If you’re tired, stressed, and juggling a million things, the idea of finding a new role or switching jobs can feel depressing rather than like a move towards something better.
One client I worked with a few years ago was in exactly that place. She was running a large team in a high-pressure organisation, working under a senior leader with a challenging, rush-driven style where everything needed doing now, often with little awareness of priorities or how overloaded the team was.
She was exhausted due to long days, broken sleep, nonstop meetings, and a three-year-old at home who needed her full attention.
When she first came to coaching, her goal was to manage stress and avoid burnout. But within a month or two, once we’d created some headspace and moments of calm, it became clear she wanted to leave. She just couldn’t yet see what she was going towards.
Her nervous system was still in overdrive, and even thinking about job hunting triggered another spike of stress:
- What if I can’t find anything better?
- What if I have to take a pay cut?
- What if I leave and it’s just more of the same?
… not to mention when she’d find the time or energy to apply and interview around an already packed schedule.
And this is the thing about stress, fear, and burnout: they shrink your world and they narrow your perspective, making it harder to imagine something better – and for some, even to believe you’re worthy of it!
Creating Space First
As I said, we began our work together addressing stress and burnout, which is also essential if you’re job searching from a depleted place. We built in short, consistent practices to help regulate her nervous system and reclaim small moments of calm in her week… and from there, her clarity returned.
She then realised that while she could reduce stress to a degree, the environment and culture she was in simply wouldn’t let up enough for her to live, work, and feel the way she really wanted to. That’s when we began exploring a move.
Getting Clear on What “Better” Actually Means
From that calmer place, we looked at what she really wanted:
- A values-led organisation with purpose behind the work.
- A culture of respect and trust.
- A role she could shape and a life outside it.
- A workplace where being a parent wasn’t a disadvantage.
- Leadership measured by presence and integrity, not presenteeism.
Once we’d clarified what mattered and anchored the belief that it was possible, she began job hunting from that place: grounded, clear, and optimistic.
Within four to five weeks of applying and interviewing, she was offered a role that ticked every box. In fact, it was better than she’d imagined. During the interview, the Head of HR said unprompted:
“We pride ourselves on a culture of trust, flexibility, and wellbeing. We trust our people to get the work done – we’re not interested in monitoring your hours.”
It wasn’t a flashy job title and there was no big salary jump (in fact she actually took a slight pay cut), but she told me she’d never felt more certain about a decision. She was choosing from clarity and confidence, not fear and burnout.
And Then What Happened?
And here’s the part that still makes me smile: I had a gut feeling at the time that the money would follow and that in a culture like that, where her strengths and values were aligned, she’d thrive.
Three years on, she’s had two promotions and pay rises. She’s now in a position where she’s not just shaping her role – she’s helping shape the future of the organisation (and, to some degree, her wider industry). She’s built a life where work fuels her, rather than drains her.
Start As You Mean to Go On
There’s one more key element to the story, and to the outcome, that I haven’t touched on in the previous two articles:
It’s not just about landing the “perfect” job on paper – the mindset you cultivate during the search also means you’re far more likely to step into the role with more clarity and confidence around:
- How you want to shape it.
- How you want to show up.
- What boundaries you’ll protect.
- What kind of team culture you’ll help create.
- And what kind of leader or colleague you want to be.
This combination of clarity, mindset, and ownership is so powerful. It’s the difference between taking whatever’s available… and finding and creating a role that works for you.
Looking for Support?
If you’re currently looking for your next step, I support individuals to move from stress and self-doubt into clarity and confidence, so you can find (and shape) a role that truly fits. Get in touch if you’d like to explore coaching.
If you’re part of an organisation going through change or redundancy, I also offer structured support for affected employees, helping them navigate the transition with clarity and confidence and the tools to secure their next role.
Email: info@katehorwood.com, and forward this to someone who might benefit.
Kate x
