Cierra Desmaratti, a 25-year-old actuarial analyst from Deloitte, says being laid off from her $90,000 job was a blessing in disguise. Despite the high salary, she felt like an outsider among peers in designer clothes and was physically and mentally drained by the long 11-hour shifts. She gained 9 kg and struggled with back pain. After poor feedback during her performance review and eventually being laid off, Desmaratti realized her job wasn’t worth the toll it took. She now works at Transamerica, enjoying better work-life balance.