Fired after 3 years for “underperformance”, how screwed am I?
I just got let go from my SWE job and I’m honestly still trying to process it.
I was there about 3 years. Recently got put on a PIP, which caught me off guard because my manager had been telling me I was doing fine up until that point. I’m not saying I was perfect, I definitely had areas I could’ve been better in and I tried my best to get on top of them while I was on the PIP, but the whole thing escalated really fast and then I was out.
Now I’m sitting here wondering how much this screws me going forward.
How do I even explain this in interviews without it sounding like I’m making excuses? Is “it wasn’t a good fit” enough, or do people see right through that?
Also, realistically, how much does getting fired for performance hurt my chances of getting another SWE job? I’m worried this is going to follow me around more than I expect.
I don’t feel like I’m incapable of doing the work, but clearly something didn’t click where I was.
If anyone’s been through something similar and came out the other side, I’d really appreciate hearing how you handled it.