Job search plan after a layoff: a structured 30-day guide

Before day one: handle the immediate admin

Before you open a single job board, sort out the paperwork. In the US, file for unemployment insurance within the first week; most states require you to file before your last day or within seven days of separation. In Canada, apply for Employment Insurance (EI) on Service Canada as soon as possible because there is a one-week waiting period. In the UK, apply for Universal Credit or New Style JSA online within days of leaving. In Australia, register with Centrelink for JobSeeker Payment and note the assets test and waiting periods.

Collect your separation agreement, final pay stub, and any non-compete or non-solicitation clauses. Read those clauses carefully before you apply anywhere. If you have a non-compete, note the geography and duration so you do not waste applications on roles it would block.

• File for government benefits in your country within the first week
• Read any non-compete or non-solicitation clauses in your separation agreement
• Confirm your health insurance end date and explore COBRA (US), provincial plans (Canada), or NHS continuation (UK)
• Set a monthly budget based on your severance and savings runway

Week one (days 1 to 7): stabilise and set your target

Spend the first week defining what you are looking for before you apply to anything. Unfocused applications waste time and produce weak cover letters.

Write down three to five job titles you are qualified for right now, not stretch roles. List the industries where those titles appear most often. Decide on your location constraints: fully remote, hybrid within commuting distance, or open to relocation. If you are open to relocation, note any visa or work-authorisation limits early.

1. Day 1: Update your LinkedIn headline and open-to-work settings (visible to recruiters only if you prefer discretion)
2. Day 2: Write a two-sentence professional summary you can paste into messages and cover letters
3. Day 3: List 20 target companies in your sector and check their careers pages
4. Day 4: Refresh your resume with your most recent role, metrics, and correct dates
5. Day 5: Ask two or three former colleagues to be references and brief them on what you are targeting
6. Day 6: Set up job alerts on LinkedIn, Indeed, and one niche board for your field
7. Day 7: Review your week and set a daily application target for week two (a realistic starting point is three to five applications per day)

Week two (days 8 to 14): start applying with a system

A system prevents the common mistake of applying to 50 jobs in a panic and then losing track of all of them. Use a simple spreadsheet with columns for company, role, date applied, source, status, and next action.

Aim for quality over volume. A tailored resume and cover letter that address the specific requirements in a posting will outperform a generic one sent to 30 companies. Read each posting fully before applying. Note the required skills, the seniority signals in the language, and whether the role is actually in your location or time zone.

Spend 30 minutes each morning on outreach. Message one or two people in your network who work at target companies. Keep it short: say you are exploring new roles, mention the specific team or function, and ask if they have 15 minutes to share their perspective. Do not ask them to refer you in the first message.

• Track every application in a spreadsheet from day one
• Tailor your resume summary and skills section to each posting
• Send two to three networking messages per day, not more
• Follow up on any recruiter messages within 24 hours

Week three (days 15 to 21): deepen outreach and prepare for interviews

By week three you should have 15 to 30 applications out. Some will have gone quiet, a few will have moved forward. Shift roughly half your daily time toward interview preparation so you are not caught unprepared when a call comes.

Prepare answers to the five questions that appear in almost every first-round screen: tell me about yourself, why did you leave your last role, what are you looking for, describe a challenge you solved, and what are your salary expectations. Write out your answers using the STAR format (Situation, Task, Action, Result) and practise them out loud, not just in your head.

For salary, research current ranges on Levels.fyi (tech roles), Glassdoor, LinkedIn Salary, or Seek (Australia). In the US and Canada, many states and provinces now require employers to post salary ranges, so check the posting first. In the UK, check the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings for benchmarks by occupation.

1. Day 15: Write STAR answers for your top five interview questions
2. Day 16 to 18: Do one mock interview per day, recorded on your phone so you can review it
3. Day 19: Research salary ranges for each role you have applied to
4. Day 20: Follow up on applications submitted more than seven days ago with a one-line email
5. Day 21: Reassess your target list and drop any companies that have shown no activity in three weeks

Week four (days 22 to 30): follow through and adjust

Week four is about closing loops. Follow up on every live application. If a recruiter has gone quiet after a phone screen, one polite follow-up email is appropriate. Keep it to two sentences: confirm your continued interest and ask if there is anything else they need from you.

If you have not had a first-round interview by day 25, something in your approach needs to change. The most common causes are a resume that does not match the posting closely enough, a job title mismatch where you are applying above or below your level, or a location or visa issue the employer cannot accommodate. Review five recent rejections or non-responses and look for a pattern.

By day 30, set targets for the next 30 days based on what you have learned. Most job searches in the US, Canada, the UK, and Australia take between six and twelve weeks for professional roles, so day 30 is often the midpoint, not the finish line. Adjust your targets, not your standards.

• Send one follow-up per application after seven to ten days of silence
• Review rejection patterns and adjust your resume or target list accordingly
• Keep networking even when interviews are in progress
• Set a clear decision rule: if you receive an offer, how long will you wait before accepting?

Daily schedule that keeps the search sustainable

Treating the job search like a full-time job sounds right in theory but leads to burnout within two weeks. A two-to-four-hour focused block each morning is more productive than eight scattered hours.

A workable daily structure: spend the first 30 minutes reviewing new job alerts and adding strong matches to your tracker. Spend the next 60 to 90 minutes applying, tailoring, and writing. Spend 30 minutes on outreach and follow-ups. Use the afternoon for research, interview prep, or skill development. Take at least one full day off per week.

1. 30 minutes: review new alerts and score matches
2. 60 to 90 minutes: apply and tailor materials
3. 30 minutes: outreach and follow-ups
4. Afternoon: research, prep, or learning