“There has to be a different way for me to use my magic in the world. My magic can't keep mopping up messes that are created by ridiculous decisions like this.” When HR Director Emma Djemil hit a moment of ‘enough is enough’ she knew it was time for her skills, energy, passions to be directed elsewhere. Stuck cleaning up the messes of others, she knew it was time for a big change. In this episode, Emma talks about what it really takes to walk away from a toxic job, where to find the drive for something new, and why humour is such a powerful t...
“There has to be a different way for me to use my magic in the world. My magic can't keep mopping up messes that are created by ridiculous decisions like this.”
When HR Director Emma Djemil hit a moment of ‘enough is enough’ she knew it was time for her skills, energy, passions to be directed elsewhere.
Stuck cleaning up the messes of others, she knew it was time for a big change. In this episode, Emma talks about what it really takes to walk away from a toxic job, where to find the drive for something new, and why humour is such a powerful tool for getting through it all.
Emma shares her honest story about leaving corporate life, how she discovered her own voice online, and what helped her put herself first.
Here are the highlights:
04:00 Emma’s “closing door” moment – when enough was enough
08:10 From rage to purpose: the real reasons that ignite career change
17:25 The myth of imposter syndrome
24:30 Why your uniqueness is your superpower
26:04 Not everyone has to be “your people” (and why that’s liberating)
33:00 Humour as resilience: using comedy to survive (and thrive)
The things that helped Emma navigate change:
Music: “Salute” by Little Mix (and some Erasure for that retro energy!)
Book: “The Fix: Overcome the Invisible Barriers That Are Holding Women Back at Work” by Dr. Michelle King
One piece of advice:
“Be willing to try and have faith you’ll be okay, whatever the outcome. If it’s not okay, it’s not the end.”
About Emma:
As the Founder of The HR Club (a no-BS community of over 100 women) and creator of The HR Big Meet (an annual conference that actually focuses on women’s wellbeing instead of just adding “resilience” to their to-do list), Emma is on a mission to make work suck less.
She could tell you about her 18 years in HR, her Certificate in Applied Neuroscience, or her accreditation as a Brain and Behaviour Change Practitioner, all of which are very serious and important. But what really matters is this: Emma helps women in leadership be sustainably unstoppable, so they can have maximum impact without burning out, selling their souls, or crying in the office toilets (we’ve all been there).
Slightly sweary, highly sarcastic, and allergic to corporate nonsense, Emma believes that no one should feel like they have to put on a “work version” of themselves to be taken seriously. Because the real you, the one who sings in the car, laughs at inappropriate moments, and maybe drops the occasional F-bomb, is exactly the leader the world needs.
She lives in Chartham, Kent, with her husband and their seven-year-old daughter, who reminds her daily that joy isn’t something you schedule, it’s something you demand, preferably while wearing a tiara.
Connect with Emma:
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/emmadjemil
Find out more: beunstoppable.uk
About your host Eleanor Tweddell:
Eleanor supports individuals, teams and organisations through change. Whether it’s 121 coaching or large scale organisational change through communications and training. Eleanor’s work centres around how we, as humans, work through change, embracing the messy bits, the role of playing, with the aim to see opportunity. “Too often we get stuck in the change happening to us, when just through that next door is an exciting next chapter.”
Eleanor is the founder of Another Door, and Get-Recommended.com and the author of Why losing your job could be the best thing that ever happened to you.
Connect with Eleanor:
Instagram:instagram/anotherdooruk
LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/eleanor-tweddell/
Website: www.another-door-opens.com
Produced by winteraudio.co.uk
