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

    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

  2. 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

  3. 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

  4. 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

  5. 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

  6. 6 JAN

    Jane Duncan Smith 'Life After Death'

    In this episode, I’m chatting with the brilliant Jane Duncan Rogers, coach, author, former corporate HR high-flyer, accidental pioneer, and someone who has reinvented herself more times than most of us change phone contracts. Jane grew up in Northern Ireland during the Troubles, learned to switch on confidence on purpose, and followed her curiosity through therapy, community living, travel, and building meaningful work. We also talk about what changed when Jane’s husband died, and how grief pushed her into a surprising new chapter, helping people face the practical realities of death without fear taking the wheel. If you’re standing on the edge of a change, Jane’s advice is simple, and quietly brave. Highlights: (02:27) Growing up in Belfast, and the moment she realised “normal” was not normal (05:08) How shy teenage Jane built a confidence persona, one awkward question at a time (10:04) A sudden death, a spiritual detour, and the decision to walk away (14:06) Cleaning toilets on a Greek island, then accidentally joining the management team (21:28) Widowhood at 54, the “hard questions”, and why end-of-life planning became her mission (29:03) Her best reinvention advice, do it, you will learn something either way Connect with Jane: Writer of Embracing Ageing on Substack Author of 3 books TedX speaker: How to Do a Good Death Website: www.janeduncanrogers.com - Facebook - LinkedIn 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/

    32 min

  7. 30/12/2025

    Me. M.B.E.

    This final episode of 2025 is one of the most meaningful I have ever recorded. I share the moment I learned I had been awarded an MBE for services to publishing and diversity, and the wave of disbelief, emotion and gratitude that followed. This honour is not only mine, it belongs to every woman who has ever stepped into authorship, every writer whose voice was once quiet, and every person who believed in reinvention later in life. I look back at the early years of the Business Book Awards, the shock that sparked my mission for greater diversity, the women who joined my writing programmes and the extraordinary community that grew from those first conversations. I talk about the birth of the Phoenix Theory, my new partnership with Advantage Media Company and the exciting work ahead. As we enter 2026, I invite you to ask what wants to rise in you next. Highlights: (01:42) The moment I opened the letter announcing my MBE (04:55) How the Business Book Awards revealed a powerful truth (07:30) Why women’s voices needed championing and how Abu was born (09:48) The rise of the Phoenix Theory and what it represents (11:35) Becoming a partner at Advantage Media Company (12:55) A New Year invitation to notice what is ready to rise in you 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/

    13 min

  8. 23/12/2025

    So Here It Is - Merry Christmas!

    This festive episode is a little different, because it is just me, sitting with the spirit of the season and reflecting on a year that has been full of growth, surprises and reinvention.  I share what it has meant to navigate a year where life and work wove together in the most unexpected ways, and how moments of challenge, celebration and stillness have shaped my path. From the highs of book launches and awards to the quiet lessons that came from turning 71, this year asked me to grow in ways I could never have predicted. I talk about the joy of returning to the old Chelsea Library to launch my book, the thrill of seeing BookMagic AI win two major awards, the power of speaking on real life stages again, and the unexpectedly emotional experience of podcasting weekly with my childhood friend Lisette.  I also reflect on the people who supported my mission, the milestones in my family life and the quiet truth that endings often hold the beginnings we need most.  As we move towards 2026, I hope this episode gives you permission to pause, breathe and notice who you have become. Highlights: (01:38) Why the start of 2025 was difficult for so many entrepreneurs (04:22) Launching my fourteenth book in the library that shaped my childhood (06:55) Winning two awards for BookMagic AI and what it meant to me (08:48) The joy and vulnerability of podcasting the year of being 70 (10:24) The mentors, partners and colleagues who shaped my year (13:05) My Christmas message and the power of reflection before a new chapter begins 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/

    15 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
    16
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2026 Lucy McCarraher
  • Show Website
    The Phoenix Conversations