When I launched Ask Mickie and went fully fractional, the reactions were mixed. Some people got it immediately. Others wondered why someone with 20+ years of Fortune 500 HR experience would bet everything on building something from scratch.
But one conversation changed everything for me.
A close friend and colleague — someone I deeply respect, a seasoned operations executive who doesn’t hand out compliments lightly — said something I’ll never forget. He told me there are certain people in this world who will always find a way to be successful. The kind of person who could start with a lemonade stand and within six months turn it into several stands. Then a truck. Then a fleet of trucks and a storefront. Then franchises. And before you know it, that person is the CEO and Chairman of the Board of Lemonade International.
Then he looked at me and said: “You’re that person.”
I sat with that for a while. It was humbling. It was also one of the most empowering things anyone has ever said to me — not because it was flattery, but because it came from someone who has watched me operate. Someone who has seen me walk into chaos and build order. Someone who understands what it takes to scale something from nothing, because that’s what operations leaders do every day.
And here’s the thing: he wasn’t wrong about the pattern. I’ve spent my career doing exactly that — walking into broken systems, fragmented teams, and overwhelmed leadership, and building something that works. I took a manufacturing operation with 70% turnover and brought it down to 20%. I’ve managed thousands of employees across multi-state operations. I’ve navigated EEOC complaints, workforce reductions, and organizational crises that would have buried companies without the right strategy in place.
But I’ve also had hard losses. Lessons that didn’t come from a textbook or a leadership seminar — they came from getting it wrong and sitting with the weight of that. Those are the lessons that stay with you. I’ve watched others succeed and fail, and I paid attention to both. I’ve built relationships that have lasted a lifetime and others that made an impact for a season. I’ve left organizations knowing they were in a better place because of my work, even when the road getting there wasn’t smooth. I’ve grown from the ground up — not just professionally, but as a person.
Through all of it — the wins, the losses, the late nights, and the leap into building something of my own — my husband has been my biggest supporter, my loudest cheerleader, and my touchstone. He keeps me grounded when I need steadying and pushes me to stretch when I’m playing it safe. I would not be able to do this work without his love and support, and I don’t take that for granted.
The difference now is that I’m doing it for us. I’m building my lemonade stand.
Ask Mickie isn’t a consulting firm where I drop in with recommendations and disappear. It’s a fractional HR practice — meaning I become part of the leadership strategy for multiple organizations at the same time. Every lesson, every late-night crisis call, every system I built, every leader I developed, and every hard conversation I had the courage to lead over 20+ years — I bring all of that to the table. Not as an outsider looking in, but as a strategic partner embedded in the work. Fortune 500-level HR leadership for the companies that need it most but could never afford it full-time.
Family-owned businesses navigating growth. Founder-led companies preparing for their next chapter. Organizations in transition who need someone who’s been in the room when it mattered.
Am I building a lemonade stand? Absolutely. And I plan to make a lot of lemonade.
Because the truth is, building something of your own isn’t really a leap when you’ve spent your entire career solving problems, building from the ground up, and proving that the right people strategy drives real business results. It’s just the next chapter.
To everyone out there thinking about betting on yourself — whether it’s launching a business, making a career change, or stepping into a role that scares you: find the people who see your potential clearly, even when you can’t. And then go prove them right.
And to the leaders out there building something of their own — whether you’re scaling up, navigating a transition, or just trying to get your arms around the people side of your business — I’m not here to compete with what you’ve already built. I’m here to complement it. To partner with you and build together.
That’s what fractional leadership is. Not an outsider telling you what’s wrong. A partner rolling up their sleeves and helping you make it better.
I’m making lemonade. And I’m looking for leaders who want to make some with me.
Take the free HR Health Checkup at AskMickie.info to see where you’re covered and
where you’re exposed. It takes 10 minutes, it’s completely free, and it might save you
from a very expensive surprise.
Or, if you’re ready to talk, reach out directly to schedule a free 30-minute consultation.
Whether you need project-based support or a fractional partner, we’ll figure out the
right fit together—no pressure.
Mickie Murrell, MBA is the founder of Ask Mickie, LLC and serves as Chief HR Strategist. With 20+ years of Fortune 500 experience at Amazon, Crocs, and Prysmian Group, she provides C-suite HR leadership to family-owned, founder-led, and mid-market companies navigating growth, transition, and everything in between.