Why now might be the smartest time to recalibrate, even if you’re not planning a move.
There’s a quiet trend I’m hearing from multiple sources right now.
Not dramatic exits or bold reinventions, but something more subtle.
Senior leaders who are holding steady on the surface but are feeling off-kilter underneath.
Roles that look impressive on LinkedIn, but leave the person wondering, “Is this it?”
Leaders who aren’t in crisis, but who’ve lost touch with what used to give them confidence, direction, and drive.
And they’re not alone.
The latest ONS data shows job-to-job moves in the UK have dropped by over 30% year-on-year. People are staying put not because they’re fulfilled, but because the market feels uncertain. Hiring is cautious. Change feels risky. And so, even the most capable leaders hesitate.
They wait for things to settle, for clarity to return, for a better moment to come.
But here’s the reality: that moment rarely announces itself.
What happens instead is drift
This is the pattern I see again and again, especially at senior levels:
- A nagging sense that something’s not quite right
- Work starts to feel heavier than it should
- Personal energy dips, even when the workload hasn’t changed
- Decisions take longer. Conviction fades. Confidence dulls
And because nothing is obviously “wrong,” it’s easy to push through.
Until the cost to performance, well-being, or home life becomes harder to ignore.
This isn’t about making big moves. It’s about regaining clarity.
One of the most valuable things leaders can do, especially in uncertain times, is to pause long enough to ask the questions that don’t fit neatly into a calendar invite:
- What really matters to me now?
- What’s the thing that doesn’t feel quite right, even if I can’t fully name it yet?
- How big a deal is it? What impact is it having on me, my work, and the people around me?
Naming these things helps.
Not because it always leads to dramatic change, often it doesn’t, but because it allows you to work more intentionally within the reality you’re in, instead of waiting until things are better.
In fact, this process often reinvigorates the role you’re already in.
By reconnecting with your own sense of meaning to your standards, your values, your purpose and you can shift how you show up without needing to shift organisations.
That’s one of the most overlooked benefits of real coaching.
It doesn’t push you out of your role.
It helps you fully inhabit it again.
Clarity isn’t a luxury. It’s leadership hygiene.
I understand the hesitation.
When the market’s shaky and teams are stretched, taking time to reflect can feel self-indulgent or worse, risky.
But here’s something I often ask people to consider:
Why is it easier to spend on a new car, something guaranteed to depreciate, than to invest in your growth?
Why are we happy to cover the cost of a designer handbag, a concert with priority entry, or another big Friday night out… but when it comes to our development, we wait for someone else to fund it, or file it under “maybe next year”?
And just to be clear: this doesn’t have to cost the same as a car!
It might cost the same as a handbag, depending on your taste of course.
A bit of humour, maybe, but the point stands.
Clarity isn’t a reward. It’s a responsibility. Especially at the top.
You don’t need to change everything.
But you do need to know what’s changing in you – before it starts making choices on your behalf.
So what does it mean to reclaim your edge?
It’s not about being louder or tougher.
It’s about real alignment.
Knowing what you stand for.
Noticing when your behaviours are drifting from your beliefs.
Making space to get intentional again in how you lead, how you show up, and what you’re working towards.
That’s the edge.
Not a performance.
Not a strategy deck.
But the quiet reassurance that lets you lead with purpose when everything else is noisy.
If any of this resonates, you’re not behind.
You’re right on time to pause, reflect and reconnect with what matters.
Because the edge you had isn’t gone.
It just needs reclaiming.
Craig Pattison FCIPD
Executive Coach | Former Chief People & Technology Officer
Founder, Elevate Executive Coaching
This kind of work often draws on Root-to-Result™ – a leadership framework I’ve developed to help senior leaders reconnect with what really drives them, and lead with greater clarity and intention.
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