About Beyond Cubicles
đ˘ #BeyondCubicles is a weekly LinkedIn series created by Carolina DâSouza, born out of her own experience transitioning from a corporate career to independent consulting. Since its launch in June 2024, the series has evolved into a platform that showcases the inspiring journeys of several founders who have redefined the traditional 9-to-5.
Through authentic narratives, #BeyondCubicles highlights themes of courage, resilience, and purpose. The stories feature individuals from diverse industriesâranging from tech and education to wellness and adventureâwho share their experiences of stepping away from conventional roles to pursue passion-driven careers.Â
⨠Note: All features in this series are unpaid and shared as a way to honor and amplify real stories of transformation.
After two decades in global HR, Natalie Cairns decided to rewrite the rules.
Her corporate career evolved into a movement she now calls âHR, Done Differentâ, her own playbook for change.
She realized the higher she rose, the further she drifted from what drove her. âI was spending more time fixing systems than helping people,â she says. âI didnât leave because I was unhappy; I knew I could do more good outside the system than within it.â
That conviction became the foundation of her work at HR for HR (nataliecairns.com), the company she founded in 2024. âMy business exists to upskill and support HR professionals, especially those in startups and SMEs who often have no one to turn to,â she says.
Through her P.L.A.Y. Formulaâ˘, she helps them build confidence, capability, and commercial impact at every stage of their career, from âSidelines to Captainâ, built on clarity, data, and culture.
The leap did come with fear. âAfter years of being the go-to inside big organizations, suddenly youâre building from zero, no logo or corporate name behind you, no team, no safety net, and itâs humbling and terrifying,â she says.
The fear of irrelevance was real, but her purpose kept her grounded.
âCertainty isnât the same as security. The corporate world felt certain, but my purpose felt more secure, and that shift in thinking changed everything.â
Natalie had to stop being the fixer and start being the founder. This unlearning allowed creativity and risk. âEverything comes from doing, not deciding,â she says.
Validation was when a client told her, âYouâre the person I call when I have no one else to turn to.â That was the moment she knew her purpose found its place.
Today, fulfillment is choosing impact over approval. âI stopped hiding behind job titles and started leading with my why,â she says.
Also the COO of Unstressable, founded by Mo Gawdat and Alice Law, she helps organizations strengthen their capacity for stress management and resilience.
As she continues to build her own HR venture, she does so with steady conviction, supported and cheerled by her close friends and family.
Originally from Manchester, she calls the UAE home. âIt gave me space and speed to do what I do best: challenge the norm, connect cultures, and build people strategies that work in the real world,â she says.