She Was Stuck. Now She’s On Track for 7-Figures. Here’s What Changed.

If you’ve ever wondered whether you can turn your consultancy into a premium, thriving business…

Know that it’s absolutely possible.

Lorraine Macdonald has done exactly that — but it didn’t happen overnight, and it didn’t happen without challenges.

In this episode, Lorraine shares how she went from feeling stuck and second-guessing herself to building a consultancy that’s on track for 7-figures this year — and the practical steps you can take to start creating your own version of that success.

👇 IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL DISCOVER:

•  Why she left employment and started her consultancy in the first place
•  The hidden struggles she faced (yes, even with all her experience)
•  The psychological switch that turned everything around — in her business and her life
•  How she chooses coaches (and what you should look for so you don’t waste time or money)
•  The simple but focused changes that have her on track for 7-figures — and how you can plug these into your consultancy too

So tune in now — and see what’s really possible for you and your business.

Timestamps:

• 00:00 – How Lorraine Mcdonald Scaled Horizon HR from Solo Consultant to Multi-Six-Figure Business
• 01:28 – Supporting Hundreds of Clients and Aiming for Seven Figures in HR Consultancy
• 03:31 – From Redundancy to Running an Award-Winning HR Consultancy
• 05:17 – The Struggles of Starting a HR Consultancy With No Logo, No Systems, and No Sales Plan
• 06:54 – Overcoming the First-Year Challenges of Building a Consultancy Alone
• 07:49 – Stuck at Six Figures: How Working In the Business Stops You Growing It
• 09:18 – Breaking the Plateau: Why Clarity Beats Conflicting Business Advice
• 10:26 – Step-by-Step Business Frameworks That Prevent Overwhelm for HR Consultants
• 12:36 – Escaping the Hamster Wheel: The Turning Point That Sparked Growth
• 13:18 – The Mindset Shift of Joining a High-Investment Coaching Programme
• 15:09 – How Streamlining Systems and Delegating Freed Up Time to Grow
• 15:58 – Tracking Sales Numbers and Cashflow to Drive HR Consultancy Growth
• 17:42 – Overcoming the Fear of Selling HR Services Without Feeling ‘Salesy’
• 19:24 – Treating Every Conversation as a Business Opportunity (Game-Changing Mindset)
• 23:20 – Lorraine’s #1 Tip for HR Consultants Who Want to Reach Six Figures and Beyond

Want My Help to Build Your £70K+ HR Consultancy?

1️⃣ Grab a copy of my book – The Complete Guide to Building a £70K HR Consultancy – and discover how to get every lead and client you need.

2️⃣ Apply to Join The Fastlane Formula – so we can work together 1-to-1 to get you earning £70K+ faster (and easier) than going it alone.

Transcript

00:02 Hello there and welcome back to another episode of Mike Timmerd easy for HR consultants with me Nick Paninsky. Today we are very lucky we have been joined by Lorraine McDonnell from Horizon HR and she is going to share a little bit of her journey from HR consultant to managing lots of people.
00:23 Hello Lorraine. Hello Nick, thank you so much for inviting me. Yeah no problem. Thank you for joining me you know obviously we met at Gold Circle and I just you know every time we talk I think I need to get around the show so she can share her story.
00:42 Yeah no absolutely no I'm always willing to share the story it's absolutely like it's great so yeah. It's good for people to be able to hear what's possible you know obviously my audience So they are more towards, well, under six figures, right?
00:58 So for them to be able, and they'll be struggling with my singing sales and all that stuff, but you've gone through that.
01:04 And now you're on the other side and I want people to be able to hear what's possible. Okay. Yeah, no worries.
01:12 So do you want me to tell them where I am now? Yes. I want everyone to hear where you are now.
01:19 And then I want to say, but it's not always been like that. So yes tell us where you are now.
01:28 Okay, perfect. So as Nick says I'm Lorraine McDonald from Horizon HR, I'm a founder and we are a multi-award winning multi-six figure business and we support hundreds of business owners now and have done to remove their HR headaches, solve their people problems and also actually prevent some of those
01:48 people problems happening in first place, which is really critical for what we do in our values. And where we are at the moment, we are in a period of absolute kind of exponential growth, to be honest.
02:03 And it's a pretty exciting time. So currently, we are looking for the big seven-figure milestone, and we're hoping to do that by the end of this year.
02:13 This is my target for the end of this year. So it's been a crazy journey. absolutely crazy journey but loving every second of it.
02:23 Nice one. And how many people are in your team right now? So at the moment there are three, there will be four soon.
02:32 And but that's that's actually employees PAYE. We also have a number of associates that we work with so self-employed HR consultants in specialist areas or generalist areas where we can call upon for you know peaks and trusts of work and that kind of thing and specialist this kind of projects.
02:49 So we do. Yeah, the wider team as well. That's really interesting because I'm gonna have to get you back on the show because I've been looking for somebody to tell me what people what HR consultants should look for when they're looking for a source of work, how they should get that.
03:06 And I paused it a few times asking for someone's come forward. So, that's volunteered yourself. Back again, if you treat me nice, Nick.
03:18 I will try. So here we are. So that's how I start in points. So the red, McDonald, aiming for seven figures by the end of the year, managing loads of staff, award-winning, love it.
03:31 But it's not always been this way. So take us back. Absolutely not. So if I go back 10 years, so just before the business was born, I was actually in my last employment.
03:45 So I was an employee at leading a team of advisors in an employer. And we were providing HR services, the board in service.
03:56 And at that time, you know, I was like many people as, you know, HR consultants that you kind of work with, at that point where I can do this better myself, actually, and I want to be able to be more in control of what I do and how I do it.
04:14 And so I was in a position where I was essentially being made redundant, following a kind of traumatic life event for me.
04:24 And I took the opportunity to focus on positives and to build a business from it. So I knew I always wanted to run my own business from a little girl from a little dog.
04:38 I always knew it. Never knew what it was going to be. And then I fell into HR stroke from school.
04:41 So I always knew. So I took the opportunity when I was made redundant to start my business. And it was difficult.
04:51 Actually more difficult. And I thought it was going to be because yes, I've done a bit of business. I've done a bit, you know, I studied a bit of business.
05:00 I thought I knew everything a little bit to a certain degree, but you realise very quickly how much there is to do to run a business.
05:08 So there were so many challenges, particularly even on my first day, I mean, I was really lucky, I had clients from day one.
05:17 So I had a handful of people from day one, but that came with its own challenge. So I literally was made redundant one day and had clients from the next day and then went, oh, I've got a sense been voices which is a great position to be in but I didn't even have a logo or anything so I made this free
05:34 logo art like on a free logo website and it was horrific but it stayed with me for about three years or maybe longer so it was the most horrific thing I've ever done but anyway it was quite fun it's good to see the journey that was gone through but so there was so many challenges but even some of the
05:50 admin stuff that you just didn't think about that you needed and then let heads and then all of these things.
05:56 But also where do you get clients? How do you get them? I don't know. I've never had to. I've always worked in employment, right?
06:02 So, I thought you run a business. Finance wasn't my strongest, probably still isn't to be fair, but actually it's getting better.
06:10 And it does. So all of those things, learning and learning and learning. And I just remember being really tired, really exhausted, because there were so many hats you have to wear as a business partner that you actually don't know what support you even need.
06:25 And if you don't know what you don't know, then you don't even know what she's going looking for to get it.
06:29 Does that make a sense? 100%. Is that all of a well? And you know, we've all been there. There's so much to think about.
06:38 Absolutely. And you just don't think about it until it happens. And then you realize, and as a small business owner, you also then have to pivot really quickly and go, I've got to do this now and I've got to do that and it's literally in seconds you've got to produce something that you didn't think you
06:54 needed to so you can't plan for it. So I think the first year or so was a real challenge trying to get into a flow, you know, getting the right people behind you accounting, it's that kind of thing, but there have been more challenges.
07:07 You know, there's been challenges through the way I did have a business partner at one point. That was a challenge no longer.
07:17 Fair play, Larry. You don't stroke me as an attack to suffer fools gladly, so I'm not surprised that person didn't last too long.
07:24 Well, no. I'm pretty direct as you now know, Nick. I do. I'm pretty direct and pretty straight and forward, but you know, I still care about people and all the rest of it, but in terms of business, I'm very direct, very direct.
07:40 So yeah, there's been lots of challenges along the way and I think predominantly my biggest challenge is actually getting to a point where I was working so much in my business.
07:49 So I was at the six figures and I was working so much in the business that I couldn't get out of it to work on it.
07:58 So I couldn't grow business. So I spent three years of kind of plateauing in terms of this growth. And I just wasn't getting anywhere because I was like waiting through treacle a little bit and I was just so tired and so exhausted.
08:12 I had a team of people managing them, trying to deliver everything, trying to get new clients and it was just impossible to do because I was doing so much client work.
08:23 So yeah and that's when things changed I think for me. I was not saying what was the moment where where you realized I've built myself for one of the better phrase a prison it was a nice prison but effectively that sounds like a prison yeah absolutely because I loved my job I loved what I was doing and
08:43 the impact I was making to my clients but also there was an unhappiness with it as well so I did feel quite stressed and overwhelmed by it and and very much like you know it's not given me what I wanted you know you often go into running your own business because you want the freedom or the more time
08:59 back and and actually in reality you have to make that happen. You have to make voices and you have to get the right people behind you to to enable you to do that at the right times and and that only comes with experience actually that's the one thing I have learned so yeah I had this moment where I 
09:18 was like I tried I had a business coach I was trying different things about growing the business I was attending a treat, so I was doing workshops, so I was doing all these things, spending quite a bit of money, and a bit of time trying to get things moving again.
09:31 But none of it seemed to marry up, so inevitably what I did is I got confused. So when there's conflicting advice, different people saying different things, it stopped me and prevented me from taking that jump and that leap and that step forward.
09:47 So therefore I didn't feel confident about it, therefore I didn't do it. So you kind of know what I mean by that don't you Nick you know you kind of you kind of it does stop your growth it stops you growing your business in that way so that's where I kind of got to and that was only a short period of
10:05 time ago as well. Wow. Less than a year. It is true though like you say like without that clarity without those steps then it does feel like wait, what should I do?
10:18 And we all fall for that shiny object syndrome. I like to think that I help. I'm just going to a little bit of self-press here.
10:26 I like to think that I take that away from my clients, like I give them a step-by-step. We're going to do this week one, week two, week three, week four, week five, week six, and that every step is going to build on each other step.
10:39 Because like you said, As soon as you get overwhelmed or confused, it's over. You just don't make progress. You don't take the small steps.
10:48 I think, you know, it's one of the things that Adam's dot does teach really in our programme is it's around that next step.
10:55 It's not, you don't have to look at the whole staircase at the top of the centre. You don't know where the top of the staircase is, but you've only got to take the next step.
11:03 And if you've got someone in your corner giving you that next step and giving that confidence that that next step is the right journey.
11:11 Don't worry about the long, the long kind of the north star at the top or whatever. Like go that one step at a time, one step after the other, follow the framework, follow the process.
11:21 And if you've got that person that gives you that, that is the what game changer is for your business as a CEO of your own business to be there.
11:30 That's, that's the one thing that I think really, really, really changed what I was doing. And having that person to bounce ideas from as well.
11:38 Yes. I really wish I had someone like you doing your business at a much much earlier stage of my business right from the beginning.
11:47 Someone like that would have been really great for me where I can just sit down and go right. This is what I'm thinking.
11:51 Get my little brain storming out and then help me get a structure behind it and method and steps and processes.
11:58 That would have helped me a lot. I would have been where I am now much much earlier many years ago for sure.
12:04 And that's very kind of it to say the way we do it and that. Well, these two as well like you know even I need that person like I want to do XYZ and I can understand that I should be doing these and how to do them but at the same time having somebody to bounce ideas off, it is priceless like otherwise
12:26 you can to borrow a phrase from Adam you can run enthusiastically in the wrong direction and then you start to see circles, which is kind of what I was doing.
12:36 I was going in a spiral like quickly, but I used the analogy of the metaphors, the hamster wheel. That's what I was doing.
12:44 I was running hard, running fast. I was a sprinter back in my day by the way, but I was in a video, so I wasn't going anywhere.
12:52 Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. You a lot of you pretty fit, and you know, but actually I couldn't, I wasn't going anywhere, and certainly not in the right direction.
12:59 So, you know, that's what coaches and mentors do for you, right? Then go exactly. So then you met Adam and then things changed, what changed for you?
13:09 Like, you met Adam, you know, and obviously now rather than plateauing the businesses on an upward trajectory. So how did that happen?
13:18 What changed psychologically, physically? I mean, I mean, you know the coaching program that we're in, high investment level, but I knew I needed that kind of coaching from people I respected, people that have been there before done that, you know, what I've done, grown beyond that and have got all the
13:42 tried and tested techniques and frameworks, I needed that, but also I wanted that directness and Adam gives that in abundance, right?
13:49 So I knew him and the coaching team that he's got would give me that directness, that tough love that I needed to push me forward because I'm quite strong character.
14:00 And many coaches, I'd walk all over. If I'm honest, I have to really respect them completely. So what changed for me is that investment level and knowing I'm not wasting that money.
14:14 There was absolutely nothing in my world that was going to waste that money. So I, I made plans very quickly.
14:20 So within the first week, I went, how am I going to get some time back? I need to put my effort into this program because you have to do the work, right?
14:28 I think it wakes you up as well, but let the live investment is so severe that it's not like, oh, I'm going to invest this and then kind of let it drift.
14:37 You were like, okay, I'm in, like I mean, I mean, financial commitment. I want to return on my investment. I think people don't necessarily get when I share, you know, the prices for the investment required for the fast-linked formula, like, oh, that's a lot, I'm like, it's not.
14:54 But it also is at the same time, because you're not going to invest that money and then want nothing back from it.
15:00 I want people who want to take action, and that's what we are getting from Gold Circle. Absolutely, and that's, that mentality.
15:09 Yes, I wasn't working on the business as much as I should, so I knew I had for fine time. So I streamed my systems.
15:17 I delegated more, I outsourced more, I made time for myself to do that programme to get the work done. And that's the biggest change that I made initially, which enabled me to do the training, enabled me to put some effort in, to do other things.
15:31 And you know what streamlining systems and processes was like a stupid thing that I just hadn't done as much as I should have done, like simple things.
15:40 And I love I love a process. I love a system. So it was not that I didn't do it until I'd spent a lot of money, you know?
15:48 So that was my biggest changing point and as soon as I started seeing some changes and some sales coming in some new clients with some of their tactics real quick wins.
15:58 It motivates me learning my numbers. Oh my god, learning my numbers was the biggest thing. It, you know, we've, we've obviously been through Gold Circle recently where they're talking about and it's exactly the process that I've been through, looking at your cash flow forecast, looking at your stales
16:15 on a weekly, if not daily basis, looking at all of those things and those, those metrics like nudging and going, there's nothing more motivating actually because when you associate increased revenue by the impact that you're making to your clients, It's not about the money for me, it's about more revenue
16:33 to me, actually means I'm making more impact to more people and more business owners. Yes. And that's what joy is.
16:41 Sometimes struggle with that concept, so I love that you've raised that because people worry that by being salesy, they are doing some sort of negative thing, but I often think I know they use this phrase to sell is to serve, but I think that you are stealing people's right to a better business by not
17:00 helping them, by not giving them that solution. You went when they say all I need to think about it, that's a default position.
17:08 Like, you know, that is always more than likely got to be the answer. But you need to be able to overcome that, in order to help them.
17:16 And you are responsible for that. You've got a great product, a great service. It's your responsibility to share that. You can't steal that from them.
17:25 No, and I'll share with you, Nick and your audience that when I joined that program, I was the worst. Honestly, I know we've spoken about this, but I was a person who would always need to be tortured to give any information about my products and services.
17:42 Let alone talk about the money side, I literally would talk to business owners all the time. I'm so interested in other business owners, so interested in developing other people's businesses.
17:51 is love it, love seeing other people's journeys, but me going, oh, actually I can help you with that. Never. On the ever, I mean, people would have to bully out of me, literally rip my finger nails off to try and get, well, how can you help me, Lorraine?
18:04 So that really changed my mindset changed in terms of how I deliver sales now in my business. Like, I don't, sales and selling is not the same as I thought it was, you know?
18:16 I'm like a hard salesperson. Like I don't go in with a, I must get, like a sailor out of this, that's not what I do at all, when I'm certainly don't, I don't, it's not a pushy sailor's person kind of tactic or I don't use any of those things.
18:30 But what I do is I leave myself open to having a conversation and seeing how I can help someone, how I might be able to support them.
18:40 And we talk about that. And I, I'm inquisitive and I ask the right questions about getting what they need and how much support and where they would need that support in and finding what their real pain points are to be able to be able to make an offer that they might need actually.
18:56 And it would be giving them a disservice if I don't offer them something if I can. And that was a massive shift for me.
19:05 So that really changed every conversation that I had. Whether that's a business one, say it was call or just a conversation like, you know, anywhere, it doesn't matter where you are, just be open to those conversations and see where those conversations take you, make the offer if there is one.
19:24 That's it. Yeah, a little bit. I think that was the moment at Last Gold Circle, where I said to you, so what changed and you said that like every conversation is an opportunity and that changed for me psychologically and apart, I need her on the show.
19:38 So I have to share that message with people. Yeah, yeah, absolutely. I mean, that is my mind shift shift in that respect.
19:49 Only because I've got the confidence of all the sales process and the right questions and how to go through that process, get that gave me confidence that I could have those discussions in the right way.
20:00 And that's exactly what you need because I didn't go into running an HR consultancy business because I was great at sales, right?
20:08 that's not why I went in it. And many of your audience will be exactly the same, right? They they probably hate it.
20:14 I hate talking like asking for money, but what I hate spending money, I hate asking for it. I like still hate it, but I get better, right?
20:23 And that's all it is. It's about having that confidence and having that backing of someone wherever I can just pick up the phone and go, I just had to say I was cool and I got it.
20:31 And then celebrate me with it. And that gave me that confidence and then we would talk about how I did it and then I would tweak that and then I would add something and then do it again and and just change that process and now I've got that team and those people to support that process and give me that
20:47 encouragement that I'm on the right track. Yeah it's it's so true as well like it people worry about sales especially hate our consultants because they can call it salient you know manipulative or whatever but it really isn't and it's not that difficult you know I had the free event of a week and I was
21:03 saying and you, you know, HR consultants worry about sales, but you already sell every day. Every time you comment to your kid to eat their greens, every time you comment to manage it to have a difficult conversation, you will be selling it, it's- Well, the space and skills, a lot of times, it's about
21:22 it's selling something to them, making them make a different choice, or encouraging them to make the right choice that they know they need, you're ready.
21:31 Oh, I love that one. That's a quote that. up. Yes. Love that one. Yes. Encouraging the right choice. Yes. Presenting them with the right choice.
21:44 They probably already know they need it. They just, you know, like I was, I am now when I'm being sold to.
21:49 I just don't want to spend the money. Like, it's not about wanting whatever it is that they're trying to offer me.
21:54 It's just about, oh, I just feel nervous about spending, right? And that's sometimes what it is, but actually make sure that they feel more confident and comfortable about spending the money, knowing what they're going to get for it.
22:07 What information they're going to receive, what's the outcome they're going to get? That's what it's about. Bingo, they've picked up the phones here because they are in a bad position.
22:17 They have problems and you are over here saying I can give you this dream life that you want, but you're going to have to work with me and they are because of our human brains.
22:27 they are going to want to stay in their comfort zone, but that's not good for them because they're over here in pain and they could be over here in pleasure.
22:35 So you've got to help them to make that step because it will be uncomfortable because they want to stay in their comfort zone but unfortunately that's not a good place for them.
22:44 And that's not where growth happens, right? It's not where the good stuff happens. It's not where the magic happens is how I see it.
22:52 You know that's I love being outside my comfort zone and, you know, if I'm not outside it, I have to find a way to make it.
23:01 Terrible. If I like that, I'm like most of everyone else, I like my comfort zone. I like to try and get outside every so often.
23:13 Anyway, so we know where you were, you know, where you are right now and where you want to get to.
23:20 I guess for people listening at home, what is the one piece of advice you could give H.R. Council and wanting to get to six figures and beyond?
23:35 I would say the one piece of advice is actually get a coach and mentor, so a coach or mentor or both.
23:45 Get the right people around you, whether that is the coach and mentor or whether it is actually just evaluating the people around you, the other business owners, you surround yourself with the network and events you surround yourself with, making sure that you're loved ones and it kind of all links into
24:02 the same thing, it's about having that circle around you that actually works and is positive because the energy zappers, my god, they zapp your energy like there's absolutely like mood hovers as Anna would say mood hovers they literally just suck it out of you and it's just not good so you are not going
24:23 to grow when you've got those kind of people around you so just making sure you're in those white circles and some of the minded business owners other HR consultants that are going to lift you up they want the best for you you've got a coach and mentor that's helping you bounce ideas but also help you
24:38 grow giving you those processes and frameworks, you know, having that is the biggest change and removing the others, actually. Spend less time with those people and choose what you're sharing, information with those people.
24:58 Find a good coach, surround yourself with the right people, positive people, and yeah, and then embrace the change. Absolutely. Love that change.
25:08 Love that change. Well, that is it. Thank you for joining me today, Lorraine. I really appreciate it. Yeah, it's been great.
25:18 It's nice to chat. I'm sure there'll be many more in the horizon and we'll chat. I'm sure some more. Thank you.
25:27 Well, you've accidentally volunteered yourself to come and talk about associate work. I don't mind coming back and talking to you guys about that, that's absolutely fine.
25:38 Because it is a bit of a thing that I started a year ago, about three years ago, and it is quite handy to have particularly for those smaller HR consultancies, where it's just a one person at the moment.
25:50 It's a great way to have access to other people and also from their point of view, getting attached to other larger consultancies to do ad hoc work and build their own revenue that way as well and be able to work with those people.
26:07 We collaborate all the time with different HR consultancies as well, some bigger ones, as well, not just independent. Wow. Yeah.
26:16 Peninsula. Sorry? Peninsula. Absolutely not. No, no, not the nationals, because they don't need people like us. Got you. Let's just check in how big you were.
26:33 I know you're a titan of industry, but just check in. No, more than the similar sizes to us. Okay. We have different skills, HR consultants have different skills and abilities.
26:51 You know, I'm not the same as the next person and they're not the same as me and they have something I don't have and, you know, you've got to be open to that and collaborate where actually it works for your client, right?
27:03 Love it. Cool. Well, thank you for joining us today, Lorraine. It has been an absolute pleasure. And for those of you listening along at home, hopefully this was a informative and enjoyable conversation.
27:20 As I say, we'll be getting Lorraine on again to talk about associate work, so we'll look forward to that. But in the meantime, as ever, get Mike Tim because if our Mike Tim, there's no sales.
27:30 And if that's sales, there's no business. So get Mike Tim. Perfect.