The Phoenix Conversations

Lucy McCarraher
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Life doesn’t always go to plan, but reinvention is where the real magic happens. I’m Lucy McCarraher- author, entrepreneur, and serial reinventor, and in The Phoenix Conversations, I talk to people who’ve turned collapse into courage and setbacks into spectacular comebacks. From rebuilding careers and relationships to rediscovering purpose and passion, these are stories of second chances and powerful new beginnings. Whether you’re craving a fresh start or standing on the edge of change, this podcast reminds you it’s never too late to rise again - because your next chapter could be your best one yet.

  1. 3 DAYS AGO

    Leader By Nature With Jude Jennsion

    In this episode, I’m joined by Jude Jennison, Founder of Leaders by Nature, who empowers leadership teams to drive business growth and navigate change with confidence. After 17 years at IBM, where she managed a $1 billion budget and led UK, European and global teams, Jude stepped into a very different kind of leadership work. Today, she partners with blue chip companies and fast growing entrepreneurial businesses, working alongside her herd of horses to transform nonverbal leadership and team behaviours. A bestselling author of three leadership books and host of the podcast Leading through Uncertainty, Jude shares how fear, courage and presence shape the way we lead. Highlights: (01:27) From Nottingham to IBM, and 17 roles in 17 years (08:22) The women’s conference in Rome that changed everything (10:39) Taking a year off, stripping back identity, and rebuilding from scratch (18:22) Overcoming fear of horses, and the five minute lesson in true leadership (23:48) Buying a horse before knowing what she was doing, and not giving up (34:51) Reinvention advice, trust life, take the step, and build your support Get in touch with Jude at: www.leadersbynature.com https://www.LinkedIn.com/in/judejennison Connect with Lucy: Website - https://bookmagic.ai TikTok - @lucymccarra  Instagram/Threads - @lucymccarraher  LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucymccarraher/ YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@lucymccarraherauthor Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/LucyMcCarraher/

    39 min

  2. 24 FEB

    The Authority Advantage with Adam Witty

    In this episode, I’m joined by Adam Witty, founder of Advantage Media, which he launched in 2005 from the spare bedroom of his home. What began as a done for you publishing system for busy business leaders has grown into a global authority building company serving thousands of clients across 50 US states and 13 countries. We explore how Adam’s innovative approach attracted Forbes, leading to the launch of Forbes Books in 2017, followed by partnerships with SXSW and Entrepreneur. From appearing on the Inc. 30 Under 30 list to leading a company recognised multiple times by Inc. 5000, Adam shares the reinventions behind the success. This is a conversation about resilience, authority and embracing change as fuel for growth. Highlights: (03:15) Early lessons in resilience and entrepreneurship (10:20) Launching Advantage Media from a spare bedroom (17:30) Reinventing after losing his first company (23:45) The Forbes partnership and building authority at scale (30:10) Why writing a book changes how the world sees you (34:10) Embracing change in the age of AI If you’re looking to connect with Adam, he welcomes connections at awitty@theauthoritycompany.com, or visit theauthoritycompany.com and adamwitty.com Connect with Lucy: Website - https://bookmagic.ai TikTok - @lucymccarra  Instagram/Threads - @lucymccarraher  LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucymccarraher/ YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@lucymccarraherauthor Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/LucyMcCarraher/

    38 min

  3. 17 FEB

    Confidence & Control with Heather Pownall

    In this episode, I’m joined by Heather Pownall, founder of Heather’s Media Hub, a purpose led digital strategy and communications consultancy working across healthcare, research, technology, cybersecurity and membership organisations. After nearly two decades in publishing, including 15 years in senior medical publishing roles, Heather made the bold decision in 2018 to leave corporate security and build her own consultancy from scratch. We talk about coming from a working class, risk averse background, navigating self doubt in the early years of business, and leading major digital transformation projects with measurable impact. Heather shares how loss, burnout and a later diagnosis of ADHD and dyslexia reshaped the way she works and leads. This is a powerful conversation about trusting your expertise, walking away when values no longer align, and building something that truly lasts. Highlights: (02:23) Leaving a secure senior role with no safety net (05:19) Early experiences of being dismissed at school (11:38) Thriving, then questioning corporate life (14:24) The leap into entrepreneurship and loss of identity (19:39) Discovering neurodivergence and reclaiming confidence (24:54) Reinventing again and stepping into bigger leadership Connect with Lucy: Website - https://bookmagic.ai TikTok - @lucymccarra  Instagram/Threads - @lucymccarraher  LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucymccarraher/ YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@lucymccarraherauthor Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/LucyMcCarraher/

    33 min

  4. 10 FEB

    Add Then Multiply with David B Horne

    This conversation with David Horne is one of those episodes that stays with you. David is an award winning entrepreneur, founder of Add Then Multiply, and a former CFO who has raised over £120 million and bought or sold more than 30 companies. He’s also a bestselling author and advocate for fairer funding, particularly for female and underrepresented founders. But this episode isn’t about titles or achievements, it’s about what happens when success falls apart and who you become on the other side of it. David shares his journey from global corporate leadership to entrepreneurship, the deep reckoning that followed a failed business, and the unexpected moments that helped him rebuild with more meaning, humility, and purpose. This episode is about resilience, starting again when things fall apart, and trusting that there is still something worth moving towards. Highlights: (02:06) How early travel sparked a lifelong pull towards reinvention (06:58) Failing a defining exam and learning how to recover (11:27) Moving countries and rebuilding identity from scratch (16:35) Burnout, corporate collapse, and walking away (19:01) Losing everything, denial, and a spiritual awakening (27:33) Why becoming an author can change everything Connect with David: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-b-horne/ https://www.facebook.com/david.horne.967 https://x.com/David_B_Horne Connect with Lucy: Website - https://bookmagic.ai TikTok - @lucymccarra  Instagram/Threads - @lucymccarraher  LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucymccarraher/ YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@lucymccarraherauthor Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/LucyMcCarraher/

    31 min

  5. 3 FEB

    The Power Alchemist with Dr Anne Whitehouse

    This episode is a deeply moving conversation with Anne Whitehouse, a former Cambridge scientist turned power alchemist. Anne shares how burnout ended her career in university engineering and became the doorway into a completely different way of understanding health, power, and identity. We talk about subconscious conditioning, inherited patterns, and why burnout and self-silencing are not personal failures. Anne also speaks with extraordinary honesty about losing her daughter, Rebecca, and how that devastating loss reshaped her work and her purpose. This is a powerful conversation about grief, trauma, and what it really means to rebuild yourself from the ground up. Highlights: (03:11) Childhood intuition and knowing there was more to reality (12:05) Burnout, misogyny, and the body saying no more (14:58) Illness as the doorway into deeper healing (24:15) Losing Rebecca and living with grief and PTSD (36:41) Rebuilding power and safety after trauma Connect with Lucy: Website - https://bookmagic.ai TikTok - @lucymccarra  Instagram/Threads - @lucymccarraher  LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucymccarraher/ YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@lucymccarraherauthor Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/LucyMcCarraher/

    43 min

  6. 27 JAN

    Joseph Mcguire 'The Secrets Of Faces'

    This conversation fascinated me. Joseph McGuire has spent decades studying how we read people, not just through words, but through faces, bodies and behaviour. He’s taught the ancient Chinese art of face reading and body language since the 1980s, blending it with modern negotiation and interrogation skills to help leaders make better decisions and avoid costly mistakes. We talk reinvention, intuition, and why so many people miss red flags in business and relationships. From C level hiring to dating dynamics, this episode is about seeing beyond the surface and understanding the person behind the title, before it costs you time, trust or millions. Highlights: (02:39) Realising you can read people long before you have language for it (06:01) Leaving Ireland and the reinvention that changed everything (11:13) Turning intuition into a practical, teachable skill (19:13) Why executive hires fail more often than we admit (29:28) Spotting red flags in high stakes interviews and relationships (34:56) Reinvention, trust and learning to see clearly Connect with Joseph: Email: info@clearsightcommunications.com LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joseph-mcguire-face-facts/ Connect with Lucy: Website - https://bookmagic.ai TikTok - @lucymccarra  Instagram/Threads - @lucymccarraher  LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucymccarraher/ YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@lucymccarraherauthor Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/LucyMcCarraher/

    38 min

  7. 20 JAN

    Dayna Byfield 'Unconventional Connections’

    I’m joined by Dayna Byfield, a burnout prevention strategist and keynote speaker, to talk about the kind of burnout that hides in plain sight. The “I’m fine” burnout, where you keep performing, adapting, and carrying everyone else until there’s nothing left. Dayna shares how being visibly different as a kid shaped her drive, her resilience, and her default setting of becoming whoever the room needed. We also dig into what makes her work different, she’s trained in interdisciplinary problem-solving and behaviour change, with 20 years across entrepreneurship, connection, biology, and cultural change. Dayna brings sporting performance principles (yes, including Formula 1) into leadership and well-being, pushing for supportive structures, not just louder “self-care” messaging. Highlights: (02:25) - “Little Dayna was always big Dayna”, and why being visibly different shaped everything (04:58) - The bullying moment that taught her to shapeshift to feel safe (07:58) - “I got two and a half A levels”, and how General Studies hinted at her real strengths (13:51) - The burnout that literally stole her voice, and the wake up call from the chairman (21:32) - When the good stuff (love, marriage, a baby) becomes the pressure cooker (30:33) - Back to uni, polymath energy, and her mission to redefine power as quiet and gentle www.daynabyfield.com (launching soon) Connect with Lucy: Website - https://bookmagic.ai TikTok - @lucymccarra  Instagram/Threads - @lucymccarraher  LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucymccarraher/ YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@lucymccarraherauthor Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/LucyMcCarraher/

    36 min

  8. 13 JAN

    Lee Chambers 'Always An Ally'

    I’m joined by Lee Chambers, Founder and CEO of Male Allies UK, and honestly, his story is a masterclass in reinvention. We go all the way back to growing up on a council estate in Bolton, being the kid who couldn’t stand unfairness, and how that same “I’ll step in” energy shaped everything that came after. After a career spanning corporate finance and building and exiting a tech company, Lee now helps organisations engage men in inclusion and build effective allyship. He’s a Great British Entrepreneur Award winner, was named 2023 UN Women Changemaker of the Year, and received the Freedom of the City of London in 2024 for services to equality in business. In this episode, we talk about what it really takes to rebuild after life knocks you sideways, and how allyship gets practical when it’s grounded in everyday choices, not just good intentions. Highlights: (03:15) - Growing up in Bolton, social justice instincts, and being “the kid who stepped in” (07:29) - University pressures, mental health struggles, and journaling before it was trendy (11:50) - Redundancy as a turning point, boiler room living, and starting a business anyway (16:29) - The health crisis that changed everything, losing mobility, then fighting to walk again (21:45) - Becoming a stay-at-home dad, loneliness, and the eye-opening baby group moment (34:35) - What Male Allies UK actually does, engaging men in inclusion and building real allyship You can connect with Lee Chambers at: https://www.maleallies.co.uk https://www.linkedin.com/in/leechambers-1/ And get your copy of Lee’s book here: Momentum: 13 Ways To Unlock Your Potential. Connect with Lucy: Website - https://bookmagic.ai TikTok - @lucymccarra  Instagram/Threads - @lucymccarraher  LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucymccarraher/ YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@lucymccarraherauthor Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/LucyMcCarraher/

    39 min
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About

Life doesn’t always go to plan, but reinvention is where the real magic happens. I’m Lucy McCarraher- author, entrepreneur, and serial reinventor, and in The Phoenix Conversations, I talk to people who’ve turned collapse into courage and setbacks into spectacular comebacks. From rebuilding careers and relationships to rediscovering purpose and passion, these are stories of second chances and powerful new beginnings. Whether you’re craving a fresh start or standing on the edge of change, this podcast reminds you it’s never too late to rise again - because your next chapter could be your best one yet.

Information

  • Creator
    Lucy McCarraher
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    19
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2026 Lucy McCarraher
  • Show Website
    The Phoenix Conversations