The first round of sleepless nights came before I handed in my notice. The second round came after I'd actually left.
May 2025 arrived with no salary hitting the bank, no packed diary, and far too much time to think at 3 a.m. I'd gone from ten years of structure at BPEC to staring at a blank calendar and wondering if I'd made the biggest mistake of my life.
The doubts were relentless: What if no one wants to work with me? What if I've misjudged the timing? What if I've walked away from security for nothing?
But then came the first “green shoots.” A phone call here, an enquiry there. A couple of small pieces of consultancy work landed on the desk. Nothing big, but enough to remind me that people valued my experience and there was space for what I had to offer.
It wasn't a flood of work — not yet — but it was hope. And sometimes, in those early days, hope is enough to keep you moving.