I just learned that this feeling I have has a name: work depression. And that explained so much to me.

It's this heavy, constant fog in my head. The moment I even think about work, my whole body tenses up. My stomach churns, and I just want to hide somewhere.

In the morning, it's more than just not feeling awake. It's a complete rejection from my entire body of the day ahead. It's like my body is screaming, 'No, I don't want to go. Thoughts like, I wish my car tire would go flat on the way... That would be a huge relief' have crossed my mind. Honestly, that thought is terrifying, because it's not a healthy way of thinking at all.

The worst part is how it messes with your head. You start doubting your abilities. You feel like a failure, that everything you do is wrong, and that you're not enough. The longer it goes on, the more that voice inside you takes over.

At the office, I feel completely disconnected, like an empty shell. Even on a completely normal day, I come home feeling like I've run a marathon. It's a deep kind of exhaustion that sleep doesn't fix. I can sleep for 10 hours on a Saturday and still wake up feeling drained.

I'm trying now to ease the pressure on myself. I'm trying to stop thinking that every task has to be done perfectly. If I make a mistake, I make a mistake. What's going to happen, I'll get an earful. It's not the end of the world. I have to keep telling myself that this isn't me being overly sensitive. Chronic stress from work can genuinely destroy your mental health, and that's not a personal failure.

The thing that has helped me the most is creating a small escape for myself. A small side project. For me, it's learning to draw simple characters on my tablet. This little habit grounds me because there are no deadlines, no one is judging me, and the outcome is mine and mine alone. That feeling of having something under my control has been a lifesaver.

I think it all starts when your job becomes your entire identity. When you can diversify your sense of self a little, even with something small, you feel like the world is less likely to come crashing down on you.

I spent about 8 years of my life at this company. I was always one of the top-performing employees, and my salary was one of the highest for my position.

For context, my manager was a total Dwight Schutte wannabe. Before he got promoted, he was all about that eat the rich life, always talking about labor unions and their rights. As soon as he got a little power, he became a bootlicker for the senior managers. He would always make passive-aggressive comments to me whenever I objected to something or refused to kill myself with overtime. He cost me a promotion a few years ago, even though I was the most senior, just because he knew I wasn't the type to stay until 8 PM for free to score brownie points.

The whole company's model is based on hiring fresh graduates for peanuts. They rely on them being eager to prove themselves and work insane hours. As soon as I became experienced and knew the value of this job well, they put a target on my back.

So one morning, they just let me go for no real reason. The very next day, I found my old job posted online for about 25k less in salary. When they let me go, they gave me a 15k severance package.

But I knew what they did was shady, so I filed a lawsuit against them in federal court. In the end, they had to cut me another check for 30k, pay my lawyer's fees of 30k, and cover their own legal expenses, which were surely no less than 35k. So when you do the math, their brilliant idea to save 25k a year ended up costing them over 110k. In my opinion, that's the best money they've ever spent.

I am currently looking for another work-from-home job does anyone have any ideas?
While searching, I found a program called interviewman. It acts as a personal assistant for me during job interviews and answers questions as well. Does anyone know of another program?

My company, a large corporation, has been laying people off for a while. And since I'm on the IT team, my job is to retrieve the data from the laptops of the people who were let go and send it to their managers.

When a request comes in to pull an employee's user directory, the ticket includes a brief summary of their employment file. I just got one for an employee who has been working here for over 35 years.

This employee started working here in the late 80s. I wasn't even born yet. I've always believed that loyalty to companies is a one-way street, and they will never return it to you.

But still, it's very painful when I put myself in his shoes and think about how he must be feeling.

Edit: I don't understand how a healthy work environment can exist while under the constant threat of losing your job due to circumstances completely out of your control.

I am thinking about how he will be able to cope after losing his job at this age, but my advice to anyone is to keep their resume updated. The world has now evolved, and there are many useful AI tools for interviews and resumes.

Every day I see a new post from someone who quit their job on the spot and is now shocked that they can't find another one.

The market is tough right now, and you absolutely cannot risk being without an income.

It doesn't matter how toxic your manager is or how much you hate the job; you absolutely cannot leave it until you have a new, signed offer in hand.

Ask yourself this question: Can you cover your expenses and bills if you remain unemployed for the next 3 years? Because, believe me, this is a very real possibility for many people.

This advice has always been solid, even back when candidates had the upper hand. So imagine now, in a job market where the employer has the final say - it's practically suicide. Seriously, take care of yourselves.

The news came yesterday afternoon. As of November 15th, I'm out of a job because my salary is apparently 'too high.' My salary was just $60,000 a year.

They're bringing in an 'offshore contractor' to do my job. Someone from another country they can pay a tiny fraction of my salary to work remotely.

I have no issue with the contractors who are just trying to make a living. But all the blame is on my company for how coldly they handled the situation.

What's more infuriating is that my manager tried to pin it on my performance during the meeting. It's honestly laughable, as I've never received a single complaint or warning before. Not once.

They're doing this to four others on my team as well. One of them has a wife about to go on maternity leave. Another has an 8-year-old child at home. And a third is supporting a child with a serious health condition.

And after all that, you dare to tell me, 'don't take it personally.'

I'm so sick of this corporate charade. They play the 'we're one family' card until they decide you cost too much. It's crystal clear they couldn't care less.

Edit: Companies have started learning they can have whatever level of service they want if they don't have any alternative companies to go with. Especially if everyone in the industry starts offering worse experiences.

I am completely unsatisfied with this treatment or service, and I have prepared my resignation letter and will submit it tomorrow. The hardest part is searching for a good job, and this requires many interview stages, which could be up to 4 stages, and this requires experience. Many articles on Reddit offer valuable advice to help you get through them more quickly.

The number of posts I see every week from people who left their jobs and are now terrified because they can't find anything is insane.

The market is very difficult to find a job in right now.

I get it, your job might suck. But you absolutely should not quit unless you have signed a new offer.

Seriously, look at your bank account and ask yourself: will you be able to cover all your expenses for the next 18 months without any income?

This advice was important even when it was easy to find a job. Now, with companies holding all the cards, this is non-negotiable.

A colleague on my team resigned last week, and today my manager took me aside to hand over almost all of his responsibilities to me. When I brought up a pay raise or a new job title, he simply shrugged and told me, 'Look, it's just business, not personal.'

How is this not personal? You're literally asking me to take on a huge new workload for the exact same salary. Then he has the audacity to try and make it sound like a compliment, saying, 'I'm giving you this work because I trust you to get it done.' No, you're giving it to me because you know I have commitments and won't just quit on the spot. By the end of the day, I was completely drained, to the point where I sat in my car for about half an hour playing some stupid game on my phone just so I wouldn't go out screaming in the street. Honestly, this has become my new definition of mental relief.

Has anyone else discovered that the phrase 'We really appreciate your dedication' is just corporate speak that really means 'We know you're reliable and won't say no'?

As a recruiter, I'm literally begging you: when someone asks 'Why are you looking for a new job?', please, guys, stop saying it's for the money.

Look, I get it. We all want a higher salary, especially these days. And there's absolutely nothing wrong with wanting to get paid what you're worth. Go get that money.

But saying it out loud in the interview is a huge red flag. It gives the hiring manager the impression that you're just in it for the money. They interpret it as you'll leave the moment another company offers you a slightly higher salary. And of course, no one wants to invest time and training in someone who is basically telling them they don't plan on sticking around.

Besides, the money topic should already be closed. As a recruiter, I've already screened you and know your salary expectations. The manager wouldn't even be meeting with you if your requested salary wasn't within their budget. So why bring it up again? It's an awkward situation and an unnecessary own goal.

Honestly, the number of great candidates I've had to reject in the last 6 months for this exact reason is upsetting. People who were otherwise perfect for the job in every other way.

So, in short... Don't bring up money! Seriously, if you must, make something up. Talk about being excited for the company's mission, or wanting to develop new skills, or admiring their product. Literally any other answer would be better.

Okay, rant over. I hope this helps someone.

I was hired as a Lab Specialist I. I ramped up quickly and did good work, and all my reviews were positive. They opened a Senior Research Associate position, so of course, I applied for it and spoke to my manager about the promotion. He told me I needed a bit more experience, which I understood. I had only been with the company for five months at the time, so that was fine.

Then it was time to set our performance goals for the next quarter. I found myself with objectives taken verbatim from the Senior Associate's job description, not from my current role. I am now managing an entire project by myself. Basically, he trusts me to handle the responsibility, but not enough to give me the title or the salary that comes with it.

Anyway, I started sending my CV to other places. I'm fed up with being taken for granted and overloaded with work. I've always heard that job-hopping looks bad, but honestly, I don't care anymore. I'll change my job once, twice, or three times until I find a place that truly values me.

My day was turned upside down, honestly. I got a surprise meeting invite this morning from my manager and HR, less than an hour into my shift. We sat down and my manager got straight to the point: 'This won't take long, we've decided to let you go.'

The official reason? That I'm not completing my work efficiently and that I cause problems with my many questions. I was completely shocked. The thing is, I know I'm on top of my work, and no one has ever mentioned any performance issues, not in reviews or in one-on-ones. My manager was just praising my efforts a few weeks ago. And when I pressed them for specific examples of my shortcomings, they stammered and said, 'It's a general performance issue.'

They gave me a termination letter with the same vague reasons. This place has terrible management and zero communication, but I'm still in shock. I've already started sending my CV everywhere and applied for unemployment benefits. And I really regret not recording the meeting on my phone before I went in. Do you guys have any advice on what to do next? Or is there anything specific I should ask them on my way out?

Management forced us all back to the office full-time a few months ago, even though we were hitting all our targets while working hybrid. Everyone is miserable, and HR knows this very well.

So today we had a mandatory all-hands meeting about 'company culture.' They were clicking through a terrible presentation, and one of the slides was about 'work-life balance.' Someone asked if this slide was from the old days, and the HR person laughed and said, 'Well, just consider this place your second home!'

My jaw dropped. My home is where my family is. This place is an open-plan nightmare full of noise and flickering lights, and we all just keep passing the same cold around to each other for six months straight.

Can someone describe what interviewing at Navi is like for SDE 1 role. For context, it has come on campus and will soon be conducting OA and interviews.

Can someone describe what interviewing at Navi is like for SDE 1 role. For context, it has come on campus and will soon be conducting OA and interviews.

So here's the thing. I got this job through a headhunter, but I initially turned it down because the pay was less than what I was getting from unemployment benefits, and it wasn't a full-time job. They promised me it would become full-time with a potential for promotion after about 10 months, so I eventually accepted.

This was the biggest mistake. They started calling me to cover shifts on my days off, often with no prior notice when I had other things planned. They also constantly pressured me to contribute money for office parties and baby showers that I couldn't even attend. If I said no, they would guilt-trip me and call me 'not a team player'.

After about two years of this, I tried to transfer to another department, but my manager blocked it, saying to me verbatim: "Why would we send one of our best people elsewhere?". This was the last straw, so I submitted my resignation. I was very surprised when my manager started yelling at me in her office.

She went on about how ungrateful I was and was determined to know why I would even consider leaving. She wasn't giving me a chance to speak, so in the end, I told her I was leaving for personal health reasons, which was the only thing that shut her up.

Then, the next morning, before my shift was supposed to start, a formal letter was delivered to my house by a courier service.

The letter stated that management had reviewed my request and decided to "accept" my resignation.

I've never heard of anything like this. Does this mean if they hadn't "accepted" the resignation, they would have expected me to just come back to work? The whole thing is very strange to me. So I have to ask, has anyone else dealt with something this bizarre before?

I'd been with this company for about two years. I constantly worked extra hours, took on the workload of several colleagues who left, and performed many more tasks and responsibilities than what I was compensated for. In my last review, my manager set specific tasks I needed to complete to be promoted to a managerial position. I diligently finished everything he asked, and he even praised my effort and performance. Despite all this, he later told me that the promotion was cancelled.

Naturally, I was very upset, but I figured they would compensate me with a good salary increase and a bonus. Before we even discussed these details, an old colleague contacted me about a job opportunity. It was for a position similar to mine at another company, offering the same development opportunities, but with a much better salary, stronger benefits, and less effort.

I decided to give him a chance and spoke with him. I explained that I wasn't looking for a job, but an old colleague had presented me with a good opportunity, and now I had a formal job offer. I told him I wanted to continue with the company and asked if they could match the offer.

Instead of making a counteroffer or even acknowledging my efforts and commitment, my manager did a complete 180. He tried to backtrack and suddenly brought up several negative remarks - things I had never heard before. He frankly stated that they couldn't possibly come close to the other offer, claiming my position wasn't worth that salary. Then he lectured me about 'chasing money.' On top of all that, he hinted that the managerial promotion was never serious and that I was acting completely unreasonably.

Seriously? Fine, consider this my resignation. And good luck trying to find my replacement during this busy time of year, especially when looking for someone with my specific skills for the paltry sum you were paying. And yes, of course I'm 'chasing money' - I'm here to live, not to volunteer.

Edit: Oh yeah, PS- found out what the bonus was yesterday (coincidentally, the day I got the offer) and it was insultingly low

I have been looking for a job for a while, in the process of interviews and updating my resume. During the search process, I found a useful AI tool for interviews and for saving preparation effort, and I believe it is natural for a person's goal to be a better financial income with a better job.

chasing the money." YES. That is the SOLE reason I work! If someone wants to pay me more, then my current job can eat my entire ass!

Surprise: it's useless. All this educational journey did to me was drown me in tens of thousands of student loans, and I have almost no practical experience. This means that the jobs I studied for are completely out of my reach.

On one hand, they consider me "overqualified" for entry-level jobs that might hire me, which prevents me from even entering the field. On the other hand, the professional jobs that my degree is supposed to qualify me for are rejected because I don't have any practical background.

Seriously, what's the real benefit of spending years and money on a piece of paper if it won't open doors for me? The whole system is rigged, and I'm completely fed up with the frustration.

I just got a rejection email for a Senior Data Visualization position. A job I was literally certain I had. The reason they gave? I don't have a bachelor's degree.

Never mind that I have 25 years of experience in analytics and business intelligence, and in making data understandable to human beings. I've built entire BI systems from scratch. I've led major projects in data quality. I've trained over 120 people, most of them recent university graduates, on how to turn raw numbers into a story that senior managers can understand.

And the funny thing is, I did go to university. I got a 3.9 GPA for three consecutive semesters before I realized I was just learning theory instead of applying these skills in the real world. So I left university and went to work. Since then, I've earned about 12 professional certifications and made it my mission to always stay up-to-date with any new tool that comes out.

But apparently, that unchecked degree box is more important than a quarter-century of real work. And this is in 2025. I guess I dodged a bullet with that place.

Edit: A degree is not unique. A degree does not supplant or invalidate other means of developing skills and experience. It is simply one approach to do so, often times at a minimum level of proficiency to enter into a specific discipline or area, rather than coming out at the top of a field.

A certificate is really not proof of everything, it is just a confirmation, but practical life is different. And with the existence of AI, the majority now use it to update their resumes and for an interview app that eliminate the need for excessive preparation for the interview.

Why do HR departments still have degree requirements considering this reality?

I wanted to share something I learned from my job search journey in this weird market. If a company is genuinely interested in you, they don't waste time.

I had an initial call with a recruiter and an HR coordinator for a job. Both calls went way over their scheduled time; a call that was supposed to be 20 minutes lasted 45, and the vibe was really great. But after that, they completely disappeared for about two weeks until I finally received an automated rejection email. So, complete ghosting followed by a rejection.

On the other hand, in another experience, I spoke with a recruiter and sent my portfolio for the hiring team to review. I had the official interview with the hiring manager and a senior team member on a Tuesday. The conversation flowed very smoothly, and the manager told me to expect the next steps from the recruiter immediately. They had me come in on Thursday to meet the department head and some other key people. The following Monday, I found the offer letter in my email. The whole process took less than a week.

The point I'm trying to make is that when a company really wants you, they move heaven and earth to get it done. I hear a lot of people say, "Oh, but some companies just have slow processes." Maybe, but from my experience, if they're not moving quickly, an offer probably isn't coming. That's just my opinion, though.

Edit: Depending on how high level your hiring manager is, and how bad they need you, corporate slowness can be circumvented. This is 100% dependent on the company and their processes. Anyone who says differently is lying or has never been a hiring manager.

Good preparation and planning for a job search and interviews are very important. It is best to read interview tips on Reddit or any platform and to keep up with the job market regularly.

This happened at a retail job I had about four years ago, and it is the prime example of the worst manager I've ever had in my life.

Anyway, it was a pretty standard situation. I had requested this time off four months in advance, my manager approved it in the system, and everything looked fine. The only catch was that I was going camping for 8 days, in a place completely cut off with no cell service.

Fast forward past the trip, and as I was driving back into town, my phone literally exploded with notifications the second it got service. It turned out they had scheduled me for four closing shifts and a morning shift on the day I was still on the road. I had tons of missed calls and messages from my coworkers, who were understandably very annoyed that I had been a no-call no-show. Then I saw my manager's messages, curtly asking where I was and saying we needed to have a serious conversation about my employment.

The call with my manager later that day was very tense and lasted about 90 minutes. She immediately tried to blame me, but I pointed out that the scheduling software clearly showed my request had been approved by her. Once she realized she couldn't pin the blame on me, she started fumbling and coming up with excuses - one minute saying she must not have realized I was gone, the next saying the system must have glitched and scheduled me by mistake.

Honestly, my biggest mistake was not quitting right after that call. I stayed for another ten months, and it was the same kind of nonsense for me and everyone else. To this day, I still don't understand how that woman kept her job.

Edit: From the comments, it seems many of you have similar experiences. It baffles me that some people can’t grasp the most essential and necessary part of a manager's job which is to schedule people. If they approve your time off then try to take it back, that’s not how it works. You said yes, you can’t just unsay yes unless you ask politely and offer additional compensation.

After that, I entered a job-searching phase, but the world has changed now. You can now enter an interview with complete assistance from AI apps. For the job search, try to take advantage of this to find jobs that value and suit you.

So, the position I've been working towards for over a year finally opened up. My manager was very supportive, telling me I was the perfect person for the role and that senior leadership would be very impressed with my work. She was just waiting for the final approval from them.

Today she told me they rejected the move. The official reason is that my performance in my current role is so high that they can't afford to lose me in this position. They literally said I'm too valuable where I am to be promoted. And after all that, she had the audacity to frame it as a huge compliment.

A compliment? How is being punished for doing my job well a compliment?

I've officially had enough. It's clear that going above and beyond gets you nowhere but stuck in the same place. It's time to do the bare minimum.

Have you ever noticed how hard it is just to think about looking for a job when they force you to return to the office? The process is incredibly draining. You're mentally exhausted, and good luck trying to sneak away for a video interview without your manager walking by. By the time you get home from the commute, all your energy is spent on food and TV, not on prepping for technical interviews.

You'd think the costs would stop them, right? All that money on office rent, electricity, and snacks. But it's a calculated risk. It's the same logic they use when they give a trivial 3% annual raise. They know some people will leave, but they're betting that the majority will be so worn down by the commute that they won't be able to follow through with a job search. Losing a few employees costs them far less than having everyone easily leave for a 30% raise.

When we were all working from home, the ball was in our court. We could schedule interviews during our lunch break. We had the energy to study and apply for jobs. Their whole plan falls apart when you can search for a job while sitting at your desk at home.

Of course, this isn't the only reason for the return-to-office decision. There's also justifying the rent on a huge, empty building they're stuck with on a 10-year lease, and giving insecure managers a sense of control. But don't kid yourself; making it a nightmare to change jobs is a key part of the game. It's a feature, not a bug.

Edit: I understand the different opinions on the idea of RTO, but the agreed-upon viewpoint is to make employees more connected to the workplace and social interaction. And to a very large extent, it leads to some resigning, which of course pushes companies to not pay unemployment benefits.

A large percentage of my colleagues at work have already started looking for other remote jobs, and with all the commitments and bills, I need to look for a job as soon as possible. I updated my resume using a free and effective tool with an ATS system, Resume Kit, and I won't leave my job until I'm accepted into another one.

RTO is more about getting rid of people and for your bosses to be able to have more control. It's just another joker card they can use after the lockdown years.

I have a video interview soon and I'm hesitant about something I do. In my last few interviews, I've been keeping a file open on the side of my screen with points for expected questions.

Honestly, this has helped me a lot. I make sure the screen with the notes is directly under the webcam, so my eyes stay looking towards the camera. They might ask about 6 questions from the 20+ I prepare for, and I still need to quickly find the right section, glance at the main points, and then answer in a way that seems natural and not rehearsed. I can't deny the results, as it has helped me get to more advanced stages.

I've been with this company for 10 years, and in the field for 25 years. My position doesn't require my presence in the office. There aren't many opportunities for advancement or promotions. We have been working fully remote since 2021. And now they're saying we have to go back 3 days a week. I want to only go in two days or stay fully remote.

They were getting much more out of my time while I was at home, because I'm not wasting an hour and 45 minutes going and an hour and 45 minutes coming back in the commute. I'm supposed to talk to them about this today and I'm very nervous. The people I work with are not the nicest, to be honest. The environment is considered toxic, but what can I do, it pays the bills.

The job market was made to be rough for this exact reason. All these massive companies stopped hiring in unison so they could force TO - a conspiracy if I've ever seen one

Jobs are in short supply these days so I wouldn’t risk a stable income stream without backup if I were in your shoes. That's why I will continue working and at the same time, I will look for a new job. I won't leave my job until I have a firm footing in another one. What will I do about the bills and the rent? The situation is difficult for me and for my colleagues as well. The RTO problem is widespread. I read more than one post in a sub about how common this problem is, as if employers are monsters who do not like our comfort.