Why Taking Time to Switch Off This Summer Is the Responsible Thing to Do as a Leader – Yorkshire-based Executive Coach Shares Her Insight

“Switching off as a leader is the responsible thing to do.”

With summer holidays pending, this is a phrase that Executive Coach and Strategic Adviser Deborah Bulcock has been using frequently in conversations with clients – and one that often makes senior leaders pause.

Not because they disagree, but because it challenges a deeply embedded belief that being constantly available is a measure of commitment, ambition and success.

Deborah Bulcock is an ICF-accredited Executive Coach, Strategic Adviser and former banking director with more than 20 years’ experience in senior leadership roles across complex, high-pressure environments. Based on the North Yorkshire border, she is the Founder of Deborah Bulcock Coaching, an Executive Coaching and Strategic Advisory practice supporting senior leaders from FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 organisations, public sector bodies and fast-growth businesses.

Deborah works with senior leaders navigating pressure and uncertainty, whilst delivering results and leading change – helping them sustain high performance while building the resilience needed for long-term success.

Through her work with a broad variety of UK organisations, she has been encouraging leaders to view time away from work differently. Taking a break, creating space to think and properly switching off is not a selfish act; rather, it is a clear leadership responsibility that allows them to return with greater clarity, energy and perspective.

“Leaders can often feel that stepping away means they are letting people down, or that they are not doing enough,” says Deborah. “But actually, the opposite is true. If you want to lead well, drive results, make good decisions and support others in the process, you have to create the space to recharge and think clearly.”

With many senior leaders finding it harder than ever to disconnect, Deborah believes organisations must rethink how they enable consistent high performance in environments with relentless demands. She says: “Sustainable leadership performance isn’t just an individual choice, it’s a business necessity to be facilitated through culture and systems.”

As organisations review performance halfway through the calendar year, Deborah says the businesses that thrive in the months ahead will be those that recognise the connection between leadership effectiveness, resilience and wellbeing.
“Resilience isn’t about simply coping with more pressure,” she explains. “It’s about creating the conditions where leaders and organisations can perform consistently over the long term.”

Deborah’s perspective is shaped by more than two decades spent in senior banking leadership roles, where she led teams, transformation programmes and complex operations in demanding environments.

Her own experience of leadership pressure became the catalyst for a different approach. “I was ambitious and driven, and I genuinely loved the work,” she says. “But I also pushed myself hard for a long time without recognising the impact it was having.”

In 2012, after years of sustained pressure, Deborah experienced severe burnout. The experience forced her to stop and reassess what she wanted from her career and life. Deborah explains; “Burnout was one of the hardest experiences I’ve been through, but it also gave me the opportunity to question assumptions I’d never challenged before – including the belief that professional success only came in one form: climbing the corporate ladder, overworking, achieving recognition and reaching the next level.”

As she recovered, Deborah realised she didn’t need to walk away from everything she had learned, achieved and worked for. Instead, she could combine her leadership experience with her passion for helping people and create something new.

That journey led her to train as a Nutritional Therapist, extend her coaching accreditations, become a two-time author, and ultimately develop her hugely successful coaching and advisory practice.

Rather than leading within one organisation, Deborah now supports leaders across multiple sectors to deliver exceptional results, build high-performing teams and create healthier, more sustainable ways of working.

Eight years after launching Deborah Bulcock Coaching, the business continues to grow, supporting leaders from organisations such as; Barclays Bank, Aldermore Bank, the University of Leeds, the University of Manchester, Durham University, Hill Dickinson and Fletchers Solicitors.

Today, Deborah’s work focuses on helping leaders navigate career transitions, reset after challenging periods and act as strategic partners within their organisations.

“This isn’t textbook coaching,” she says. “It’s a side-by-side partnership. Sometimes I’m coaching, sometimes I’m challenging, sometimes I’m advising – but always with the aim of helping leaders think clearly, act decisively and perform sustainably.”

As summer approaches, Deborah’s message to leaders is clear: “Switching off is not stepping back from leadership – it’s at the heart of the responsibility to do it well.”

To find out more about Deborah and her work, visit: www.deborahbulcock.com