Your business didn’t fail.
It outgrew the way it was built.
FoundHer Rising is for women founders in wellness, coaching, and consulting who’ve built successful service-based businesses, and are now feeling the weight of growth that depends too much on them.
You’ve done the right things.
You’ve built demand, filled your calendar, and proven your expertise.
But instead of ease, growth brought more pressure, complexity, and responsibility.
This isn’t a podcast for beginners, hustle culture, or quick fixes.
It’s a space for honest conversations about what scaling actually requires: leadership shifts, identity changes, and building a business that can grow without burning you out.
Hosted by Christine Hakkola, this show helps experienced, heart-centered founders think differently about their businesses so decisions get clearer and growth becomes more intentional.
If this stage feels familiar, you’re in the right place.
Learn more at hakkolahorizons.com.
Hidden CEO Rule Costing Founders Thousands with Megan Rafuse | FoundHer Rising S01 E41
Most practice owners know how to grow a business. Fewer know how to scale one, and the difference determines whether you stay stuck at six figures or break through to seven and beyond. Megan Rafuse, CEO and co-founder of Shift Collab, built a Canadian mental health company from a solo therapy practice into a team of 130 therapists nearing eight figures in revenue, all while running the company alongside her husband. In this episode, Megan breaks down the visionary-integrator split that saved their partnership, the real difference between growing and scaling, and why so many practitioners, especially women, undercharge for their expertise.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
👉🏻 Growing means spending more to make more. Scaling means growth without a proportional rise in cost, and most plateaus get solved by optimizing the existing client journey, not adding new services.
👉🏻 Splitting visionary and integrator roles, rather than competing for the same one, is what let Megan and her co-founder run the business together without constant friction.
👉🏻 Undercharging is a pattern, not an accident. Knowing your market position, premium, mid-market, or bargain, and pricing accordingly protects the business and the people it serves.
TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Meet Megan Rafuse and Shift Collab
08:05 Splitting visionary and integrator roles as a married co-founder team
13:06 The real shift from therapist to CEO
19:03 What actually drove Shift Collab's growth
25:04 Is Shift Collab still a group practice
30:18 Growing versus scaling and why it matters
35:22 Why founders underprice their own expertise
41:17 Acquisition conversations and where to find Megan
CONNECT WITH MEGAN RAFUSE
Website: shiftcollab.com
LinkedIn: https://ca.linkedin.com/in/megan-rafuse
Instagram: Shift Collab (@theshiftcollab) • Instagram photos and videos (https://www.instagram.com/theshiftcollab/)
CONNECT WITH CHRISTINE HAKKOLA
Website: hakkolahorizons.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christine-hakkola
ENGAGE
If this episode resonated, follow FoundHer Rising, share it with another founder, and leave a quick review. It helps more women find these conversations.
HASHTAGS
#FoundHerRising #WomenInBusiness #ScalingYourBusiness
6 Oct 2026
The Real Reason Cold Outreach Feels Uncomfortable with Liza Tullidge | FoundHer Rising S01 E40
Most founders are trying to avoid failure. Liza Tullidge, a serial entrepreneur who has exited four companies (and failed at plenty more), argues that's exactly backward. In this episode, Liza and Christine unpack why the founders who scale fastest are the ones who fail the most, why cold outreach feels so uncomfortable and what actually fixes it, and how separating your identity from your business changes every decision you make. If you're stuck at a revenue ceiling or afraid to put yourself out there, this conversation will shift how you think about growth.
KET TAKEAWAYS
👉🏻 Failure isn't the obstacle to scaling, it's the fastest path through it.
👉🏻 Cold outreach stops feeling icky once you stop treating it as a referendum on your worth.
👉🏻 Separating your identity from your business leads to clearer, less reactive decisions.
TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Introduction
02:23 Early Lessons In Tenacity
09:08 Reframing Cold Outreach As Service 1
4:41 The Turning Point That Changed Everything
20:08 Redefining Success As A Founder
24:04 Why Few Women Scale Past Seven Figures
CONNECT WITH LIZA TULLIDGE:
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/lizatullidge
Website: lizatullidge.com
CONNECT WITH CHRISTINE HAKKOLA
Website: hakkolahorizons.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christine-hakkola
ENGAGE
If this episode hit home, follow the show and share it with a founder who needs to hear it.
HASHTAGS
#FoundHerRising #WomenFounders #ServiceBasedBusiness #FounderMindset #ScalingYourBusiness
22 Sept 2026
How This Practice Owner Built a Team She Could Trust with Caroline Adelman | FoundHer Rising S01 E39
Most founders wait too long to hire, and it costs them more than they realize. In this episode of FoundHer Rising, Christine Hakkola sits down with Dr. Caroline Adelman, founder of Chicago Psychotherapy, to unpack how she grew a solo practice into a team of fifteen, and the decision-making habits that kept her from burning out along the way. If you're stuck doing everything yourself or saying yes to every opportunity that lands on your desk, this conversation gives you a better way to decide.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
👉🏻 Hiring readiness rarely feels comfortable. The founders who scale sustainably hire before they feel fully ready, not after.
👉🏻 Delegation only works once undocumented knowledge gets turned into a real system, not just handed off verbally.
👉🏻 A simple gut check, picturing the best and worst versions of your business, can filter which new opportunities are actually worth a yes.
TIMESTAMPS
0:00 Introduction
9:00 What actually filled her practice early on
14:16 Leading a team through crisis
22:29 The hiring lesson she wishes she'd learned sooner
30:02 The balcony, the dance floor, and her yes problem
36:54 Where to find Caroline
CONNECT WITH DR. CAROLINE ADELMAN
Website: https://chicagopsychotherapy.com/dr-caroline-adelman/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolineadelman
CONNECT WITH CHRISTINE HAKKOLA
Website: hakkolahorizons.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christine-hakkola
Enjoyed this episode? Follow the show, share it with a founder who needs to hear it, and leave a quick review. It helps more women find these conversations.
HASHTAGS
#foundherRising #womenFounders #serviceBasedBusiness #scalingYourBusiness #hiringYourFirstEmployee #wellnessBusinessOwners
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