Hi Core77 Family: I am revisiting this old post of mine from over 5 years ago because there was some great advice here about next steps after a layoff (and yes… I am here again!), and just wanted to say how helpful some of the advice up above is now the 2nd time around. I am now considering whether to try seeking contract work in my specialty (home goods/decor/decorative product) with my former employer (Target Corp) or other retailers in the same space OR even consider leaving the industry entirely considering I am so not into moving out of state for an “on-site” role in traditional Industrial Design.
Having designed for Target, I came to discover a passion for this space; in particular tabletop/ceramic/entertaining or even decorative product for the home. I am trying to network heavily at other competitors like Crate & Barrel, Pottery Barn, or even companies in the kitchenware space like Williams Sonoma. But as usual, most are out of my home state of MN, and most roles don’t seem open to remote.
One piece of advice above recommended I see a Career Coach of sorts… I am seriously considering that because if I decide to go back to school or get any training whatsoever in another field, I’d like to make sure that it aligns with my interests and offers some longer term stability.
Keep you all posted on whatever becomes of my situation or career pivot!
OK, my 2 cents. I believe it’s much easier to relocate these days than it’s ever been; long distance calls are cheap, there is FaceTime now, and Google Maps is a very handy tool to get around new parts of the world. And if you are moving overseas there are many free language translation tools. Think about how challenging it was when your parents moved just a generation ago.
This is a tough one and it’s so different for each person in each situation.
I spent much of my adult life relocating for work opportunities. From New England, to Portland, to Boston, To SF, to San Diego. In 2019 we made the first move we actually wanted to make just for us, no job attached, back to Portland. I’d like to not move again, but would I? It really depends on the location and the opportunity (and the global situation).
Like anything there are pros and cons. You really have to do a cost/benefit analysis and only you can determine where that answer lies for yourself at that moment. About six months after we moved back to Portland a recruiter reached out to see if I would like to be put forward for a VP of design role at Herman Miller…. obviously that was very tempting. My partner said “that is awesome, you can print that email out and frame it, but we aren’t moving to Michigan”… cost/benefit analysis complete.
If family or kids or partner aren’t holding you back and if you’re curious about the world definitely move around. I’ve now lived the longest of anyplace I’ve lived and it’s like an old sweatshirt that’s slowly becoming too ratty to wear. And I have to wear it for at least a few more years.
Thanks everyone above the supportive comments and recommendations. I am going to try my best to stay put in MN and see if I can make this work either through contracting or maybe even venturing into other ID-adjacent areas (I may even give retail/fixtures design a look into as there seems to be much of it here in the Twin Cities). I just don’t have the energy anymore for uprooting myself, and selling property. No kids here, so that helps; but I am getting way too damn old for this back and forth. And if things get really bad in this economy, I may end up taking a break from design and completely pivot into another area I’ve been considering (had I not been a designer) - the “helping careers”. Not sure what that would entail yet, but keep you all posted!
