UX designer, OOUX practitioner, survivor of nine layoffs in fifteen years
I didn't set out to be fired nine times. I set out to solve problems.
Over fifteen years as a UX designer in tech, I worked for startups, government contractors, and Fortune 100 companies. I designed for financial institutions like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. I taught as an adjunct instructor. I got OOUX certified and applied those frameworks to everything from product strategy to workplace communication.
And at every job, the same pattern emerged: I'd identify systemic problems. I'd speak up. I'd propose solutions. And eventually, I'd be labeled a "bad fit" and shown the door.
After the ninth layoff, I stopped asking what was wrong with me and started asking what was wrong with the system.
Organizations hire problem-solvers, then eliminate them when systemic issues persist. Being labeled "difficult" or "not a culture fit" often means you identified dysfunction that leadership would prefer to ignore.
The scapegoat economy depends on isolation. NDAs and severance agreements purchase silence, preventing workers from recognizing patterns. When you can't talk about what happened, you can't organize. You can't see that you're not alone.
Financial independence—built over twenty years through careful investment—gave me the freedom to maintain integrity. When getting fired doesn't mean losing your home, you can afford to tell the truth.
I'm finishing my memoir, Bad Fit, which reframes workplace trauma as evidence of systemic dysfunction rather than personal failure. I'm also building halftank.com, a consulting practice for senior engineers and product managers who've been labeled "difficult" for identifying organizational problems.
The goal isn't to help you fit into broken systems. It's to help you recognize dysfunction early, maintain your integrity, and build alternatives that actually work.