How Perspective and Firm Boundaries Keep Procurement Professionals Resilient

Procurement Reimagined host Daniel Barnes recently asked guest Rachel Hassall, Board Member at RiteSize,  to share the best advice she’s ever received. Her answer - along with a second mantra she lives by - offers a masterclass in staying calm, simple and healthy in a high-pressure profession.

1. Use The Mantra That Puts Everything in Perspective

In procurement, pressure can mount quickly: tight deadlines, tense negotiations, spiralling projects. But sometimes the most powerful tool in your stress management toolkit is perspective. 

Rachel’s Unilever mentor reminded her that most procurement problems aren’t life-or-death. When a project spirals or a stakeholder panics, asking “Is this really more than soap?” instantly deflates stress and restores clarity. 

“I was desperately upset about something … and he said, it’s just soap. … I say it’s just soap all the time.”

2. Set Boundaries That Keep You “Career-Young”

Procurement can be a demanding career. It's fast-paced, high-stakes, and full of conflicting priorities. But staying sharp, resilient and energised doesn’t have to mean burning the candle at both ends.

“Gabrielle Union always said water and boundaries. Those two things are the most important thing to stay young … you will stay young in your procurement career if you drink water and have boundaries.”

• Water: Schedule short breaks; refuelling boosts focus and decision-making.
• Boundaries: Protect deep-work slots, decline meetings without a clear agenda and set response windows for e-mails.

3. Choose Simplicity Over Complexity

According to Rachel, many procurement headaches are avoidable and often self-inflicted. Complexity creeps in when teams overcomplicate the basics or try to tackle legal nuances alone. Her advice? Keep it simple.

“As long as you have a good legal person, you can keep life super simple … let the lawyers do the complex things. Everything else is real simple.” 

Draft a clear scope. Loop in Legal for the clauses that need precision. Then focus on delivery. Simplicity isn’t just efficient, it’s strategic.

4. Quick Exercises to Stay Grounded

Procurement can pull you in a hundred directions at once. Staying grounded isn’t about doing less, it’s about staying clear on what matters. These quick exercises are designed to cut through the noise, restore perspective, and protect your bandwidth.

• Soap Test: Before escalating an issue, ask “Is this really more than soap?” If not, adjust expectations and move on.
• Boundary Audit: List one task you can delegate, defer or drop this week to reclaim focus.
• Legal Gate: Route only truly complex matters to your legal partner; handle the basics yourself.

Conclusion

“It’s just soap” and “water & boundaries” sound simple, yet they’re powerful safeguards against burnout and over-complication.

Adopt these mantras, let Legal tackle the hard clauses and keep procurement, and your wellbeing, refreshingly straightforward.

Listen to the full discussion on Procurement Reimagined →