Have you ever felt like you were doing everything “right” — checking every box, following every rule — and still ending up restless, disappointed, or wondering, Is this really the life I want?

In today’s episode, we’re talking about something many of us rule-followers were never taught how to do: questioning authority.

We’ll unpack:

Where the formulas and “life scripts” we’ve been following actually came from

How to recognize when a leader, community, or cultural voice doesn’t deserve authority in your life

A practical vetting process for deciding who should get a seat at your table

What to do when a leader you trusted lets you down

How to quiet the noise of other people’s expectations and hear your own voice again

If you’ve ever felt crushed by the weight of doing what you’re “supposed” to do, this episode will help you take a deep breath, release the old scripts, and start writing a life that truly fits.

✨ Resources & Links

📘 Create a Life You Love (my newest book)

💻 My online courses & journals

💍 Newlywed couples course — Just Married: StephanieMayWilson.com/JustMarried

❤️ Free resource to find a counselor you can trust: StephanieMayWilson.com/Counseling

Make sure you’re subscribed so you don’t miss what’s ahead this season — because together we’re going to keep unpacking how to let go of other people’s expectations and rebuild a life that feels like home.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Season 22 is here — and Girls Night just turned 8! In this special kickoff, Stephanie introduces our new series, Not the Life I Ordered, a single, long, rolling conversation about what to do when your life doesn’t look or feel the way you thought it would — especially in The Everything Era, when all the biggest decisions arrive at once.

You’ll hear the origin story of Girls Night, why this season is different, why so many of us feel disoriented and isolated right now, and a simple practice to turn down the noise so you can hear (and trust) your own voice again. Stephanie also guides you through three clarifying questions and leaves you with four grounding reminders — including this one: It’s not too late.

In this episode:

Resource mentioned:

What to Say Script Guide — practical, word-for-word responses for uncomfortable family questions (marriage, kids, timelines & more): stephaniemaywilsonshop.com

If this resonates, please follow/subscribe and leave a quick rating & review — it helps more women find the show. And say hi! DM or email me — I truly write back.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What happens when two of the biggest parts of your life collide—your career and your desire to start a family?

That’s exactly what we’re talking about in today’s Girls Night episode. I’m joined by my dear friend Jena Dunay—a mom of two, business owner, and career strategist who has spent years helping women navigate big transitions in their work lives.

Jena knows firsthand what it looks like to juggle both career ambitions and motherhood dreams, and she’s here to share the wisdom she’s learned along the way.

In this conversation, we cover:

How to prepare your career for baby before you’re even pregnant

What to do if you love your job but also know you want to start a family soon

Whether you should “pull back” at work before baby—or lean in until it’s time to pivot

How to know if your workplace will really support you as a mom

The truth about maternity leave (paid vs. unpaid, how it works, what to ask your HR team)

When and how to tell your employer you’re pregnant

Practical ways to set boundaries and actually enjoy your maternity leave

How to define “success” in your career during different motherhood seasons

This episode is full of encouragement and practical advice for anyone who’s in what I call The Everything Era—that stretch of life when so many big decisions seem to come at once. If you’ve ever wondered how to hold space for both a career you love and a family you’re dreaming of, this conversation will be such a gift.

Resources & Links:

Connect with Jena: Instagram / Company

Listen to Jena’s past Girls Night episodes on dating, singleness, and career transitions.

More encouragement + resources for navigating The Everything Era: stephaniemaywilson.com

✨ If you loved this conversation, would you take 30 seconds to leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify? It means the world and helps more women find the show.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hey friend, welcome to Girls Night — a podcast for women who are figuring out what's next. 

Whether you're focused on career, dating, getting married, having kids, or honestly just trying to figure out your life right now — this show gives you expert guidance and practical next steps to create a life you genuinely love, not one someone else thinks you should live.

I'm Stephanie May Wilson — 9x author, TEDx speaker, and your host here at girls night and in each episode, we tackle the questions that keep so many of us up at 2 AM — like what to say when people ask invasive questions about your life choices, how to stop comparing your timeline to everyone else's, and most importantly, how to figure out what you actually want and what your next right step is to get there.

As we’re trying to figure out our lives, you might find yourself running into some obstacles and wondering, “Is this normal?” Does everybody struggle with this or am I the only one?” Or maybe like me, you've had several friends receive ADHD diagnoses recently, and you're wondering,”What about me? Am I neurotypical? Or are there some things that are different and unique about my brain too?”

Friend, in this episode you're going to hear from Greer Jones. Greer is the host of The Unfinished Idea podcast and a passionate advocate for neurodivergent families, helping others build lives that actually work for their unique brains. 

I learned SO much from this conversation. I can’t wait for you to hear it. 

Resources Mentioned:

https://stephaniemaywilson.com/SingleLife

https://stephaniemaywilson.com/JustMarried

https://stephaniemaywilson.com/becomingmama

https://stephaniemaywilson.com/create

Connect with Girls Night:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/girls-night-with-stephanie-may-wilson/id1278993781

https://www.instagram.com/smaywilson/

https://stephaniemaywilson.com/email

https://www.girlsnightpodcast.com/

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Do you ever feel like everything on your to-do list is important? Like, genuinely important? And you want to do it all well, but you're also feeling completely overwhelmed and maybe a little burned out?

If you just nodded your head, this episode is for you.

I'm sitting down with my new friend Alexandra Kaval — who coaches ambitious women through exactly this struggle. And friends, this conversation is going to give you permission to think differently about your priorities and actually provide you with a roadmap for getting unstuck.

We're talking about the big rocks method, why the things we get distracted by are never as important as the things we get distracted from - that's an Andy Stanley quote that will stick with you - and honestly, some pretty vulnerable stuff about how to rank the people in your life when you can't say yes to everyone.

This is one of those conversations that's going to make you want to grab a notebook because Ali shares some really practical tools that you can start using today.

So let's dive in.

Resources Mentioned:

→ Join the email fam to receive instant access to our 15-minute coaching workshop

→ Apply for your complimentary clarity call for 1:1 coaching to live your most intentional, Christ-centered life both personally & professionally

→ Apply for Flourish - GSCC's Mastermind to grow your business, ground your faith, and cultivate community

https://stephaniemaywilson.com/SingleLife

https://stephaniemaywilson.com/JustMarried

https://stephaniemaywilson.com/becomingmama

https://stephaniemaywilson.com/create

Connect with Girls Night:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/girls-night-with-stephanie-may-wilson/id1278993781

https://www.instagram.com/smaywilson/

https://stephaniemaywilson.com/email

https://www.girlsnightpodcast.com/

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ever wonder how happy couples actually divide up household tasks without constant arguments? In this candid conversation, Stephanie sits down with her husband Carl to reveal the ONE thing that transformed their marriage: figuring out who does what around the house.

After 11 years of marriage, they've cracked the code on avoiding resentment, eliminating daily arguments about chores, and creating a system that actually works. They share their real-life examples (including Carl's Marie Kondo folding methods vs. Stephanie's "bomb went off" approach), how they handle disagreements, and why clarity is the secret to feeling seen and appreciated.

Whether you're newlyweds, engaged, or just tired of fighting about the dishwasher, this episode gives you practical tools to create your own system that works for YOUR relationship.

What You'll Learn:

Resources Mentioned:

Connect with Stephanie:

If this episode helped you, please leave a quick rating and review - it makes such a difference in helping other couples find these conversations!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Have you ever rehearsed a difficult conversation perfectly in the shower but completely froze when it came time to actually have it? Maybe you're avoiding setting a boundary with a friend, dreading the "where is this relationship going?" talk, or putting off asking for help when you're overwhelmed. If you've ever lost sleep over conversations you know you need to have but keep putting off, this episode is for you.

This episode is for you if you've ever felt like everyone else got a manual for how to navigate conflict while you're just winging it, caught yourself saying "yes" when you wanted to say "no" because you didn't know how to set boundaries, or worried that speaking up about your needs would damage your relationships instead of strengthening them.

In this episode of Girls Night, Stephanie breaks down exactly how to prepare for and navigate life's most difficult conversations. You'll get word-for-word scripts, practical strategies, and the confidence to finally have those talks you've been avoiding.

What You'll Learn:

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today we're tackling something I know so many of you are dealing with as we head into summer family gathering season.

Have you ever been at a family event when someone - let's call her Aunt Sharon - starts asking those pointed questions that somehow manage to hit every single insecurity you've been trying not to think about?

You know the ones: 'So, are you seeing anyone special?' followed immediately by 'You're not getting any younger, you know.' Or maybe it's 'When are you giving me some grandchildren?' or 'Are you still doing that little blog thing?'

Cue the internal screaming, right?

Today we're diving into what I call 'The Aunt Sharon Effect' - why these well-meaning questions feel like such a gut punch, and most importantly, how to handle them with grace while protecting your own heart and mind.

We'll cover practical scripts you can actually use, mindset shifts that will change everything, and how to walk away from these conversations feeling empowered instead of deflated.

Because here's what I've learned: the way we handle these moments says so much about how confidently we're walking in our own authority.

And building that confidence? That's exactly what we're going to work on today. Let's dive in!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Have you ever scrolled through Instagram seeing friend groups on vacation together, celebrating everything as a unit, and genuinely wondered, "How do they all live in the same city? How did they find each other? And how can I find my people?"

Maybe you've moved somewhere new and you're still making small talk with acquaintances months later. Or you're tired of being the one who always has to reach out first, scheduling friend dates 30 days in advance like business meetings. If you've ever felt like everyone else has their tight-knit friend group figured out while you're still searching for yours, you're not alone.

In this episode of Girls Night, Stephanie sits down with entrepreneur and community builder Liz Forkin Bohannon to talk about how to build the kind of intentional community we're all craving — even when you're starting from scratch.

📱 Follow Liz on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/lizbohannon/?hl=en

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hey friend! Welcome to Girls Night — your home as you navigate your Everything Era. I'm Stephanie May Wilson, and if you've ever had to excuse yourself to cry in a bathroom at someone else's celebration, this episode is for you.

You know the feeling, right? You're genuinely happy for your friend who just got engaged, promoted, or pregnant — but there's this other part that feels like each piece of good news for someone else somehow makes your own dreams less likely to come true. If you've ever wondered how to be happy for friends when you're struggling with jealousy of friends' success, you're absolutely not alone.

Today, I'm giving you a complete survival kit for celebrating friends' success when you're still waiting for your own good news. We'll talk about navigating wedding jealousy when you're single, baby shower jealousy when you're trying to conceive, and promotion parties when you're job searching.

But first, let me tell you about the day before my husband Carl proposed to me, when one of my good friends got engaged — and I completely broke down at an Italian restaurant. Because here's what I learned that changed everything: just because someone else got something before you doesn't mean they got it instead of you. Your story is still being written, and someone else's timeline doesn't determine yours.

So grab your coffee, put in those earbuds, and let's dive in.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices