Books and gear that help during a search and a layoff — curated, not exhaustive. Some of the links here are affiliate links — buying through them may support unhired at no extra cost to you.
Books worth reading
What Color Is Your Parachute?
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The classic, regularly-updated job-hunting and career-change handbook.
Designing Your Life
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Stanford's design-thinking approach to figuring out what's next.
So Good They Can't Ignore You
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Cal Newport on building rare, valuable skills over chasing passion.
Never Eat Alone
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A practical playbook for networking without feeling slimy about it.
Cracking the Coding Interview
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The standard prep book if your search involves technical interviews.
Look & sound sharp on video
A solid 1080p webcam
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A real upgrade over most laptop cameras for video interviews.
A clip-on ring light
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Even, flattering lighting so you're not a silhouette on camera.
A USB microphone
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Clear audio matters more than video — easy way to sound professional.
Noise-cancelling headphones
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Focus during the search, and quiet on calls from anywhere.