clarity about their next steps, more than they’ve had in years, not because we talked about their why, but because they finally have a structured, strategic roadmap that puts them back in control of their career direction.

If you haven’t scheduled your strategy session yet, you’re missing out on a powerful tool that can transform the way you approach your career pivot. You don’t have to navigate this alone, and you certainly don’t have to rely on fear or guesswork.

Your next step is simple: schedule the call, show up as you are, and let’s build your CareerLeap Matrix™ so you can pivot with clarity, confidence, and direction.