Hello Couragemakers!
This week I’m chatting to the joy that is Rachel Shillcock. Rachel is an award-winning designer + photographer hailing from Manchester, UK. Rachel runs Rachilli, an online creative studio dedicated to helping creative entrepreneurs build more powerful brands + businesses, aligned with their values + purpose. Rachel is a fellow INFJ and a proud geek, obsessed with all things designy, patterns, and her two dogs, Storm and Jasper.
In this episode, we’re really diving into the topic of stepping out as your authentic self. Rachel shares her journey from starting her own web design business to using her values to make decisions and create a life that works for her.
We discuss the power of focusing on our strengths, how we can create our own self validation and our own ideas of success, as well as how we can stop comparing ourselves to others and own what makes us unique.
Rachel shares how her life has changed since opening up about her chronic illness and taking her mask off, her definition of what changing the world means and how authenticity and excitement are huge parts of her journey.
In this episode we really focus on living and working in accordance to your values. Rachel shares how she found her values, uses them as lens to make decisions, and fantastic advice on how to find your own values.
This is such a fun, practical episode, and I love how Rachel shares her behind the scenes and her process of finding things that work for her. This is a great episode for anyone who is tempted to take their own mask off and needs a bit of courage, for anyone who struggles with self doubt and wants a new way of viewing their work, and for anyone who strives to be more authentic in all that they do.
I had so much fun chatting to Rachel, we seriously got the giggles before the show, and I’m just really excited to share our conversation!
Enjoy the sho
About
Rachel is an award-winning designer + photographer hailing from Manchester, UK. Rachel runs Rachilli, an online creative studio dedicated to helping creative entrepreneurs build more powerful brands + businesses, aligned with their values + purpose. She helps entrepreneurs find flow + consistency in their creative business, through visual branding, purposeful web design, and powerful brand strategy. Rachel is a fellow INFJ and a proud geek, obsessed with all things designy, patterns, and her two dogs, Storm and Jasper.
Website | Twitter | Instagram | Creative Market | Products
Things We Talked About
Resources
About Meg & That Hummingbird Life
I’m Meg and I’m the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I’m an INFJ creative and multipassionate who has a bit of a notebook and post-it note obsession, loves foot-stomping country music and likes her hot chocolate with way too much chocolate.
I started Couragemakers because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I’m not recording episodes, writing bullshit-free, very vulnerable and encouraging Sunday emails to fellow couragemakers or making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life. THL is the online home for unconventional creatives and multipassionates who want to show up unapologetically and intentionally as who they are, and really own, live and share their many stories. It’s made for couragemakers who have so much great shit to give the world and want to leave their mark but have too much self doubt standing in the way!
Hello Couragemakers and welcome to episode 64 of The Couragemakers Podcast!
I am so excited about this week’s podcast episode and I’m so happy to share with you my conversation with Deb Dane.
Deb is a New York City girl who married an English man and settled in Australia. Along with 14 house moves they have found their way to life with two teen daughters and two female rescue dogs.
After 20 years away from creative pursuits Deb started dipping her toes back in, and had a creative reawakening and reconnected to her creativity.
Deb writes on her blog Inner Compass Designs about following your own path in life, taking care of your own needs and living an authentic life. She is passionate about helping women give themselves permission to follow their heart and intuition, know their own power and self-worth, and know that they are never alone.
Her art, wall hangings and jewelry all bring these ideas to life so you have reminders of your story and your journey to where you want to go and who you want to be.
In this episode, Deb shares her journey of reconnecting to her creativity after twenty years and many sliding door moments that have led her to where she is now.
We dive into so many great topics in this episode. We debunk a lot of creative myths, from doing what gives you pleasure vs what you’re good at, the myth that anything you do has to have a return in financial investment, and this idea that we alone struggle with feeling like a fraud.
Deb shares the really great community art challenges that brought her back to her creativity, why we should take care of ourselves first as opposed to doing it only if we have some extra time, and the psychological elements of owning a creative business.
We have great conversations about future tripping, the links between creativity and expectations and how we probably all need to plan a little less!
I am so happy to be sharing this conversation, because I think it touches on so many of the struggles so many of us face as creative women who want to leave their mark. I absolutely love Deb’s approach to creativity, her honesty in what behind the scenes often looks like for creatives and I love how her passion and compassion shines through all she does.
I know you’re going to love this episode!
Enjoy the show!
About
Deb Dane is a New York City girl who married an English man and settled in Australia. Along with 14 house moves they have found their way to life with two teen daughters and two female rescue dogs.
She writes on her blog Inner Compass Designs about following your own path in life, taking care of your own needs and living an authentic life.
She is passionate about helping women give themselves permission to follow their heart and intuition, know their own power and self-worth, and know that they are never alone.
Her art, wall hangings and jewelry all bring these ideas to life so you have reminders of your story and your journey to where you want to go and who you want to be,
Website | Instagram | Newsletter
Things We Talked About
Resources Mentioned
About Meg & That Hummingbird Life
I’m Meg and I’m the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I’m an INFJ creative and multipassionate who has a bit of a notebook and post-it note obsession, loves foot-stomping country music and likes her hot chocolate with way too much chocolate.
I started Couragemakers because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I’m not recording episodes, writing bullshit-free, very vulnerable and encouraging Sunday emails to fellow couragemakers or making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life. THL is the online home for unconventional creatives and multipassionates who want to show up unapologetically and intentionally as who they are, and really own, live and share their many stories. It’s made for couragemakers who have so much great shit to give the world and want to leave their mark but have too much self doubt standing in the way!
Hello Couragemakers and welcome to episode 63 of The Couragemakers Podcast!
This week, I am so overjoyed to share with you my conversation with Zee Southcombe.
Zee is a children’s author, illustrator & fine artist who approaches all her work with vigour and imagination. Zee works to promote other artists, especially young creatives, through collaboration, workshops, encouragement, and publishing opportunities. When not making stuff, Zee can be found with a cup of tea and a good book, planning her next creative adventure, or out for a walk in the beautiful forests of Aotearoa.
In this episode, Zee shares her journey, from teaching, to making a huge personal decision to start writing and choose her creativity.
We talk about the importance of giving yourself permission, how fear and self doubt affects every creative, even the ones you couldn't imagine struggling with self doubt, how creativity can help your mental health and the power of making your work deep and personal.
We have great discussions about creativity and making a difference in the world, the importance of little big moments and taking a more strengths based approach to life.
Zee shares how she takes the pressure off her work, how she's learned to deal with comparing herself to others, and the importance of boundaries when putting yourself out there.
Zee has fantastic advice for anyone wanting to put themselves out there, and great practical wisdom for anyone who has creative dreams but feels held back by fear and self doubt.
This episode is fantastic for all creatives, no matter where you are on your creative journey. I think there is such a need in the world for really honest discussions about putting yourself out there and overcoming self doubt, and I'm so happy to add this one to the mix!
Enjoy the show!
About Zee
Zee is a children’s author, illustrator & fine artist who approaches all her work with vigour and imagination. Zee works to promote other artists, especially young creatives, through collaboration, workshops, encouragement, and publishing opportunities.
When not making stuff, Zee can be found with a cup of tea and a good book, planning her next creative adventure, or out for a walk in the beautiful forests of Aotearoa.
Website | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | Shop
Things We Talked About
About Meg & That Hummingbird Life
I’m Meg and I’m the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I’m an INFJ creative and multipassionate who has a bit of a notebook and post-it note obsession, loves foot-stomping country music and likes her hot chocolate with way too much chocolate.
I started Couragemakers because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I’m not recording episodes, writing bullshit-free, very vulnerable and encouraging Sunday emails to fellow couragemakers or making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life. THL is the online home for unconventional creatives and multipassionates who want to show up unapologetically and intentionally as who they are, and really own, live and share their many stories. It’s made for couragemakers who have so much great shit to give the world and want to leave their mark but have too much self doubt standing in the way!
Hello Couragemakers! It’s so good to be back after a week’s break, and I know you’re going to love this episode!
This week I’m chatting with Nikki Sinay Torres. Nikki is a certified Kaizen Muse Creativity Coach, US Army Master Resilience Trainer, Army wife and former FRG leader, mom of two teenage girls with Cystic Fibrosis, self-employed mural artist, and Main Muse at Serendipity Creative Coaching Services. Nikki describes herself as a blend of Lucille Ball, Frida Khalo, a Mermaid and Mr. Bean, which I think you’ll agree, is very accurate.
Nikki runs creative resilience workshops and retreats, and The Unsinkable Creative Society Art Camp for teen girls in North Carolina, as well as working one to one online with creatives.
During this episode, Nikki shares her journey from being the weird girl in school, to the mother of two daughters with cystic fibrosis, a self employed mural artist and creative resilience coach.
We really dive into how creativity has helped Nikki deal with everything life throws her, how she gives herself permission to react to situations and how creativity helps us to slow down and problem solve.
We talk about how important it is to find your strengths and focus on them, dealing with the reality of things versus our expectations and how getting creative is one of the five scientifically proven things you can do to calm yourself.
At the end of the episode, Nikki shares a fantastic exercise you can use to help build you creative resilience and I know it’s one I’m going to be using time and time again!
This episode is a fantastic and much needed reminder for all of us creatives, that creativity is important, that it’s anything but frivolous and essential to both our wellbeing and the world.
I know you’re going to love Nikky’s storytelling and sense of humour!
Enjoy the show!
About Nikki
Nikki Sinay Torres. is a certified Kaizen Muse Creativity Coach, US Army Master Resilience Trainer, Army wife and former FRG leader, mom of two teenage girls with Cystic Fibrosis, self-employed mural artist, and Main Muse at Serendipity Creative Coaching Services. Nikki runs creative resilience workshops and retreats, and The Unsinkable Creative Society Art Camp for teen girls in North Carolina, as well as working one to one online with creatives.
Nikki describes herself as a blend of Lucille Ball, Frida Khalo, a Mermaid and Mr. Bean, which I think you'll agree, is very accurate.
Nikki has a very exclusive offer of a 30 minute coaching session for Couragemakers, for $25. To take advantage of her offer, you can find Nikki's email below:
Things We Talked About
Resources Mentioned
About Meg & That Hummingbird Life
I’m Meg and I’m the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I’m an INFJ creative and multipassionate who has a bit of a notebook and post-it note obsession, loves foot-stomping country music and likes her hot chocolate with way too much chocolate.
I started Couragemakers because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I’m not recording episodes, writing bullshit-free, very vulnerable and encouraging Sunday emails to fellow couragemakers or making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life. THL is the online home for unconventional creatives and multipassionates who want to show up unapologetically and intentionally as who they are, and really own, live and share their many stories. It’s made for couragemakers who have so much great shit to give the world and want to leave their mark but have too much self doubt standing in the way!
Hello and welcome to episode 61 of The Couragemakers Podcast! This week I’m chatting to Michelle Madrid-Branch and we’re really diving into claiming our own identities and owning our stories.
Michelle is an author, speaker, life wellness coach, and global advocate for women and children, living in Santa Barbara, CA, with her husband, children , three dogs and a bunny. Michelle advocates on behalf of women and children who are marginalized and left feeling isolated in our society. Michelle is happiest when using her life journey in an effort to serve others and help others rise up from their pain. She is currently in the process of writing her fourth book.
In this episode, Michelle shares her journey, from being born in the UK and placed in the foster care system to being adopted by an American family and learning to untangle labels she had been given and finding her own identity.
We really explore the power of owning your story, moving beyond past stories that keep us stuck and changing our lens so we can start to reclaim our lives.
Michelle shares what inspires her to work with and advocate on behalf of children without families and the lessons she has learned along the way. She also shares how she has found that every one of us is uniquely qualified to bring something positive into the world, and invites listeners to explore their own unique strengths and gifts.
We also have a great conversation about how forgiveness can free us and take us out of our own prisons and how sustainability is key when it comes to building a life you love.
This episode is a great reminder that you do have the courage to find your own identity, and to own that identity because no one can give it to you. I loved hearing Michelle’s story and how openly she shares about how she found the courage to find the magic in the mess and be who she is.
I know you’re going to love this episode.
Enjoy the show!
About Michelle
Michelle is an author, speaker, life wellness coach, and global advocate for women and children. She is the author of Adoption Means Love: Triumph of the Heart, The Tummy Mummy, and Mascara Moments: Embracing the Woman in the Mirror. Michelle lives in Santa Barbara, CA, with her husband, children , three dogs and a bunny. Michelle advocates on behalf of women and children who are marginalized and left feeling isolated in our society. Michelle is happiest when using her life journey in an effort to serve others and help others rise up from their pain. She is currently in the process of writing her fourth book.
Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
Things We Talked About
What Michelle has learned since she has realised her unique strengths and has started to bring them to the world
How Michele found the courage to own who she is
The beauty of imperfection and the miracles from the mess
Resources Mentioned
About Meg & That Hummingbird Life
I’m Meg and I’m the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I’m an INFJ creative and multipassionate who has a bit of a notebook and post-it note obsession, loves foot-stomping country music and likes her hot chocolate with way too much chocolate.
I started Couragemakers because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I’m not recording episodes, writing bullshit-free, very vulnerable and encouraging Sunday emails to fellow couragemakers or making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life. THL is the online home for unconventional creatives and multipassionates who want to show up unapologetically and intentionally as who they are, and really own, live and share their many stories. It’s made for couragemakers who have so much great shit to give the world and want to leave their mark but have too much self doubt standing in the way!
Hello Couragemakers and welcome to another wonderful episode of The Couragemakers Podcast!
This week I’m so happy to share with you my conversation with Rebecca Thering.
Originally from Wisconsin, USA, Rebecca has lived in Spain, South Korea, and most recently France. She’s a fan of snail mailing, writing, taking wander walks, slow travel, creating, unplugging, minimalism, and enjoying everyday moments. Taking life a moment at a time, she’s following her personal compass and the light of Alexandra Franzen and Candace Rose Rardon to see where she ends up next!
In this episode, Rebecca shares her story, from living abroad teaching english to her personal sabbatical and creating a personal compass.
In this episode were really dive into what it means to live by your values, how to leave your mark and the importance of thanking people who have made an impact on you.
We have great conversations about bringing more humanity to the internet, disconnecting and taking time to reflect as well as the power of following your curiosity.
It’s also full of much needed reminders to all of us – to take the time to thank people who have made a difference to our lives, to catch the small moments and to remember that we will never know the full extent of the impact that we make or who we’re inspiring.
I had so much fun chatting to Rebecca and I know you’re going to get so much out of this episode.
Rebecca has so many stories and so much practical advice and I know her real life examples will help you add more intention and courage into your own life.
Be sure to check out Rebecca’s free printable How To Make A Personal Compass zine to make your own personal compass! (Link is in the show notes) We’d love to see what’s on yours!
Here’s to being messy, imperfect and complicated humans!
Enjoy the show!
About Rebecca
Originally from Wisconsin, USA, Rebecca Thering has lived in Spain, South Korea, and most recently France. She’s a fan of snail mailing, writing, taking wander walks, slow travel, creating, unplugging, minimalism, and enjoying everyday moments. Taking life a moment at a time, she’s following her personal compass and the light of Alexandra Franzen and Candace Rose Rardon to see where she ends up next!
Things We Talked About
Resources Mentioned
About Meg & That Hummingbird Life
I started Couragemakers because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I’m not recording episodes, writing bullshit-free, very vulnerable and encouraging Sunday emails to fellow couragemakers or making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life. THL is the online home for unconventional creatives and multipassionates who want to show up unapologetically and intentionally as who they are, and really own, live and share their many stories. It’s made for couragemakers who have so much great shit to give the world and want to leave their mark but have too much self doubt standing in the way!
Hello there and welcome to episode 59 of The Couragemakers Podcast!
This week, I’m excited to share my conversation with Eva Jannotta.
Eva is a social media marketing entrepreneur in Washington, DC and founder of Simply Put Strategies. Her mission is to use social media to create and nurture relationships between brands and their fans by telling the brand story and featuring new products – with an emphasis on supporting sustainable clothing brands. Eva loves to read novels, listen to oldies music, cook, and organize stuff. She is an aspiring minimalist and zero-waste-er.
In this episode, Eva shares her entrepreneurial journey, how she deals with uncertainty and the paradox of both striving for newness and adventure as well as a routine.
We really dive into what it means to work online, how we sometimes wish we could be card-carrying adults and how we can start turning our shoulds into coulds. We have a great discussion about how we ‘perform’ work and the pressure we put on ourselves, how moving forwards and often feel like we’re moving backwards and how to turn down the noise online.
This is a great episode if you struggle to deal with the busy-ness and noise of the online world, if you need a reminder that you have all the answers you need inside you and if you want to find a way to enjoy your work more.
I love the theme of self compassion that runs through Eva’s work and her general approach to life. Eva has great advice for anyone starting to put themselves out there, and how intuition can pay a huge part in doing that.
I know you’re going to love this one!
Enjoy the show!
About Eva
Eva Jannotta is a social media marketing entrepreneur in Washington, DC and founder of Simply Put Strategies. Her mission is to use social media to create and nurture relationships between brands and their fans by telling the brand story and featuring new products – with an emphasis on supporting sustainable clothing brands. Eva loves to read novels, listen to oldies music, cook, and organize stuff. She is an aspiring minimalist and zero-waste-er.
Website | Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | Pinterest | Instagram
Things We Talked About
Listening to your intuition and the importance of having time to think
The power of turning your shoulds instead of coulds
How moving forwards can sometimes feeling like you’re moving backwards
How we don’t need advice, we know what to do
Resources Mentioned
About Meg & That Hummingbird Life
I’m Meg and I’m the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I’m an INFJ creative and multipassionate who has a bit of a notebook and post-it note obsession, loves foot-stomping country music and likes her hot chocolate with way too much chocolate.
I started Couragemakers because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I’m not recording episodes, writing bullshit-free, very vulnerable and encouraging Sunday emails to fellow couragemakers or making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life. THL is the online home for unconventional creatives and multipassionates who want to show up unapologetically and intentionally as who they are, and really own, live and share their many stories. It’s made for couragemakers who have so much great shit to give the world and want to leave their mark but have too much self doubt standing in the way!
Hello Couragemakers and welcome to episode 58 of The Couragemakers Podcast!
This week I’m thrilled to share with you my wonderfully honest conversation with Jo Casey.
Jo Casey is a certified coach, speaker, trainer and coach mentor. In addition to being British, Jo is slightly nerdy and allergic to the marketing bullshit in the coaching industry.
Jo specializes in helping coaches do the self-development work needed to thrive in the online world, get more clients and build sustainable, honest businesses - all without resorting to the darks arts or sleazy marketing tactics.
Jo’s patronus would be Lesley Knope and Maya Angelou, Stephen Fry, Trevor Noah, Caitlin Moran and Tina Fey are among the many guests Jo would invite to her fantasy dinner party.
This episode is all about undoing the messy reality of being a woman and all the challenges that come with being visible and putting yourself out there.
Jo shares her journey from being the first in her family to go to university, burning out in the workplace, being a coach for the past 17 year and bringing politics and feminism into her business.
We really dive into what it means to show up as a woman, and how we can break free from what Jo calls feminine conditioning - this notion that we have to keep ourselves small and play the part of the good woman.
We have so many great discussions about digging your heels in and demanding better as women, the courage it takes to bring your big picture and politics into the work you do and how we are all creating ripples without even knowing it.
We also talk about what it means to be genuinely authentic online and how sharing your struggles can be a source of inspiration.
This episode is essential listening for every woman looking to stop apologising for the fact she exists, for every woman who wants to embrace the messier, complicated bits of life and for every woman who is sick of the bullshit.
Jo is a huge source of inspiration to me - she has been a great mentor to me and it was so good to sit down and really put the world to rights.
Enjoy the show!
About Jo
Jo Casey is a certified coach, speaker, trainer and coach mentor. In addition to being British, slightly nerdy and allergic to the marketing bullsh*t in the coaching industry, she’s certain that succeeding as female entrepreneurs means violating every single message that’s been poured into us about what it means to be a ‘good’ woman.
Jo specializes in helping coaches do that self-development and unlearning work, get more clients and build sustainable, honest businesses without resorting to the darks arts or sleazy marketing tactics.
Jo’s patronus would be Lesley Knope and Maya Angelou, Stephen Fry, Trevor Noah, Caitlin Moran and Tina Fey are among the many guests Jo would invite to her fantasy dinner party.
Things We Talked About
Resources Mentioned
About Meg & That Hummingbird Life
I’m Meg and I’m the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I’m an INFJ creative and multipassionate who has a bit of a notebook and post-it note obsession, loves foot-stomping country music and likes her hot chocolate with way too much chocolate.
I started Couragemakers because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I’m not recording episodes, writing bullshit-free, very vulnerable and encouraging Sunday emails to fellow couragemakers or making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life. THL is the online home for unconventional creatives and multipassionates who want to show up unapologetically and intentionally as who they are, and really own, live and share their many stories. It’s made for couragemakers who have so much great shit to give the world and want to leave their mark but have too much self doubt standing in the way!
Hello and welcome to Episode 57 of The Couragemakers Podcast!
This week, it is my pleasure to have a good chat with Emily Scott. Emily is a storyteller and artist. She writes paranormal fantasy fiction featuring rebellious protagonists dedicated to knocking down their boundaries. Like any good California girl, she loves the beach and believes she should have been born a mermaid.
In this episode, Emily shares her creative process, from how she began writing as a child purely as a way to communicate and be understood, to how she writes, finding inspiration and plots her novel.
We really dive into coming to terms with your own natural process, honouring the way you do things and turning down the noise of what everyone else thinks you should be doing.
We have a great chat about the relationship between money and art, and how we can view art as something we need to support instead of expecting it to support us.
We also dive into what Emily calls re-writing her realities - examining different parts of your life and what you think you should be doing, compared to what would work for you and how important this is. Emily shares an excellent practical exercise for anyone who struggles with people pleasing and saying yes to themselves.
This is a wonderfully honest and practical episode and essential listening for any creative struggling to give themselves permission to do it their own way, and for anyone who needs to say a huge yes to themselves for once. Emily is a joy to chat to and I’m so excited to share our conversation.
Enjoy the show!
About Emily
Emily Scott is a storyteller and artist. She writes paranormal fantasy fiction featuring rebellious protagonists dedicated to knocking down their boundaries. Like any good California girl, she loves the beach and believes she should have been born a mermaid.
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram
Things we talked about
Things mentioned during today's show
About Meg & That Hummingbird Life
I’m Meg and I’m the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I’m an INFJ creative and multipassionate who has a bit of a notebook and post-it note obsession, loves foot-stomping country music and likes her hot chocolate with way too much chocolate.
I started Couragemakers because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I’m not recording episodes, writing bullshit-free, very vulnerable and encouraging Sunday emails to fellow couragemakers or making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life. THL is the online home for unconventional creatives and multipassionates who want to show up unapologetically and intentionally as who they are, and really own, live and share their many stories. It’s made for couragemakers who have so much great shit to give the world and want to leave their mark but have too much self doubt standing in the way!
Hello and welcome to episode 56 of The Couragemakers Podcast. I'm so happy to be back with another solo episode of Couragemakers!
I'm in the process of planning how these episodes can become a regular thing alongside the regular interviews, so stay tuned! As for now, they're going to be pretty spontaneous and on the fly!
This week, I'm diving into the myth of reinventing yourself. I'm sharing my own stories of falling into the trap and what I learned along the way. It can be so tempting, and it's so understandable to want at times to be a whole new version of you, but in this episode, I'm diving into why you're enough just the way you are.
Things Talked About During This Episode:
About Meg & That Hummingbird Life
I'm Meg and I'm the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I'm an INFJ creative and multipassionate who has a bit of a notebook and post-it note obsession, loves foot-stomping country music and likes her hot chocolate with way too much chocolate.
I started Couragemakers because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I'm not recording episodes, writing bullshit-free, very vulnerable and encouraging Sunday emails to fellow couragemakers or making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life. THL is the online home for unconventional creatives and multipassionates who want to show up unapologetically and intentionally as who they are, and really own, live and share their many stories. It’s made for couragemakers who have so much great shit to give the world and want to leave their mark but have too much self doubt standing in the way!
Hello Couragemakers and welcome to episode 55 of The Couragemakers Podcast!
This week, I couldn’t be more excited to share with you this episode with Monica Wisdom Tyson
Monica is a St Louis woman and describes herself as an analog girl in a digital world. She is a Chief Storyteller and Visibility Strategist, teaching the elements of a great story and ways to amplify a story to communities and believes that your story is power. Generation X and a self confessed Trekkie, Monica loves live music, long conversations and travelling around the world meeting people where they are.
During this episode, Monica really honestly shares her story, from dealing with a difficult childhood, struggling with depression, going on a spiritual journey, travelling the world and her various different careers including being a cosmetologist, interviewing celebrities and director of operations for several magazines.
We really dive into the genius of imagination, being careful about what you feel your soul and how naps are seriously underrated.
We talk about embracing the darkness as well as the light, being still and just how important our dreams are.
This episode is great source of inspiration if you’re dealing with dreamshitters, if you’re struggling to engage in a positive way in a space of chaos and if you need the courage to own and share your story. It’s also a great episode if you need reminding of just how much power you do have.
Monica is the living definition of what it means to really own your story and release yourself from shame and start living your life. There will be laughter and there will be tears, and I know you’re going to get so much from this beautiful episode.
Enjoy the show!
About Monica
Monica is a St Louis woman and describes herself as an analog girl in a digital world. She is a Chief Storyteller and Visibility Strategist, teaching the elements of a great story and ways to amplify a story to communities and believes that your story is power.
Monica believes storytelling is as essential to our lives as breathing. It is how we learn, grow and evolve. Stories have shaped every part of our growth whether it is a song, book or the wisdom of our elders. We are cultivated by stories through our listening and our learning. Stories not only connect us with our audience but release the vulnerability within ourselves.
Generation X and a self confessed Trekkie, Monica loves live music, long conversations and travelling around the world meeting people where they are.
Website | Instagram | Periscope | Facebook
Things We Talked About
Resources Mentioned
About Meg & That Hummingbird Life
I’m Meg and I’m the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I’m an INFJ creative and multipassionate who has a bit of a notebook and post-it note obsession, loves foot-stomping country music and likes her hot chocolate with way too much chocolate.
I started Couragemakers because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I’m not recording episodes, writing bullshit-free, very vulnerable and encouraging Sunday emails to fellow couragemakers or making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life. THL is the online home for unconventional creatives and multipassionates who want to show up unapologetically and intentionally as who they are, and really own, live and share their many stories. It’s made for couragemakers who have so much great shit to give the world and want to leave their mark but have too much self doubt standing in the way!
Hello and welcome to episode 54 of The Couragemakers Podcast. This week I'm so excited to be sharing with you the very first solo episode of The Couragemakers Podcast!
I'm looking forward to releasing them on a regular basis but rest assured - the Monday interviews aren't going anywhere!
On that note, Couragemakers is taking a very short break next week and will be back on 17th with a beautiful episode I know you're going to love!
This week I'm diving into one of my favourite topics: creative resistance. I'm going to be sharing what obsessing over successful creative's routines taught me (spoiler alert - not a lot!) and how you already have so much of what you need inside you!
I hope you enjoy this solo episode of Couragemakers! I'd love to know what you think of this format and any questions/topics you'd like me to cover! Let me know on Twitter or via email: meg [at] thathummingbirdlife.com
Have a wonderfully creative and inspiring week and see you soon!
Questions Asked During Today's Show
About Meg & That Hummingbird Life
I'm Meg and I'm the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I'm an INFJ creative and multipassionate who has a bit of a notebook and post-it note obsession, loves foot-stomping country music and likes her hot chocolate with way too much chocolate.
I started Couragemakers because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I'm not recording episodes, writing bullshit-free, very vulnerable and encouraging Sunday emails to fellow couragemakers or making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life. THL is the online home for unconventional creatives and multipassionates who want to show up unapologetically and intentionally as who they are, and really own, live and share their many stories. It’s made for couragemakers who have so much great shit to give the world and want to leave their mark but have too much self doubt standing in the way!
Hello Couragemakers and welcome to episode 53 of The Couragemakers Podcast!
This week I'm so excited to share such a practical episode with the joy that is Melissa Steginus.
Melissa is a self-care advocate and coach with a lifelong desire to promote self-empowerment.
A woman of many curiosities, she's constantly seeking new ways to blend her background in social work with her interest in entrepreneurship and teaching.
She’s spent the past five years exploring roles in counseling, behavioural therapy, business operations, teaching yoga, network facilitation, magazine coordination, and more
Melissa is working on her first book, Self-Care Action Plan: A Practical Guide to Personal Growth, and when she’s not at her keyboard, you can find Melissa hiking, climbing, daydreaming of dogs, and exploring her home on the Canadian west coast.
In this episode, we're really getting down to the nitty gritty of self care - why we need it, how to make it consistent and how self care and courage overlap.
Melissa shares how a question someone asked her while in South Africa changed everything, what she has learned about self care while travelling and how routines are the backbone to a life of intention.
We have a really great discussion about how routines can be something that we want to turn away from and rebel against as multipassionates and creatives but ultimately how they help us really chase our dreams.
We also talk about consuming content online, turning down the bullshit and focusing on action instead.
This is such a fantastic, practical episode and I find Melissa's take on self care so refreshing. Self care can often be a pretty fluffy topic, leaving you with no idea how to start working on yourself, but this episode proves the opposite of that can definitely be true!
You're going to want to take notes on this one!
Enjoy the show!
About Melissa
Melissa Steginus is a self-care advocate and coach with a lifelong desire to promote self-empowerment.
A woman of many curiosities, she's constantly seeking new ways to blend her background in social work with her interest in entrepreneurship and teaching.
She’s spent the past five years exploring roles in counseling, behavioural therapy, business operations, teaching yoga, network facilitation, magazine coordination, and more!
Throughout this constant ebb and flow, her purpose has remained the same: help others live fulfilling lives rooted in self-care and meaningful growth.
She's thrilled to be working on her first book, Self-Care Action Plan: A Practical Guide to Personal Growth, which centers on breaking down buzzwords and cliches to create purposeful, long-lasting action.
When she’s not at her keyboard, you can find Melissa hiking, climbing, daydreaming of dogs, and exploring her home on the Canadian west coast
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram
Things We Talked About
About Meg & That Hummingbird Life
I'm Meg and I'm the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I'm an INFJ creative and multipassionate who has a bit of a notebook and post-it note obsession, loves foot-stomping country music and likes her hot chocolate with way too much chocolate.
I started Couragemakers because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I'm not recording episodes, writing bullshit-free, very vulnerable and encouraging Sunday emails to fellow couragemakers or making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life. THL is the online home for unconventional creatives and multipassionates who want to show up unapologetically and intentionally as who they are, and really own, live and share their many stories. It’s made for couragemakers who have so much great shit to give the world and want to leave their mark but have too much self doubt standing in the way!
Hello lovely Couragemakers and welcome to episode 52 of The Couragemakers Podcast!
This week I have a fantastic episode for you, but before we get started, I just wanted to share a bit of Couragemakers news!
Next week I'm going to be releasing the first ever Couragemakers solo episode. I've been wanting to do solo episodes for a while now, and I'm so excited to be bringing them to the world. They're going to be short and sweet 10-15 minute practical episodes that I know you're going to really love. If you have any topic ideas of questions you'd like me to answer, send me an email: meg@thathummingbirdlife.com and you may well see a solo show come out on that very thing very soon!
Now, onto today's show.
This week I'm interviewing the lovely Fran Day.
Fran is a theoretical physicist at Oxford and a stand-up comedian. Her research involves using X-ray telescope observations to search for signals from new particles. Fran's comedy tackles topics ranging from science to feminism. She performs around the UK and last August took her solo show, Physics Fan Fiction, to the Edinburgh Fringe. Fran loves creativity and communication in all forms - from the lab to the stage.
I mean, wow.
In this episode, Fran shares her journey of combining science and comedy, how and why she started stand up comedy and the lessons she's learned along the way.
We really dive deep into how Fran has combined two seemingly polar opposite passions, the logistics of how she makes time for both and how to mange being a multi-passionate person.
We have so many great conversations in this episode, from how Fran uses a pretty scientific approach to overcoming setbacks, how she has come to own all of the different aspects of herself and recognise how they fit together, to how Fran embraces uninstagrammable self care. Oh and we also talk about making money from passions as well!
I know you're going to love this episode - Fran is so honest and practical and this is the perfect episode for multi-passionates who are wondering how on earth to make time for their passions, wondering how they can creatively combine them, and for anyone needing a reminder that life is pretty fucking exciting because you get to choose how you present yourself and do things only you can do.
I know you're going to love this one, so enjoy the show!
About Fran
Fran Day is a theoretical physicist at Oxford and a stand-up comedian. Her research involves using X-ray telescope observations to search for signals from new particles. Fran's comedy tackles topics ranging from science to feminism. She performs around the UK and last August took her solo show, Physics Fan Fiction, to the Edinburgh Fringe. Fran loves creativity and communication in all forms - from the lab to the stage.
Things We Talked About
Resources
About Meg & That Hummingbird Life
I’m Meg and I’m the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I’m an INFJ creative and multipassionate who has a bit of a notebook and post-it note obsession, loves foot-stomping country music and likes her hot chocolate with way too much chocolate.
I started Couragemakers because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I’m not recording episodes, writing bullshit-free, very vulnerable and encouraging Sunday emails to fellow couragemakers or making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life. THL is the online home for unconventional creatives and multipassionates who want to show up unapologetically and intentionally as who they are, and really own, live and share their many stories. It’s made for couragemakers who have so much great shit to give the world and want to leave their mark but have too much self doubt standing in the way!
Hello Couragemakers and welcome to episode 51 of The Couragemakers Podcast! This week I am delighted to share with you my conversation with Katie Snyder.
Katie is a unconventional creative who is based in Atlanta. She oversees and runs her photography business she started at 18, while on the road, tour managing indie electronic band, Paper Lights. Katie is the owner of Wildfire Company, which was created to help musicians and other artists in a variety of facets, including management, booking, and social media. She enjoys teaching and mentoring about creativity and is currently working on her first book on this topic.
In this episode, Katie shares her journey from starting her photography business at the age of 18 and how she decided to start over and pursue different passions as a thirty something.
Katie gets really vulnerable about her creative adventures and how she keeps herself inspired, how lonely the experience of being a trailblazer can be, and taking creative leaps of faith.
I absolutely loved hearing all about Katie's life, how she finds time to write her book on the road, and how much honesty she has in sharing her journey. I really enjoyed chatting about the non-glamorous side of things that sound very glamorous and how much guts it takes to go against the status quo even when no one around you gets it.
If you often feel alone in creating your own path, if you want to feel really inspired to take your own risks and if you want to hear the very real adventures of a trailblazer, this is absolutely the episode for you!
Enjoy the show!
About Katie
Katie Snyder has owned & operated a photography business since she was 18 years old. During this time, she has been responsible for documenting hundreds of events and humanitarian projects around the world. She now oversees and runs this business from the road, while tour managing indie electronic band, Paper Lights. She also owns The Wildfire Company, which was created to help musicians and other artists in a variety of facets, including management, booking, and social media. She enjoys teaching and mentoring about creativity and is currently working on her first book on this topic. Follow her journey on the road in #RudolphtheRedAdventureVan
Email | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook
Things We Talked About
Resources
About Meg & That Hummingbird Life
I’m Meg and I’m the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I’m an INFJ creative and multipassionate who has a bit of a notebook and post-it note obsession, loves foot-stomping country music and likes her hot chocolate with way too much chocolate.
I started Couragemakers because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I’m not recording episodes, writing bullshit-free, very vulnerable and encouraging Sunday emails to fellow couragemakers or making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life. THL is the online home for unconventional creatives and multipassionates who want to show up unapologetically and intentionally as who they are, and really own, live and share their many stories. It’s made for couragemakers who have so much great shit to give the world and want to leave their mark but have too much self doubt standing in the way!
Hello there and welcome to episode 50 of Couragemakers!
This week I’m chatting to the lovely Nicki Rochead.
Nicki is the founder of The Magpie Maker, is a a Blue Peter Girl, Craftaholic & Creative Magpie who lives just outside of Winchester in the UK.
She believes that creativity is essential to living a whole-hearted, healthy life, but for many adults it’s a much-neglected and intimidating skill. The Magpie Maker provides craft activities for adults that generate confident creativity in easy and inspirational steps
This week we’re really diving deep into creativity, which is one of my favourite topics and I know you’ll be itching to make something by the end of the show!
In this episode, Nicki shares her creative journey, from working as a teacher to starting her own business; creating wonderful spaces for people to practice craft and learn new skills.
Nicki shares how creativity has played such a huge role in helping her manage her depression and anxiety, the insecurities we often face when putting our work online and how to create a space in your life for creative daily practice.
We really debunk the myth that creativity is only for certain people, dive into how our own self doubt plays a part in making us doubt our own creativity, and Nicki shares some great practical advice for anyone wanting to add more creativity into their life.
I absolutely love what Nicki is doing, and how open she is about the links between creativity and mental health. Nicki shares some really practical stuff for anyone who also struggles with their mental health and wants to start making space for creativity to help them.
This is a great episode if you’re creatively blocked or thinking about starting a creative project but can’t drum up the courage, if you’re also a maker and want a behind the scenes look at the life of a creative business owner, and is fantastic inspiration for just giving it a go and showing up.
I know you’re going to love this episode just as much as I do!
Enjoy the show!
About
Nicki believes that creativity is essential to living a whole-hearted, healthy life, but for many adults it’s a much-neglected and intimidating skill. The Magpie Maker provides craft activities for adults that generate confident creativity in easy and inspirational steps. Customers then take this approach and apply it to their own situations.
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram |
Things We Talked About
Resources
About Meg & That Hummingbird Life
I’m Meg and I’m the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I’m an INFJ creative and multipassionate who has a bit of a notebook and post-it note obsession, loves foot-stomping country music and likes her hot chocolate with way too much chocolate.
I started Couragemakers because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I’m not recording episodes, writing bullshit-free, very vulnerable and encouraging Sunday emails to fellow couragemakers or making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life. THL is the online home for unconventional creatives and multipassionates who want to show up unapologetically and intentionally as who they are, and really own, live and share their many stories. It’s made for couragemakers who have so much great shit to give the world and want to leave their mark but have too much self doubt standing in the way!
Hello Couragemakers and welcome to episode 49 of The Couragemakers Podcast!
This week I'm talking to the wonderful, inspiring and hilarious Vana Feliciano.
Vana Feliciano a pint size poet, painter, podcaster and planeteer. Deeply obsessed with alliteration and all things cerulean blue, she is the founder of The Quiet Brave, a lifestyle community for the consciously courageous and Quiet Brave Radio a podcast that explores the practice of being a conscious woman. Vana believes in community over criticism and that fumbles and fuck ups are essential to building a fairy tale life.
In this episode, Vana shares pivotal moments in her journey which led her to creating a movement for conscious women making courageous journeys called The Quiet Brave.
She shares how getting in a car crash led her to question how she wanted to live her life and do something more, and how her life changed as a result.
We really dive into how the most powerful thing we have is this moment right now, the importance of slowing down and using your experiences not to lecture, but to give people an alternative.
This is a fantastic episode for anyone wanting to make the world a brighter place, for creative business owners or aspiring creative business owners who want to find an alternative to hustling and appearing perfect, and for anyone who struggles with future tripping and wants to start living more in the moment.
Vana is a fantastic storyteller and I know you won't help but get caught up in her life story and feel like you're right there with her. One thing in particular Vana said has stuck with me ever since we recorded this episode, which is: who do you show up as when no one is watching.
I know you're going to feel seriously inspired by the end of this episode. Be sure to check out her podcast The Quiet Brave Radio which launches next week - her pre-launch episode already gives me the tingles!
Enjoy the show!
About Vana
Vana Feliciano a pint size poet, painter, podcaster and planeteer. Deeply obsessed with alliteration and all things cerulean blue, she is the founder of The Quiet Brave, a lifestyle community for the consciously courageous and Quiet Brave Radio a podcast that explores the practice of being a conscious woman.
She believes in community over criticism and that fumbles and fuck ups are essential to building a fairy tale life.
Things we talked about
Resources
About Meg & That Hummingbird Life
’m Meg and I’m the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I’m an INFJ creative and multipassionate who has a bit of a notebook and post-it note obsession, loves foot-stomping country music and likes her hot chocolate with way too much chocolate.
I started Couragemakers because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I’m not recording episodes, writing bullshit-free, very vulnerable and encouraging Sunday emails to fellow couragemakers or making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life. THL is the online home for unconventional creatives and multipassionates who want to show up unapologetically and intentionally as who they are, and really own, live and share their many stories. It’s made for couragemakers who have so much great shit to give the world and want to leave their mark but have too much self doubt standing in the way!
Hello Couragemakers!
It is SO good to be back, I’ve missed you all! So much has happened in the last 3 weeks - That Hummingbird Life has been completely relaunched as the online home for creatives, multi-passionates and couragemakers who want to own, live and share their stories. I’m so excited with this direction - it’s something I’ve been feeling for the past couple of years but have only been able to really put into words since starting Couragemakers! Be sure to check out the new site - it’s full of bullshit-free resources, a really fun blog archive where I may or may not have got a bit carried away with gifs and just loads of really cool shit I think you’re going to love.
But focusing now on this week’s episode. For the anniversary episode, I wanted to do something a bit different and go a bit more behind the scenes, so the tables have been turned and Mr. Meg is interviewing me for my own episode.
So without further ado, I’m going to pass you over to Mr. Meg!
Hello and welcome to this week’s episode of Couragemakers. I’m Mr Meg, aka Jack. This week things have been shaken up a bit, and the special guest is none other than Meg herself. During this episode I sit down with Meg and dive more into her story, the journey of Couragemakers and That Hummingbird Life so far and the reality of owning, sharing and living your story.
We discuss the importance of sharing your story, everyday courage, reclaiming the word selfish and much more. I also ask Meg who she’d like to play her in a documentary of her life!
As for me, I’ve learnt that it’s a lot more difficult to interview someone than you may think, especially when it’s your own bloody fiance. But on a more serious note, I remember when Meg pitched the idea of her podcast to me, with the idea of telling stories of everyday courage, I felt like she’d struck gold. The stories of people that may not yet have been told, that need to be heard was one that struck a chord with us. It’s bizarre and fantastic to be here a year on, in a strange meta situation, me interviewing her for her own podcast. I hope you enjoy the interview, and learn a lot more about Meg and the way that brain of hers thinks. Meg always likes to suggest you grab a tea or a hot chocolate, but I’m more of a coffee man myself, so go with whatever takes your fancy today, and enjoy the show!
Things we talked about during the show:
About Meg & The Couragemakers Podcast
Meg is the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I'm an INFJ creative and multipassionate who has a bit of a notebook and post-it note obsession, loves foot-stomping country music and likes her hot chocolate with way too much chocolate.
I started Couragemakers because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I'm not recording episodes, writing bullshit-free, very vulnerable and encouraging Sunday emails to fellow couragemakers or making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life. THL is the online home for unconventional creatives and multipassionates who want to show up unapologetically and intentionally as who they are, and really own, live and share their many stories. It’s made for couragemakers who have so much great shit to give the world and want to leave their mark but have too much self doubt standing in the way!
Hello Couragemakers, and welcome to episode 47 of The Couragemakers Podcast!
Before we begin this week, I just wanted to let you know that the podcast is going to be taking a 3 week hiatus, while I completely revamp That Hummingbird Life and get 2017’s episodes up and running! I am so excited for the guests that I have already booked for this year and we have some real corkers coming up! If you fancy yourself as a guest, you can apply online by visiting thathummingbirdlife.com/apply.
Couragemakers will be back on the 27th February with a special first year anniversary episode which I’m still slightly shitting myself about! Roles are going to be reversed as Mr. Meg is going to be interviewing me for my own Couragemakers episode. I have absolutely no idea what he has planned but if you have any questions you’d like me to answer, please send an email to meg@thathummingbirdlife.com (and if you put Mr. Meg in the subject line, i promise not to look!)
I might be putting some solo episodes out between now and then, but if not, now is a great opportunity to look through the past episodes and uncover some real gems and rediscover some old favourites!
Whew.
Now onto today’s show.
This week I’m speaking to Heather Jabornik. Heather is an East Coast writer, hope-raiser, and dream chaser based in Southern California. Heather is the founder of Hiya Tootsie!, and fragrance line Candy Ass. Heather is a lover of spoken word poetry, rock and roll, glitter, and gunmetal and a self confessed fangirl of Tom Waits.
In this episode, Heather shares her journey, from working as a missionary in the porn industry to founding a website and perfume that inspires women to go after their dreams. She shares her journey from reaching complete burnout, to finding work that sustains her own wellbeing as well as other people’s.
We dive into the vulnerability of putting yourself in the public eye, how we can sometimes hide behind our need to help others and how stepping into fear changes everything.
This is a great episode if you’re looking to find work that breathes life into yourself, not just other people and if you have or are experiencing burnout and want to start building a different life to yourself. It’s also a great episode if you’re scared of putting yourself out there as a work in progress but want to do it anyway.
Heather is really open about her own experiences of burnout and the boundaries she had to create to live a life that felt good to her. I loved hearing about the power of going back to our own creativity and how Heather is working to help other women follow their dreams too!
Enjoy the show!
Heather Jabornik is an East Coast writer, hope-raiser, and dream chaser based in SoCal. She is the founder of Hiya Tootsie!, a platform for badass dream chasing broads, and Candy Ass, a fragrance line that reminds those badass dream chasers to GO KICK SOME ASS!
You can connect with Heather here: Website | Candy Ass | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter |
Things we talked about during today's show
Books/Resources etc mentioned during today’s show
Find out more and download the Couragemakers Manifesto here
If you have any question about today's episode, any comments or would like to be a guest on Couragemakers, get in touch: meg@thathummingbirdlife.com
I'm Meg and I'm the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I started this podcast because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I'm not recording episodes and making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life, sending free bullshit free reminders to hundreds of women every Sunday and helping my clients build brands they love as a graphic designer.
That Hummingbird Life | Twitter | Pinterest |
Hello Couragemakers, and welcome to episode 46 of The Couragemakers Podcast!
I can’t tell you how excited I am to share this episode! This week, I’m speaking to The Gratefulist founder, Wendy de Jong. Wendy is a recovering perfectionist from the Netherlands, and she’s on a mission to help fellow soul-connected yet stressed-out creatives embrace their perfectly imperfect selves. She’s a book-oholic, a homemade pizza aficionado, and driving around in her bright red convertible car is her latest guilty pleasure.
In this episode, we’re diving really deep into the topic of perfectionism. Wendy shares her experiences, growing up a straight A student, struggling with being a people pleaser and how it led to her becoming stressed out and reaching rock bottom. And how learning to practice gratitude helped a whole new world open up and let Wendy take control of her life.
We talk about the stories we tell ourselves and how they often work to keep us small, the dangers of relying on outside validation and how your world really does start to change when you make the daily choice to start showing up in the world.
Wendy has fantastic advice for anyone struggling with perfectionism, gives us a behind the scenes look at her own practices and is a real shero for anyone looking to work on their own perfectionism - no matter how comfortable or addictive it feels.
I love the work Wendy is doing over on her website The Gratefulist and I loved hearing more about what inspired her to start it and how her own relationship with perfectionism has changed.
If you struggle with people pleasing, being a perfectionist and if the negative voice in your head feels like it’s stuck on repeat, you’re going to get so much out of this episode.
I love how open and vulnerably Wendy shares her journey so to help other people with their own journey, and this episode is a real act of courage.
Enjoy the show!
Wendy de Jong is a recovering perfectionist on a mission to help fellow soul-connected yet stressed-out creatives embrace their perfectly imperfect selves. She’s a book-oholic, a homemade pizza aficionado, and driving around in her bright red convertible car is her latest guilty pleasure.
You can connect with Wendy here: Website | Online Community | Twitter | Instagram | The #perfectionismproblems series |
Things we talked about during today's show
Books/Resources etc mentioned during today’s show
Find out more and download the Couragemakers Manifesto here
If you have any question about today's episode, any comments or would like to be a guest on Couragemakers, get in touch: meg@thathummingbirdlife.com
I'm Meg and I'm the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I started this podcast because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I'm not recording episodes and making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life, sending free bullshit free reminders to hundreds of women every Sunday and helping my clients build brands they love as a graphic designer.
That Hummingbird Life | Twitter | Pinterest |
Hello Couragemakers and welcome to episode 45 of Couragemakers!
This week I’m talking to the wonderfully honest Meaghan Gallant. Meaghan is a holistic health coach, freelance writer, and virtual assistant. She is the creator behind Invoking Joy, an anti-thesis to the diet industry because she believes feeling GREAT doesn't have to be hard and it certainly doesn't have anything to do with the number on the scale. When she's not in front of a screen you can find her on a yoga mat, scribbling in her planner or with her nose stuck in a book.
In this episode, we’re talking really openly, honestly and vulnerably about depression and struggling with your mental health.
Meaghan shares her journey of training to be a health coach while struggling with depression, how she manages her depression and the blame we put on ourselves when we try something new and it doesn’t work.
We talk about how the online world is great at showing the good things, and the glittery part of self improving, but not so great at showing failure that doesn’t come with a happy ending, or the messy and complicated parts of working through your shit.
We dive into how euphoric happiness isn't sustainable, how trusting her intuition has led Meaghan to a life with more possibilities that works for her and Meaghan shares fantastic advice for anyone listening to struggles with their mental health and finding their light.
This episode is a great reminder that it’s not your obligation to shrink or fit into other people’s boxes, and that there really is hope even if you don’t feel it right now.
I’ve been excited to put this episode out for a while now because it’s one of the most honest and hopeful discussions about depression that I have seen online. Meaghan’s honesty is really refreshing, and I don’t think there will be a dry eye in the house by the end of the episode. As someone who struggles with depression, I find this episode so hopeful, so healing and it’s a great reminder that you’re not alone and you can find your own light.
ABOUT MEAGHAN
Meaghan is a holistic health coach, freelance writer, and virtual assistant. She created Invoking Joy to be an anti-thesis to the diet industry because feeling GREAT doesn't have to be hard and it certainly doesn't have anything to do with the number on the scale. When she's not in front of a screen you can find her on a yoga mat, scribbling in her planner or with her nose stuck in a book.
You can connect with Meaghan here: Invoking Joy | Website | Instagram | Twitter
THINGS WE TALKED ABOUT DURING TODAY'S SHOW
BOOKS/RESOURCES MENTIONED ON TODAY'S SHOW
FIND OUT MORE AND DOWNLOAD THE COURAGEMAKERS MANIFESTO HERE
If you have any question about today's episode, any comments or would like to be a guest on Couragemakers, get in touch: meg@thathummingbirdlife.com
ABOUT MEG & THAT HUMMINGBIRD LIFE
I'm Meg and I'm the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I started this podcast because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I'm not recording episodes and making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life, sending free self care checks ins to hundreds of women every Sunday and helping my clients build brands they love as a graphic designer. I've just come back from a 3 month road trip of the US with Mr. Meg and the future looks exciting!
Hello Couragemakers and welcome to episode 44 of Couragemakers!
This week I’m talking all things feminism, mental health and body acceptance with Rose Marie Gold. Rose is the the founder of Body Image Guru and is an activist for Fat Acceptance, Health At Every Size and Intersectional Body Image Education. She lives in Seattle, Washington and graduated with a bachelors in Marriage and Family Counselling, Psychology and Gender Studies from Central Washington.
In this episode, Rose shares her journey from being told by people she loved and teachers that she would never pass high school, to graduating with a bachelors, and how she came to embrace her experiences and founded Body Image Guru.
We get vulnerable about what it is to experience life as fat people, how we’re not always taken seriously as women, and what you can do to develop your own confidence and have a better relationship with your body.
We dive into the topic of spoon theory and chronic pain, how Rose practices self care, and how her own relationship with her body has changed since starting Body Image Guru.
Also, a quick heads up that this episode briefly mentions sexual assault and self harm.
I really love the work Rose is doing, and it’s so necessary in the world. This episode really reminds me of the quote: In a society that profits from your self doubt, liking yourself is a rebellious act’ and I think this episode and Rose’s work go a long way in starting that rebellion and reminding you that you’re not alone.
Rose Marie Gold, aka "The Body Image Guru", is the founder and creator of BodyImageGuru.com. She is an activist for Fat Acceptance, Health At Every Size & Intersectional Body Image Education. She graduated with her Bachelors in Marriage and Family Counseling, Psychology and Gender Studies from Central Washington and lives in Seattle, WA. Rose runs a ground breaking website dedicated to body image resources and articles she has been encouraging radical changes in body image for over half a decade.
She has most recently been interviewed by Choose Life Warrior on her youtube series, Amrie Defrates of Defrates Nutrition and as a plus size model on reality show The Fashion Hero.
You can connect with Rose here: Website | Twitter | Instagram |
Things we talked about during today's show
Books/Resources etc mentioned during today’s show
Find out more and download the Couragemakers Manifesto here
If you have any question about today's episode, any comments or would like to be a guest on Couragemakers, get in touch: meg@thathummingbirdlife.com
I'm Meg and I'm the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I started this podcast because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I'm not recording episodes and making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life, sending free self care checks ins to hundreds of women every Sunday and helping my clients build brands they love as a graphic designer..
That Hummingbird Life | Twitter | Pinterest |
Hello Couragemakers and welcome to the first episode of 2017!
So, I have a huge love hate relationship with the start of the new year. I love getting out new notebooks and writing down my dreams but I hate the bullshit around feeling like we have to change everything about who we are.
And that s why I’m so excited to share my episode with Elin Lööw. Elin is a writer and artist who set out to face her creative fears in 2016 with her Fear Year project. A project I absolutely adore, and I know you’ll be inspired to do by the end of this episode. Elin now helps fellow creatives find the courage to go after their dreams too. Elin is a self confessed twenty-something creative weirdo living and she lives Sweden with her boyfriend Petrus and our two cats Pysen and Alice.
In this episode, we really dive into Elin’s creative journey - from being a freely creative child to losing track of her creativity when she felt she had to be the best and how she came to embrace her creativity again. We have a really honest conversation about many of the struggles creatives face, from self doubt and fear to joy and trust.
Elin shares the inspiration behind her Fear Year project - a project to identify, challenge and work on her fears in 2016. She shares what her project looked like in practice and fantastic advice for anyone wanting to start their own Fear Year.
We really explore how Elin’s way of measuring her creative successes has changed, how her creative process has evolved and how Elin’s Fear Year really explored the connection between creativity and bravery.
We talk about how important identity is to our creativity, how important it is to bring what we want to the world, not just what other people want and just how lethal combination of pressure and perfectionism is to our creativity.
This episode is perfect if you’re a creative and you’re looking to get more brave with your creativity in 2017, if you feel creatively blocked and are desperately in need of some inspiration, and if you’re intrigued about the idea of the Fear Year and want to start your own!
Elin has so much practical advice for fellow creatives who feel scared to start or continue and really helpful and compassionate advice for anyone looking to get back to their creativity! Elin’s episode is the perfect start to 2017 and I hope you get as much out of our conversation as I did!
Be sure to listen all the way to the end to hear an update on Elin’s Fear Year! You can read Elin's update on her blog here.
Enjoy the show!
Elin Lööw is a writer and artist who set out to face her creative fears in 2016. Now she helps fellow creatives find the courage to go after their dreams too! She is a self confessed twenty-something creative weirdo living in Sweden with her boyfriend Petrus and our two cats Pysen and Alice.
You can connect with Elin here: Website | Fear Year Project | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest
Things we talked about during today's show
Books/Resources etc mentioned during today’s show
Find out more and download the Couragemakers Manifesto here
If you have any question about today's episode, any comments or would like to be a guest on Couragemakers, get in touch: meg@thathummingbirdlife.com
I'm Meg and I'm the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I started this podcast because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I'm not recording episodes and making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life, sending free self care checks ins to hundreds of women every Sunday and helping my clients build brands they love as a graphic designer. I'm currently on a 3 month road trip of the US with Mr. Meg but normally based in the UK.
That Hummingbird Life | Twitter | Pinterest |
Hello Couragemakers and welcome to the last episode of 2016!
Next week we’re taking a short one week break for the holidays, and then we’re back on January 2nd with a corker on an episode to start the new year on a great foot!
This week I have a fascinating interview for you, with forensic psychologist Julia Langley. Julia is from the UK and in her spare time, can be often found on her sofa watching YouTube videos to distract her from the impending doom of handing in her PhD thesis, doing the occasional yoga class, and writing
In this episode, Julia shares her journey to becoming a forensic psychologist, by the way of studying drama, running workshops in a women’s prison and being a support worker for people who struggle with drug and alcohol addiction.
We really get into how to look after yourself when you spend a lot of time supporting other people, tangible ways to avoid burnout and finding a lifestyle that makes you thrive and how tricky and scary it is redefining relationships in our personal lives to they work for us.
We really dive deep into the topic of boundaries and creating honest and healthy relationships in our lives, the parallels between how we help other people and our own lives, and just how important it is to figure out what kind of a person we are.
I loved chatting about the crossovers between mental health and the arts, how multipotentiality is changing the way we think about the future and practical ways we can top ourselves up after giving so much of ourselves to the world.
This is a fantastic episode if a lot of your life is dedicated to helping people, if you have a tendency to put other people’s needs in front of your own and if you struggle with imposter syndrome. Julia shares great advice for establishing boundaries with the people in your life, and the scary issue of redefining relationships when they’re feeling toxic.
I absolutely love this episode and how open and honest Julia is about her journey. I love how she shares her learning curves along the way and how she is so open about her own challenges when it comes to feeling responsibility over other people. Julie’s journey is really inspiring and it’s so great to hear how she’s balanced putting great shit into the world while looking after herself at the same time.
I know this episode is a much needed one, so enjoy the show!
Julia is currently training to be a forensic psychologist. In her spare time, she is often found on her sofa watching YouTube videos to distract her from the impending doom of handing in her PhD thesis, doing the occasional yoga class, and writing. Julia is very mindful of the balance between maintaining privacy due to her work, and voicing her opinions on subjects that she's passionate about.
You can connect with Julia here: Blog | Email | Instagram
Things we talked about during today's show
Books/Resources etc mentioned during today’s show
Find out more and download the Couragemakers Manifesto here
If you have any question about today's episode, any comments or would like to be a guest on Couragemakers, get in touch: meg@thathummingbirdlife.com
I'm Meg and I'm the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I started this podcast because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I'm not recording episodes and making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life, sending free self care checks ins to hundreds of women every Sunday and helping my clients build brands they love as a graphic designer. I'm currently on a 3 month road trip of the US with Mr. Meg but normally based in the UK.
That Hummingbird Life | Twitter | Pinterest |
Hello lovely Couragemakers!
This week I’m speaking with the wonderful Simi Botic. Simi is a corporate attorney-turned-health-coach and she helps women nourish and nurture their bodies and lives, so they can live FULLY. Simi is obsessed with coffee, beach vacations, and the 90s and is passionate about helping women get un-stuck!
In this episode, Simi shares her journey, from being a corporate attorney believing she was made to be a box ticker, to finding work that lights her up and brings to much joy to her life. I loved getting to know more about the work Simi does, and chatting about how to give yourself validation and appreciation if you work for yourself.
In today’s show, we really dive deep into choosing yourself and giving yourself permission to explore the things that make you happy. We have so many great conversations about saying no, being brave and reevaluating where you’re at and following the things that you think might make you happy even if you have no idea where they’ll lead.
We also explore importance of boredom, the glorification of busyness and how giving ourselves space to get to know ourselves is one of the most important things we can do.
This episode is such a powerful reminder that we have so much to offer the world in terms of our ideas, our passions and our insights and our lives would change so much if we started saying yes to ourselves.
This is a fantastic, practical episode and Simi has so much great advice for anyone struggling with how to say now and people who struggle with being a people pleaser.
I loved chatting to Simi and our conversation put a massive smile on my face. Simi is so honest and her story is so relatable and I know you’re going to get a lot from today’s episode.
Enjoy the show!
Simi Botic is obsessed with coffee, beach vacations, and the 90s. A corporate attorney-turned-health-coach, she helps women nourish and nurture their bodies and lives, so they can live FULLY! Simi is passionate about helping women get un-stuck, ditch diets, reconnect with their internal voice, and discover their powerful intuition — in both their body and life.
You can connect with Simi here: Website | Twitter | Instagram | Free Breaking Up With Binges Video Series
Things we talked about during today's show
Find out more and download the Couragemakers Manifesto here
If you have any question about today's episode, any comments or would like to be a guest on Couragemakers, get in touch: meg@thathummingbirdlife.com
I'm Meg and I'm the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I started this podcast because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.
When I'm not recording episodes and making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life, sending free self care checks ins to hundreds of women every Sunday and helping my clients build brands they love as a graphic designer.
That Hummingbird Life | Twitter | Pinterest |