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Let me guess – you're lying awake at 3 AM fantasising about handing in your resignation, walking out of that office, and never looking back. The job that once excited you now feels like a prison, and changing careers seems like the only way to escape.
I get it. I've been there, and so have most of the high-achieving women I work with. When burnout hits, our first instinct is often to run. New job, new company, fresh start – problem solved, right?
Well, not exactly. And before you update that LinkedIn profile or start browsing job boards, let me share something that might save you months of frustration and disappointment.
The Hard Truth About Job-Hopping and Burnout
Here's what I've learned after working with countless women who thought a new job would fix their burnout, most of the time, you end up taking your burnout with you.
Think about it – if the root cause of your burnout is how you approach work, how you set boundaries, or how you respond to stress, changing your environment won't change those patterns.
It's like moving to a new house because your current one is messy. If you don't change your cleaning habits, the new house will be messy too within a few months.
The "Grass is Always Greener" Trap
When you're burned out, everything about your current situation looks terrible, and everything about that potential new job looks amazing. But here's the thing, you're not seeing clearly when you're in burnout mode.
Your brain is in survival mode, which means:
- You're focusing on everything that's wrong with your current situation
- You're idealising what a new job could offer
- You're not thinking clearly about what you actually need to feel better
- You're making decisions from a place of desperation rather than clarity
I've seen women leave perfectly good jobs only to find themselves in the exact same burnout cycle six months later, wondering why they're feeling just as exhausted and overwhelmed as before.
Why Job-Hopping Often Backfires
Beyond the obvious career risks (like looking unstable to future employers), there are some deeper issues with using job changes to solve burnout:
You're Avoiding the Real Work
The uncomfortable truth? Most burnout isn't really about your job, it's about how you relate to work, stress, and your own worth.
If you're a perfectionist who can't say no, takes on too much, and ties your self-worth to your productivity, those patterns will follow you wherever you go.
You Miss the Learning Opportunity
Burnout is actually information. It's your body and mind telling you that something needs to change. When you immediately jump to a new job, you miss the chance to understand what that something is.
You Might Be Running from Growth
Sometimes what feels like burnout is actually the discomfort of being challenged to grow. Not all workplace stress is bad stress, some of it is the stretch that helps you develop new skills and capabilities.
The Perimenopause Factor
If you're a woman in your 40s or 50s, there's another layer to consider. Hormonal changes during perimenopause can make work stress feel more intense and recovery more difficult.
What might have been manageable in your 30s now feels overwhelming. But changing jobs won't change your hormones – and you might find yourself struggling in a new environment that doesn't understand or accommodate your changing needs.
This is especially important to consider because many women in this life stage are also dealing with increased family responsibilities, aging parents, and identity shifts that have nothing to do with their actual job.
What to Try Before You Quit
Before you hand in your resignation, consider these alternatives:
Have the Conversation
Talk to your manager about what's not working. You might be surprised by how willing they are to make adjustments, especially if you're a valued employee.
Explore Internal Options
Could you transfer to a different department? Take on different responsibilities? Work from home more often?
Set Better Boundaries
This is often the real issue. Can you stop checking emails after hours? Say no to non-essential projects? Take your lunch break?
Address Your Patterns
Look at how you're contributing to your own burnout. Are you taking on too much? Saying yes when you mean no? Working harder instead of smarter?
The Inner Work You're Probably Avoiding
Here's the part nobody wants to hear, sometimes the problem isn't your job – it's your relationship with work itself.
I see this all the time with high-achieving women. They have patterns like:
- Tying their self-worth to their productivity
- Feeling guilty when they're not working
- Taking on everyone else's problems
- Never feeling like they've done "enough"
- Using work to avoid dealing with other life issues
These patterns don't magically disappear when you change jobs. They follow you like a shadow until you do the inner work to address them.
When Changing Jobs Actually Makes Sense
Don't get me wrong, sometimes changing jobs is absolutely the right call. Here are the situations where it might be:
- Your workplace is genuinely toxic or abusive
- Your values are fundamentally misaligned with the company
- There's no room for growth or change in your current role
- You've tried everything else, and nothing has improved
- You've done the inner work and know exactly what you need in a new role
The key difference? You're making the decision from a place of clarity rather than desperation.
The Real Solution to Workplace Burnout
Here's what actually works for lasting burnout recovery:
Understanding what's driving your burnout patterns at a deeper level. This often involves:
- Identifying the subconscious beliefs that keep you overworking
- Learning to set boundaries that actually stick
- Developing a healthier relationship with productivity and worth
- Managing stress in ways that work with your changing body and life stage
This is especially crucial if you're navigating perimenopause, where your stress tolerance and recovery needs are different than they used to be.
Your Next Step
If you're seriously considering a job change because of burnout, I encourage you to pause. Not forever, just long enough to get clear on what's really driving your exhaustion and overwhelm.
The strategies I use with clients help you understand whether your burnout is about your job or about deeper patterns that will follow you wherever you go. We work on addressing the root causes so that whatever decision you make, staying or going, comes from a place of clarity rather than desperation.
Because here's what I know, you can love your work again. You can feel energised and engaged. But it rarely happens by changing your external circumstances – it happens by changing your internal relationship with work, stress, and your own worth.
Thinking of quitting your job to escape burnout? Before you make any major career decisions, let's explore what's really driving your exhaustion. As a clinical hypnotherapist specialising in burnout recovery for high-achieving women, I help you get clear on whether the problem is your job or deeper patterns that need addressing first.
Follow Me for honest insights on perimenopause, burnout recovery, stress management and weight loss and how to keep thriving when life throws you curveballs.
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