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This episode is my honest look at a year that didn’t go the way I planned. I’m talking about the kind of year that forces you to sit still, drink something warm, and admit that the only silver lining you walked away with was resilience--aka, what you earn by getting dragged through situations you never signed up for. Add to that the human negativity bias, working hard to convince me the whole year was a wash.

I walk you through the moments that shaped 2025 for me: a long-awaited family trip derailed by illness and rain, the emotional gymnastics of parenting toddlers through airport chaos, and the strange comfort of realizing I can’t control most of what hits my life...only how I interpret it. I didn’t find a bright side in any of it--because sometimes, that's the honest truth--but I did manage to find a way to see these events as neutral instead of catastrophic. That’s where resilience started to take shape.

If your year felt heavy, or if you ended December convinced you failed more than you grew, this episode is for you. I break down how our minds naturally overemphasize the hard moments and undervalue the wins, and how you can overcome negativity bias so you see a more accurate version of your life. Not a positive spin--a genuine one. Because resilience becomes real once you stop letting negativity bias run the narrative.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode

• How negativity bias exaggerates what went wrong and hides what went right
• Why resilience sucks to build, and often shows up disguised as disappointment
• The role of neutral interpretation when positivity feels dishonest
• What we can actually can control when life refuses to follow the damn script
• How to see the year you actually lived instead of the version your brain fixates on

The REAL Change Kickstart is a 45-day 1:1 coaching intensive designed to help you:

• Identify the behaviors keeping you stuck
• Unlearn what is no longer serving you
• Create new patterns that align with what you truly want

Click here to get started.

Interested in longer-term support for making a significant change? Send me a message at [email protected] to get started.

Want to learn more about the art, science, philosophy, and psychology of making significant life changes? Sign up HERE for my weekly newsletter and have the Changeology podcast delivered straight into your inbox!

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Show Notes

Walking Away from the Success You've Built: The Art of Making Countercultural Decisions (with Jordan Schanda King)

Some seasons of life don’t ask politely. They rip open the seams of your identity and force you to decide what you’re willing to carry into the next chapter. This episode is about that moment. It’s about the woman you become when the version of you that built your success isn't a fit anymore.

Jordan Schanda King is a serial entrepreneur, author, and former founder of Easy Scaling and Scaling School. She’s built and sold multiple companies, supported hundreds of women in scaling their businesses, and lived most of her working life in the dual roles of visionary and integrator. Somewhere between her second and third child, her ambition shape-shifted, her identity cracked open, and the business she once loved no longer fit. Her decision to sell Easy Scaling at the peak of its success became the catalyst for a full internal reorientation.

This is for anyone who feels the quiet tension of outgrowing the life--and success--they've built. 

Women whose ambition feels different than it used to. 

Mothers who sense they’re changing in ways no one talks about--and in ways they couldn't have predicted.

Jordan’s story is a clean, honest look at identity shapeshifting, trusting your gut, and giving yourself permission to evolve without apology.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode

• Why identity shifts often show up as confusion, restlessness, or a sudden lack of attachment to work you used to love
• The profound shift to motherhood, and how it can fundamentally alter your ambition, energy, and sense of self
• The difference between pressure-driven ambition and grounded desire, and how Jordan recognized the line
• What really happens emotionally and practically when you sell a business at your peak
• Why most women already know the answer to the change they’re avoiding

The REAL Change Kickstart is a 45-day 1:1 coaching intensive designed to help you:

• Identify the behaviors keeping you stuck
• Unlearn what is no longer serving you
• Create new patterns that align with what you truly want

Click here to get started.

Interested in longer-term support for making a significant change? Send me a message at [email protected] to get started.

Want to learn more about the art, science, philosophy, and psychology of making significant life changes? Sign up HERE for my weekly newsletter and have the Changeology podcast delivered straight into your inbox!

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Changeology Clinic:

When you’re stuck in “I can’t,” you’re not broken—you’re obeying invisible rules you never agreed to. Those rules usually start with a “should.” In this episode of Changeology Clinic, Meg unpacks how those subtle, inherited scripts quietly dictate your behavior, shape your identity, and block your ability to change. 

Drawing from her background in developmental psychology and years of coaching women through identity-level change, Meg introduces one of her most practical tools: Small Acts of Rebellion. 

These are the tiny, intentional choices that challenge the “insidious shoulds” and rebuild two essential ingredients for real transformation—self-efficacy (trusting yourself to follow through) and psychological safety (feeling safe enough to try). 

If you’re exhausted by perfectionism, stuck in people-pleasing, or constantly negotiating between what you want and what’s expected, this one’s for you. You’ll learn how to stop asking for permission and start taking small, deliberate steps that return you to your own authority. 

WHAT YOU’LL LEARN IN THIS EPISODE

-How “insidious shoulds” unconsciously shape your behavior and identity--without your consent
-Why rebellion (done right) is a powerful psychological tool—not just an act of defiance
-The two building blocks of meaningful change: self-efficacy and psychological safety
-How small, low-stakes acts of rebellion rebuild self-trust and confidence over time
-Real examples of small rebellions that disrupt overwork, guilt, and perfectionism

The REAL Change Kickstart is a 45-day 1:1 coaching intensive designed to help you:

• Identify the behaviors keeping you stuck
• Unlearn what is no longer serving you
• Create new patterns that align with what you truly want

Click here to get started.

Interested in longer-term support for making a significant change? Send me a message at [email protected] to get started.

Want to learn more about the art, science, philosophy, and psychology of making significant life changes? Sign up HERE for my weekly newsletter and have the Changeology podcast delivered straight into your inbox!

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When It Keeps You Up at Night: How Sleep Training Became a Masterclass in Change

When you’re running on no sleep, even the smallest change can feel impossible. In this episode of Changeology, I’m joined by Sarah Smith, certified pediatric sleep consultant and founder of Swallowtail Sleep. Sarah helps families of children from newborn to age eight create evidence-based sleep plans tailored to each child’s physiology—and each parent’s sanity.

Sarah’s approach is rooted in empathy, data, and partnership. Our conversation isn’t just about sleep—it’s about how we navigate change when we’re exhausted, anxious, or grieving the version of parenthood we thought we’d have. We explore what sleep disruption can teach us about emotional regulation, trust, and the messy, nonlinear process of change.

If you’ve ever resisted change because it was inconvenient, questioned your instincts as a parent, or struggled to stay calm in the chaos, this one’s for you.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• Why even “good” change brings grief—and what to do with it
• How resistance shows up in parenting and what it really means
• Why disruption is data (and how to use it to guide your next step)
• The parallels between fitness, coaching, and sleep work
• The difference between boundaries and control—and how to hold them without guilt

Connect with Sarah:

www.swallowtailsleep.com

Instagram: swallowtail.sleep

Facebook: swallowtailsleep

The REAL Change Kickstart is a 45-day 1:1 coaching intensive designed to help you:

• Identify the behaviors keeping you stuck
• Unlearn what is no longer serving you
• Create new patterns that align with what you truly want

Click here to get started.

Interested in longer-term support for making a significant change? Send me a message at [email protected] to get started.

Want to learn more about the art, science, philosophy, and psychology of making significant life changes? Sign up HERE for my weekly newsletter and have the Changeology podcast delivered straight into your inbox!

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What if the voice you’ve been quieting is the one that would change everything? Today we talk about the messy middle between “I can’t” and “I’m doing it”—where intuition lives, fear gets loud, and small, repeatable moves create outsized momentum.

 My guest is Amanda Riffee—bestselling author of Unleashing You, internationally certified expansion & empowerment coach, speaker, and host of the Unleashing You with Amanda Riffee podcast. After 18 years in corporate leadership (17 with the same company), Amanda hit burnout on repeat and made a radical, values-led pivot that turned into retreats, a hit podcast, a book tour, and a business that actually fits.

 If you’re on the cusp of a leap—or you’re done outsourcing your decisions to fear, ego, or someone else’s expectations—this conversation is your permission slip. We break down the difference between intuition and anxiety, how to take the first three steps when you can’t see the whole staircase, and how to use your values to decide what’s truly worth your energy.

What You’ll Learn 

• How to tell intuition from fear and ego (and why your first quiet signal matters)
• The “first three steps” method to start anything when you can’t see the roadmap
• Using values as a decision filter to avoid burnout-level sacrifice
• Boundary-setting in real life: “If it’s not a heck yes, it’s a heck no”
• Small steps → big outcomes: Amanda’s first retreat story and how she trusted the nudge

Connect with Amanda

Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/amandariffee_coaching/

LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanda-riffee/

Website:
https://acrprofessionalcoaching.com/

Unleashing You Book:
https://acrprofessionalcoaching.com/unleashing-you-book

The REAL Change Kickstart is a 45-day 1:1 coaching intensive designed to help you:

• Identify the behaviors keeping you stuck
• Unlearn what is no longer serving you
• Create new patterns that align with what you truly want

Click here to get started.

Interested in longer-term support for making a significant change? Send me a message at [email protected] to get started.

Want to learn more about the art, science, philosophy, and psychology of making significant life changes? Sign up HERE for my weekly newsletter and have the Changeology podcast delivered straight into your inbox!

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*On alignment, approval, and why the most honest choice often looks wrong to everyone else*

I thought I was just (procrastinating) planning a birthday party for my twins. Every time I thought about the party, I found myself knee-deep in shoulds: good-mom expectations, Pinterest-perfect pressure, and the quiet panic of wanting to do it “right.” 

Shouldn’t a “good mom” want to plan a big, fun party for her kids? Shouldn’t a “good mom” get excited about it?

By the time I’d debated cake flavors, shade tents, and guest lists, I realized the party I was planning had nothing to do with my kids’ joy and everything to do with other people’s comfort and expectations, and with my own "shoulds."

It was at that point that I realized that my procrastination was telling me something. I didn’t want to plan or host a big party. 

So I did something that felt completely countercultural: I didn’t throw the party. I made a different choice. A few humans our kids love, a day at the pool, and homemade ice cream…and it turned out to be one of the most joyful, aligned, and connected experiences of my life, both for me and for my kids. 

This Changeology Clinic episode isn’t really about parenting. 

It’s about the invisible expectations that shape your decisions, and how terrifying it can feel to choose what’s true for you instead. 

It’s about what happens when you stop twisting yourself into someone else’s definition of “good.” 

It’s about that moment you realize that being authentic might cost you approval…and decide to do it anyway.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode

• How “good” quietly becomes a performance
• Why procrastination is often your body’s way of saying “this isn’t it”
• What alignment actually feels like (and why it often starts as guilt)
• Three coaching questions that will help you make the choice that’s true over the one that looks right
• Why disappointing people might be the most honest--and rebellious--thing you ever do

The REAL Change Kickstart is a 45-day 1:1 coaching intensive designed to help you:

• Identify the behaviors keeping you stuck
• Unlearn what is no longer serving you
• Create new patterns that align with what you truly want

Click here to get started.

Interested in longer-term support for making a significant change? Send me a message at [email protected] to get started.

Want to learn more about the art, science, philosophy, and psychology of making significant life changes? Sign up HERE for my weekly newsletter and have the Changeology podcast delivered straight into your inbox!

Connect with Meg:

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What happens when you've achieved everything you thought you wanted—only to realize you still feel dangerously empty? Lesley Calvo’s story is a masterclass in radical reinvention. After building a career at the top of the fashion world, designing for names like Hugo Boss, Dior, and Cartier, Lesley found herself deeply unfulfilled, burned out, and quietly suicidal. What came next was a full-body pivot, fueled by intuition, deep healing, and an unwavering commitment to finding out what real success feels like.

Lesley Calvo is a Mindset and Energy Coach who helps people break free from internal limitations and reconnect with their joy, peace, and power. Formerly a world-renowned jewelry designer, Lesley left her career at its peak to begin a new chapter—one rooted in healing, spirituality, and self-trust. Today, she works with clients around the globe and is leading a powerful research project on happiness.

Why This Episode Matters:
If you’ve ever wondered why “having it all” still doesn’t feel like enough—or you’re craving a life that feels more aligned, soulful, and free—this episode is for you. Lesley offers both spiritual insight and grounded, practical tools for finding your way back to yourself.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

🌟 The truth about success: what no one tells you when you’re at the top
 🌟 How Lesley moved from suicidal burnout to self-love and deep peace
 🌟 Why the nervous system resists change—and how to work with it
🌟 A body-based tool to distinguish intuition from fear
🌟 How to move through identity death when letting go of “who you were”
🌟 The overlooked power of micro-movements (and how 1° shifts change everything)

🎙 Tune in to the full episode via the link in the comments below!

Connect with Lesley:

https://www.lesleycalvo.com/

 Instagram

Facebook

The REAL Change Kickstart is a 45-day 1:1 coaching intensive designed to help you:

• Identify the behaviors keeping you stuck
• Unlearn what is no longer serving you
• Create new patterns that align with what you truly want

Click here to get started.

Interested in longer-term support for making a significant change? Send me a message at [email protected] to get started.

Want to learn more about the art, science, philosophy, and psychology of making significant life changes? Sign up HERE for my weekly newsletter and have the Changeology podcast delivered straight into your inbox!

Connect with Meg:

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Send us a text

Do You Deserve Joy? Asking the Question That Changes Everything

What if the fear isn’t that you’ll fail—but that you might actually feel good? That you might like your life?

In this conversation, Sarah De Block shares how one question—“Do I deserve joy?”—became the gateway to a completely different way of living. We talk about the hidden cost of “comfort,” the whisper of intuition underneath the noise of ambition, and how joy isn't a reward you earn for suffering—it’s something you get to choose. Sarah didn’t blow up her life overnight. She chose slow change, sacred pacing, and nervous system integrity over hustle. The result? A life she actually wants to be in.

Sarah is the founder of Soma Yoga Healing Center in Alexandria, Virginia, and author of The Year of Sarah, a memoir chronicling her journey from corporate engineer to Ayurvedic yoga practitioner. Before opening her healing center, she spent years navigating burnout, performance pressure, and the disconnection that comes from living a life designed for someone else.

If you've ever asked yourself, “Is this all there is?” or felt like success left you strangely numb, this episode is for you. Especially if you're sitting in a life that’s technically working—but quietly wondering what it might mean to feel fully alive.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• How to recognize when you're stuck in a "logical" life that’s misaligned with your values
• What joy really is—and why it’s not the same as happiness or achievement
• How Sarah faced down deeply embedded fears around money, failure, and identity during her transition
• The surprising reason she slowed down instead of leaping—and how that protected her nervous system
• How Ayurveda reframes burnout, emotion, and energy through elemental balance

Connect with Sarah: 

https://somayogahealing.com/
https://a.co/d/7qql2qP
@somayogaalx
@sarahdeblock_heals

The REAL Change Kickstart is a 45-day 1:1 coaching intensive designed to help you:

• Identify the behaviors keeping you stuck
• Unlearn what is no longer serving you
• Create new patterns that align with what you truly want

Click here to get started.

Interested in longer-term support for making a significant change? Send me a message at [email protected] to get started.

Want to learn more about the art, science, philosophy, and psychology of making significant life changes? Sign up HERE for my weekly newsletter and have the Changeology podcast delivered straight into your inbox!

Connect with Meg:

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In this episode of the Changeology podcast, I tackle one of the biggest roadblocks to making meaningful change: self-trust. If you’ve ever found yourself second-guessing every decision, deferring to everyone else’s comfort, or drowning in endless research instead of acting, this conversation is for you.

I dive into why so many women learn to distrust their own voices and choices, and why building self-trust is the cornerstone of creating any real change in life.

This episode is packed with practical, psychology-rooted strategies you can use today to strengthen your self-trust muscle and start reclaiming your agency. If you’ve been waiting to feel more confident in your own decisions, this is the place to start.

In This Episode:

• Why self-trust is a skill (and not something you’re born with or without)
• How treating your intuition like a best friend changes everything
• Small acts of rebellion that disrupt the insidious “shoulds” running your life
• Why boundaries are really just promises to yourself—and how to keep them
• The surprising way people-pleasers often sabotage their own boundaries
• How every firmly kept boundary is a vote for yourself and your priorities

The REAL Change Kickstart is a 45-day 1:1 coaching intensive designed to help you:

• Identify the behaviors keeping you stuck
• Unlearn what is no longer serving you
• Create new patterns that align with what you truly want

Click here to get started.

Interested in longer-term support for making a significant change? Send me a message at [email protected] to get started.

Want to learn more about the art, science, philosophy, and psychology of making significant life changes? Sign up HERE for my weekly newsletter and have the Changeology podcast delivered straight into your inbox!

Connect with Meg:

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In this episode of the Changeology podcast, I sit down with Maegan Megginson, a Holistic Business Mentor and Licensed Therapist who helps entrepreneurs create more sustainable and energizing businesses. Maegan is the founder of the Deeply Rested platform and host of the podcast and newsletter of the same name. Her work centers on helping changemakers and creatives resist burnout and embrace deep rest—not just as recovery, but as fuel for transformation.

We dive into Maegan’s personal journey from therapist to burnout to sabbatical to coach, and explore how deep rest isn’t just a luxury—it’s a leadership skill, a recovery practice, and an act of rebellion. From redefining our cultural conditioning around productivity to discovering how rest can actually generate energy and clarity, this conversation is a game-changer for anyone navigating major change.

Whether you're in a season of burnout, transition, or bold creation, Maegan offers both wisdom and practical tools for integrating rest into your everyday life—and using it to power your next leap.

Find Maegan’s work at:
 www.deeplyrested.com
www.deeplyrested.com/podcast
www.deeplyrested.com/newsletter
 

Maegan’s recommended reads:
Rest is Resistance by Tricia Hersey
Sacred Rest by Saundra Dalton-Smith

Maegan’s Rest Menu: https://maegan-megginson.kit.com/changeology

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• Why rest is a rebellious act—and how it challenges internalized systems of capitalism, patriarchy, and burnout culture
• What “deep rest” really is (hint: it’s not just naps), and how it supports both nervous system regulation and energy regeneration
• How Maegan’s sabbatical transformed her view of service, success, and sustainability—and why she now coaches others through similar resets
• Why rest is essential during times of change, not just after
• How to identify your personal “rest style” and use it as a strategic tool to fuel change

The REAL Change Kickstart is a 45-day 1:1 coaching intensive designed to help you:

• Identify the behaviors keeping you stuck
• Unlearn what is no longer serving you
• Create new patterns that align with what you truly want

Click here to get started.

Interested in longer-term support for making a significant change? Send me a message at [email protected] to get started.

Want to learn more about the art, science, philosophy, and psychology of making significant life changes? Sign up HERE for my weekly newsletter and have the Changeology podcast delivered straight into your inbox!

Connect with Meg:

Website

LinkedIn

Instagram