I am writing this as a little “get it off your chest” or “we're all in the same boat” moment.

Here is the short version of a long journey:

Once upon a time, I decided to focus my career path on HR. While working in an SME, I had the opportunity to build an HR department from scratch—me, admin, and payroll. I poured my own resources into studying CIPD Level 5 and getting accredited.

Then came the job hunt. Honestly, one of the most difficult periods of my life—applications, interviews, and a steady stream of “Thank you for your time, but…” emails. There were moments of self-pity, sure, but I held on to the hope that one day someone would say "yes."

And finally—they did.

I received an offer in the public sector with quadruple the staff to support. I was promised ER cases, exciting projects, system integrations—dreamland for someone who lives by “no task is too big.”

Then reality hit.

The company is solid, the team is lovely, but… I feel stuck. Underutilised. Like my potential is slowly gathering dust.

To give you a clearer picture of who I am: in my last job, my boss asked me to look at coding with the program ( not widely used, easier then Python, thank God for that).

I had no idea how to code, but because my manager was so passionate about it—and I saw the potential of what we could build for our little HR team—I rolled up my sleeves, learned the coding language, and figured out how to operate the system. That is just who I am.

You would think with that attitude, experience, and drive, getting back on the market would be straightforward. But here I am, two months in—same cycle, same inbox full of polite rejections: "Thank you for your time, but..."

So here is where I am at: how do I break this cycle?

Do I put more personal resources into a CIPD Level 7? Take the SHRM exam to broaden my appeal ? As a hands-on HR professional who learns fast, solves problems, and thrives on building things—what more can I do to make myself stand out again?

Rant over. If you have been here before, if you have felt stuck, if you have found a way forward—I would genuinely love to hear from you. Tips, tricks, advice… all welcome.