Recent UK data suggests that around two-thirds of HR professionals are considering a move.

Burnout, workload pressure, stress, feeling undervalued and limited development opportunities consistently appear at the top of the list.

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At first glance, this can look like a retention issue.

But when you take a step back, it tells a more nuanced story.

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This is not about HR professionals being unable to cope.
It is about what happens when capable, conscientious people carry emotional and organisational responsibility for prolonged periods, often without the space to pause, reflect or realign.

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What is really happening beneath the surface

Burnout in HR rarely announces itself dramatically. It tends to arrive quietly.

You continue to deliver, you remain trusted, you show up every day.
Yet something begins to feel misaligned.

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Confidence starts to waver.
Energy levels dip.
Work that once felt purposeful begins to feel wearing.

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Thoughts of leaving emerge not because another role is particularly appealing, but because continuing to feel this way is no longer sustainable.

However, we carry on because leaving would feel like failing, until one day, we are left with no choice but to leave because we are burnt out.

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Why this feels personal

I recognise this pattern because I have lived it.

After more than twenty years in HR, I appeared successful on paper yet felt increasingly disconnected from myself. I worked harder, adapted more and quietly questioned whether this sense of strain was simply the reality of senior roles.

It was only when I stopped that I understood what was really happening.

I was not failing.
I was misaligned.

That realisation, and what followed, became the foundation of my coaching work and the reason I created the NooWay®.

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What I see in the HR leaders I work with

Many arrive describing experiences such as:

“I feel lost, yet I am expected to have the answers.”
“I am exhausted, but I can’t identify what needs to change.”
“I don’t want another job. I just don’t want to feel like this.”

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What shifts is not their capability.

It is their relationship with themselves.

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Through space, structured reflection and strengths-led work, confidence begins to return. Priorities become clearer.Decisions feel calmer and more intentional.

Some choose to stay in their roles.
Others decide to move on.
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What changes is that they no longer feel stuck. They know what they want andhave the confidence to strive for it now..

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If this feels familiar, a few helpful reflections

• Create genuine pause, not just time away from work.
• Identify precisely what is draining you, rather than attributing it to “work” in general.
• Reconnect with your strengths, not solely your responsibilities.
• Write down the times when you felt confident and recoonect to what you did differently then.
• View burnout as a system response, not a personal failing.
• Slow significant decisions so they are made from clarity, not exhaustion.

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Where the NooWay® fits

The NooWay® is a twelve-week coaching journey for senior HR professionals who feel stuck or depleted and want to reconnect with who they are, rebuild confidence and shape a career that feels right again.

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It does not push people towards leaving, nor encourage them to stay.
It supports them to choose what’s right for them, now.

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HR professionals spend years creating space for others.

These figures serve as a reminder that HR needs that space too, before burnout turns into resignation, and before confidence erodes any further.

The next NooWay® group programme starts on 26 February and is designed specifically for senior HR professionals who feel exhausted, misaligned or quietly questioning what comes next.

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Places are limited, and an early bird discount is available for those who enrol before 6 February.

If you know something needs to change but want to make that decision from clarity rather than fatigue, this is where that work begins.

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Find out more HERE