The layoffs are impossible to ignore. A new Mercer study of 825 C-suite leaders found that 99% of CEOs expect AI to lead to at least some headcount reduction in the next two years. Employers announced just over 97,000 job cuts in May 2026 alone, the highest monthly total since 2020, with roughly 40% of employers citing AI as the primary reason.
Entry-level workers face the sharpest risk. A separate Oliver Wyman study found that the share of CEOs planning to reduce junior roles jumped from 17% in 2025 to 43% this year. Meta, Pinterest, Dow, and Amazon have all pointed to AI when announcing recent layoffs.
The window to act is now, before the pink slip hits your desk.
If your work lives inside a company’s internal systems, it’s invisible to your next employer. Start documenting it now. Create case studies of projects you’ve led, problems you’ve solved, and results you’ve driven. Host them on a personal website or a LinkedIn featured section. Designers, writers, developers, and marketers all benefit from this, but so do project managers, analysts, and operations professionals. Concrete proof of impact is harder to replace than a job title.
Don’t wait for a layoff to test the freelance market. Platforms like Upwork, Fiverr, and Toptal let you take on small projects in your area of expertise while still employed. Even one or two clients builds three things simultaneously: income diversity, a portfolio, and proof that your skills have market value beyond your current employer. A side income stream can be the difference between a manageable transition and a financial crisis.
Most jobs are never posted publicly. Identify 20 companies you’d want to work for and reach out directly to hiring managers or department heads on LinkedIn. Keep it brief: who you are, one specific thing you admire about their work, and one concrete way you could contribute. Response rates are low, but the competition is nearly zero compared to an active posting. Done consistently, it builds relationships before urgency forces your hand.
Financial breathing room is your most underrated career asset. Review every recurring bill, subscriptions, insurance, memberships. On home and auto insurance alone, comparison platforms can surface savings of hundreds to over a thousand dollars annually just by shopping around. Lower fixed costs extend how long your emergency fund lasts if income stops.
Personal finance expert Suze Orman has been direct on this point: “Don’t go fooling yourself, ‘It’s okay, I can charge on a credit card, I can do this.’ You should have at least eight months. Not six months, not three months, I’d like to see you have eight months to one year.”
A high-yield savings account earning 3–4% APY is a practical place to park that cushion, far better than a standard checking account while keeping the money accessible.
Rental income, dividend-paying investments, or real estate crowdfunding platforms that let you invest with as little as $100 can generate cash flow that doesn’t depend on your employment status. The goal isn’t to get rich, it’s to reduce the pressure on your paycheck so that losing it isn’t catastrophic.
CEOs are moving fast. Just 32% of executives surveyed by Mercer believe their workforce can currently combine human and machine capabilities optimally, yet nearly two-thirds say redesigning work around automation will drive the greatest return on investment. That gap is where layoffs happen.
The workers who survive this wave won’t necessarily be the most senior or the most experienced. They’ll be the ones who made themselves visible, diversified their income, and lowered their financial exposure before they were forced to.
The best time to prepare was last year. The second best time is today.
