When Stability Cracks Overnight: The Story of “Jacob” and the Invisible Cost of Tech Layoffs
- Garige Goutham Kumar
- Nov 12
- 4 min read
By Goutham (Psychologist & Relationship Advisor)
Why you should read this: If you’ve ever wondered what happens inside a person’s mind when a stable career suddenly collapses—or if you’re going through a similar storm yourself—this article helps you understand the psychological impact, emotional stages, and practical therapeutic ways to rebuild your footing with clarity and resilience.
Imagine this: Jacob. 17 years in the IT industry. A solid salary in Bengaluru. Two kids enrolled in a leading school. Weekends filled with bike rides of 400–500 km with friends who share his passion. He has built what many dream of: stability, professional respect, financial comfort, identity, community.
And then—one morning—he can’t log in to his work system. Access denied. A terse note arrives: “Your services are no longer required. ”No prior warning. No conversation. No explanation. Just the switch flipped.
What happens next isn’t just a layoff. It’s an assault on identity, meaning, and self-worth.
The Broader Picture: Layoffs in India’s IT Sector, 2024
This isn’t an isolated incident. In fact, it reflects a wider trend in India’s IT services industry:
In the first half of 2024, over 98,834 tech employees across 337 companies lost their jobs in India.
By August 2024, the figure had crossed 130,000 layoffs in the tech sector.
Major Indian firms — Infosys, Wipro, and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) — together let go of over 64,000 employees in FY 2024.
Increasingly, these are “silent layoffs” — minimal notice, little transparency, and no space for employees to make sense of the decision.
So when Jacob’s case happens, he’s not alone. He is part of a wave. But that fact doesn’t lessen the sting—it might make it more complex, because the world sees it as “just business,” while for him it’s everything.
Jacob’s Inner Experience: When Everything “Was Good”
Let’s peer inside Jacob’s psyche in the days, weeks, and months following that moment:
Shock & Disbelief
When Jacob realizes his login is blocked, the first thought is: “This must be a mistake.” He refreshes, calls a colleague, sends an email. Nothing. It hits him: he’s been removed. For someone dependable and diligent, it is a jolt.
Identity Collapse
Jacob’s sense of self has been tightly woven with his job: the projects, the code, the team, the weekend rides as reward for his work. The job wasn’t just income—it was who he was. When that vanishes, the question becomes: “Who am I now?”
Shame, Self-Blame & Rumination
Because there’s no explanation, Jacob is left to his own devices. He replays every meeting, every interaction, trying to find the moment he “failed.” Shame creeps in quietly. “I should have seen this coming.”
Anxiety, Uncertainty & Loss of Control
The stable financial future he believed in now feels precarious. EMIs, school fees, the biking weekends—all start to feel like luxuries at risk. The mind treats it like a threat. Sleep fractures. Appetite dips. He starts living in survival mode.
Loss of Meaning & Belonging
LinkedIn messages like “Stay strong!” or “You’ll bounce back!” may help briefly, but they can’t fill the deeper void. What Jacob mourns isn’t only a job—it’s the sense of belonging that comes from being needed and valued.
Rebooting from the Inside: A Therapeutic Framework
For professionals like Jacob, healing isn’t just about rewriting résumés. It’s about rewriting the story of self.
1. Reclaiming the Narrative
Therapy helps separate fact from self-blame. Jacob can begin asking: “What does this event not say about me?” and “How do I want to define myself from this point onward?” Through narrative work he can reframe the layoff as a system failure rather than personal inadequacy.
2. Anchoring in What You Can Control
Micro-goals—daily walks, reconnecting with former colleagues, upskilling for 30 minutes a day—rebuild a sense of agency and calm the nervous system.
3. Re-imagining Identity Beyond the Job Title
Jacob isn’t just a “Senior IT Professional.” He’s a father, mentor, biker, friend. Therapy helps integrate these parts so identity becomes broader and more resilient.
4. Processing the Emotional Fallout
Grief, shame, anger—these deserve attention. Naming the feelings reduces their power. Healing requires permission to feel before attempting to fix everything.
5. Building Forward Resilience, Not Just Recovery
Resilience is not bouncing back to the exact same place; it’s moving forward with new learning, renewed values, and a recalibrated sense of direction.
What This Means for the Industry—and for Us
The unfolding layoff wave in India’s IT sector is not just an economic story; it’s a human one. Treating people as replaceable assets saves balance-sheet costs in the short term but exacts a hidden psychological toll: broken trust, eroded loyalty, and an anxious workforce less willing to innovate.
For every “Jacob,” there are families and communities absorbing the shock. The financial wound may heal with time; the emotional wound needs care, empathy, and structured recovery.
Final Thought & Gentle Invitation
If you find yourself in Jacob’s shoes—or you know someone who does—remember these truths: you are not defined by your employment status, and a company’s decision does not measure your worth.
Help works. Online and remote therapy can be profoundly effective: discreet, accessible, and empathetic. What makes this approach uniquely meaningful is that Psychologist Goutham isn’t an outsider to the IT world. Before becoming a psychologist, he worked in the tech industry himself—trained in network administration, CCNA, CCNP, and programming languages like Java, with hands-on experience in frameworks such as Struts and Spring. He understands the pressures, culture, and constant churn of IT life from the inside.
That lived experience, combined with professional psychological insight, means the guidance you receive is not abstract—it’s grounded in empathy and realism.
You can visit https://www.psychologistgoutham.com/ to book a confidential online therapy session, where you’ll be heard, understood, and guided toward genuine relief and clarity.
Rebuilding starts with a single, brave step: asking for help. Your story isn’t ending—it’s being rewritten with strength, perspective, and renewed direction.
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