Burnt Out, Boxed In, and Quietly Looking for a Way Out

Photo by Anne Nygård on Unsplash

Burnt Out, Boxed In, and Quietly Looking for a Way Out

A few years ago, I was working in a software consultancy, stuck on a team with a client who, despite spending a huge amount of money on “change”, was completely unwilling to actually change.

I’d seen versions of this before, but this one pushed me to the edge.

Every meeting felt like shouting into the wind.
Every metric I suggested got buried under politics.
And as the only woman in the room most of the time, I was routinely overlooked, or flat-out ignored.

Something in me started to break down, not in a dramatic way, but in a slow, grinding kind of way. I was doing good work. I cared about quality. I believed in the potential of the people around me. But I couldn’t help feeling boxed in, burned out, and like I was slowly becoming invisible.

The idea of starting something of my own felt distant, like something other people did.
But I was desperate for something that actually aligned with how I think and how I work.

That’s when I stumbled across a training from someone named Jeff Walker.

He talked about launching, not in the flashy startup sense, but in a more grounded way.
What stuck with me was something he called the Seed Launch, the idea that you can test a course or idea with a small audience, get feedback, get paid, and build as you go.

It was the first time someone had given structure to what I’d always suspected:
That you don’t need to quit your job or build a massive platform to start.
You just need a simple way to test your idea and see if it resonates.

I didn’t jump in straight away.
In fact, I didn’t even build the spinning course I originally imagined.
But the idea stayed with me.

Eventually, I used the Seed Launch method to sell a course on Shift Left in software testing. I only had about 300 people on my email list. I sold 6 seats. It wasn’t flashy. But it was the first time in a long time that I felt momentum, autonomy, and real engagement with people who actually wanted what I had to teach.

It changed something in me. It made me realise:

I don’t need to wait for permission.
I can start with what I have.
I can build something of my own and build it on my terms.

If you’ve ever had that low-level hum in the back of your mind, the one that whispers “there has to be more than this”, I want you to know: you’re not imagining it.

There is more.
There’s a way to work that’s aligned with who you are.
There’s a way to share your experience and expertise in a way that helps others and gives you the freedom to breathe again.

Curious? Let me keep you posted.

If this story resonated and you’ve been wondering whether you could ever build something of your own, I’m putting together a short update list for something I think you’ll want to see.

Click here to get on the early interest list →  (Just a light tap on the shoulder when the free training goes live.)