Helping Career Seekers Overcome Job Market Uncertainty – Exclusive Interview with Nathaniel McAllister
- Dec 9, 2025
- 8 min read
Updated: Dec 11, 2025
After experiencing redundancy firsthand, Nathaniel recognised how isolating the job search can be and set out to change it. Through Hurdle, he’s building a global platform and community where people can rebuild confidence, find support, and move forward together. His mission is simple, no one should face the job search alone.
Nathaniel McAllister, Founder of Hurdle Community
Who is Nathaniel McAllister? Introduce yourself, your hobbies, your favourites, you at home and in business. Tell us something interesting about yourself.
I am a 24-year-old, overly positive, optimistic guy who did not do particularly well in school and wasn’t even sure about going to university. I come from the city of Chester in the United Kingdom, surrounded by a loving family. I was immersed in the family business from a young age and quickly decided that one day I would start something of my own.
I taught myself the basics of supply and demand by selling popcorn, cans of Coca-Cola, and the occasional packet of cigarettes in school, strategically positioning myself against the school shop prices (of course, the cigarettes were a separate matter) with a portion of the profits then reinvested into supply, and the margins suiting me nicely as a teenager. I played a lot of sport, although I was never that good at it, and would say I was very sociable and could talk to anyone.
This business and social mindset stayed with me. When I studied business management at Manchester Metropolitan University, I discovered a business creation module, where I created my first start-up idea alongside my sister called the “Wash a Walk”, later rebranded Soak. It was aimed at the luxury pet market, where I successfully raised funding and quickly realised two things:
Never trust nonindustrial designers to help you make a product requiring metal fabrication.
And second, that I had no interest in pet products even with their incredible potential.
After university, however, I was able to break into the private equity industry and then the family office industry, proving to be something that I had an incredible interest in (who wouldn’t, a 22-year-old moving to Fulham and working in finance). Here, I worked primarily within private equity strategy and direct to company investing, learning huge amounts from my boss at the time about scaling businesses and how to celebrate wins in style. This led me to two of my life-changing outcomes:
Meeting my partner who has taught me as much if not more than everything else.
Redundancy (which is where it’s all starting).
What inspired you to create HURDLE Community and serve people facing career change, burnout, or redundancy?
It wasn’t quite inspiration, but more of my own difficulties. I came into the job search and thought, “I’ve got nearly two years of great experience, I’ll walk into a job easily”. But oh, was I wrong about this.
Hundreds of applications, and zero interviews within the first month or two:
My CV was awful,
My approach was incorrect,
Ghost jobs were rife
And my LinkedIn is non-existent.
I simply couldn’t stand out, even against all the university students that I had two years over.
I started a TikTok and managed to get some other job seekers together (two of which are now Hurdle ambassadors now) to meet for a coffee. All from different backgrounds, both professional and personal, and we all connected over this one specific challenge. The job search. It just made me think, there must be so many others in the same position, or maybe they are about to get there.
People shouldn’t have to go through the job search alone. They should be able to access knowledge, clarity, and support to get over their next hurdle in front of them.
What is the biggest challenge your clients face when navigating career transitions, and how do you help them overcome it?
The biggest challenge job seekers face is isolation. At the start, you don’t tend to feel it, the job search seems as if it will be over quickly, and for some, maybe this is true, but for many, it isn’t.
Your friends are all working. Your funds are depleting (especially if you’re paying London rent). Your CV becomes your ‘self-worth’. And you mostly hear silence from the jobs you applied for.
But Hurdle changes this. It allows you to be heard by a group of individuals in a similar situation, facing similar challenges. Hurdle is an enabler for them to overcome this challenge. By hosting both online and in-person meet-ups and having a very active community, all there supporting each other. The peer power is the driver.
How does HURDLE Community support someone who feels stuck in the job market and unsure of their next step?
Most people who join Hurdle are exactly in that position. When you’ve applied to 50 or even 100 roles and barely heard anything back, it’s natural to doubt yourself and feel unsure about the next step. The first thing we do is bring people in with open arms, reassurance and encouragement matter more than people realise. Modern job searching requires resilience, and that resilience used to be a word reserved for entrepreneurship. Now, it applies to job seekers just as much. So, the initial support we offer is simply reminding someone they’re not alone and that they’re capable of continuing.
From there, we give structure. We run workshops with trusted expert coaches and host peer-powered ‘bootcamps’ that help members gain new perspectives, tools, and approaches. People begin to see progress through shared experience, whether that’s reframing their strategy, finding accountability, or receiving feedback that unlocks something for them. We’ve seen multiple success stories come out of this model, and that’s the best part, watching someone go from stuck to employed, more confident, and supported.
Can you walk us through a typical success story from one of your clients and the transformation they achieved with your help?
We’ve seen multiple success stories across Hurdle, and they all start differently but share one theme, most people arrive with low confidence. Some have applied to 100 or even 200 roles without hearing anything back. Others have gone through interview rounds only to get rejected, or they’re still at university and already see how difficult the job market is. Either way, they come in doubting themselves, questioning their skills, and unsure how to move forward.
One of the most impactful ways we support people is through our peer-powered challenges, 5 or 10-day job search “bootcamps” where we meet every morning at 9:30 am to work on core areas like CVs, interview skills, outreach, and networking. What consistently stands out in these sessions is how often someone’s CV undersells their achievements or how they don’t speak with confidence in interviews. Those sessions become a mirror for people to realise they’re not alone in feeling stuck, and they begin learning from how others approach the job search.
We’ve seen members shift from self-doubt to self-belief, simply through being supported, guided, and exposed to others doing the same work. And what’s most rewarding is how quickly outcomes can follow once confidence improves and someone begins communicating their value properly, we often see roles being secured within weeks. The transformation is real, clearer positioning, stronger confidence, and landing opportunities they previously didn’t think they were capable of.
What are the key pillars or values your programme is built on, and why are they important for those rebuilding their career confidence?
The first is trust. There is an overwhelming amount of job search advice online, and it’s hard to know what actually works. At Hurdle, information is filtered through experienced members who are more likely to trust guidance from people walking the same journey rather than generic posts or ads on LinkedIn from people trying to sell them something. That shared experience creates credibility and reassurance.
The second is support. Our community is intentionally built as a safe place. There’s no competition, politics, or judgement. Just people who genuinely want to see each other win. Having someone in your corner, especially when you’re unemployed or doubting yourself, makes a huge difference to confidence and motivation.
The third is growth. Members and coaches believe in Hurdle’s potential to become something bigger, and many who have secured roles stay involved to help others. That creates a network of people across industries and locations who continue contributing, mentoring, and cheering one another on. It becomes a cycle of progress, people are helped, then they help others.
What unique methods, tools, or practices do you use that set you apart from other career or life-coaching services?
Peer Power and Price.
The peer-powered network is by far the most important part of Hurdle. There’s no pressure, just real accountability and encouragement. Many communities we see are transactional or push services at people. We operate differently. We are growing our capabilities alongside our members, and they are heard and involved every step of the way. It may mean we build slower as a business, but it also means our foundations are stronger.
We also believe support shouldn’t be limited to those who can pay for it. That’s why we maintain a free, peer-powered aspect of the community, which already yields great results for members.
Alongside that, we offer our Inner Circle Membership (£9.99), which gives members access to deeper learning, including two workshops per month run by vetted expert coaches and continual access to Hurdle resources. One-to-one coaching typically costs £50 an hour or more, we exist as a bridge providing career development, interview preparation, and job search guidance at a far more accessible price point.
Every coach in Hurdle has been personally selected by me. They give their time to run sessions, interact with members, and support people beyond the workshop itself. Some members choose to work with them directly later on because trust has been built. Our coaches believe in Hurdle’s mission and continue to play a role as we grow, which reinforces the idea that our ecosystem is collaborative, not extractive.
How do you tailor your approach for someone who is burnt out versus someone who is facing redundancy or forced career change?
As I’m not a career coach, I don’t comment from a clinical or coaching standpoint. But from experience, these are two very different situations that both require specific attention.
We’ve seen both within Hurdle, and while they show up differently, they do share one truth, people often need space and time before jumping straight into the next thing. Rushing back into work isn’t always the best solution as reflection matters.
With burnout, it usually starts with understanding the root cause, was it the hours, the environment, the culture, or something else? That’s why one of our career coaches specialises in helping members gain clarity on what they actually want next, rather than repeating the same patterns.
Redundancy can be more sensitive. It can trigger questions around identity, self-worth, finances, and “what now?” We have coaches who specifically support individuals navigating redundancy, helping them process the experience and rebuild confidence.
For those who prefer not to go directly to a coach, we also run workshops every fortnight. Topics range from imposter syndrome (often tied to redundancy) to breaking into new industries (common after burnout). Alongside this, our members have access to practical micro-guides that break down step-by-step approaches to rebuilding momentum, whether that’s career clarity, interview prep, or transitioning into something new.
The goal is simple, whether someone is burnt out or made redundant, they shouldn’t have to figure it out alone. There are tools, people, and space to help them move forward.
What are three concrete outcomes or benefits someone can expect when they join HURDLE Community?
Knowledge sharing. Support during the job search. Confidence boost.
If a reader is on the fence and wondering “Should I reach out?”, what would you say to them to let them know you’re the right person to contact and what the first step should be?
If you’re stuck in the job search and don’t know why things aren’t moving, then yes, reach out. There’s often nothing “wrong with you.” People blame themselves when in reality it could be timing, employer requirements, the way a CV is presented, or simply needing a new approach. Sometimes you just need someone to look at things with you.
The first step is simple, visit Hurdle and join the free community. Once you’re in, I’ll reach out personally. From there, you’ll start meeting others in similar situations, accessing resources, and finding clarity through support rather than isolation.
We’re in this together, and whatever hurdle is in front of you, we’ll work to get you over it.
