A Side of Syrup Podcast - EP019: Lessons in Elevated Living with Meghan Donovan
Rule #1: Be Kind To Everyone
If I had to live out anyone’s personal and professional playbook, it would be Meghan Donovan’s. She believes in herself, her joy, and making the most memorable life possible, that it’s no wonder she’s living the life most of us dream of. Which includes living in France this entire month!
Meghan is kind above all else. She’s spent years making the hard work seem easy and letting us into her world one croissant at a time. Her grit and determination have gotten her to actually be living her dreams. But it’s her kindness that keeps us all rooting for her.
In this episode Meghan shares how she built her brand and businesses. Meghan also dives into her wellness routine — from a mutual favorite product to her tips on sunscreen after her skin cancer diagnosis.
This episode is a real treat (in more ways than one!) Meghan is a delight to know, learn from, and follow on all socials. See below on everywhere you can find her.
I can personally attest to Meghan’s Paris, Perfected trip planning. I was one of her very first clients. And the trip to Paris was an absolute dream with her inside scoop and hyper-personalized reccomendations. If you’re planning a trip there, don’t hesitate and work with Meghan!
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About our guest:
Meghan Donovan is the author of lifestyle site wit & whimsy and Paris, Perfected. She has traveled to Paris more than anywhere else in the world. Meghan first visited Paris as a child and fell in love with the City of Lights only to return over the years before living there for four months in 2005.
Nowadays she splits her time between New York City and Paris and is always on the hunt to find the city’s best hidden gems, newest restaurants, favorite haunts for locals and more to share with her clients.
Meghan created Paris, Perfected to share the best of Paris with others. Whether you’re visiting Paris for the first time, have been many times or have special, specific requests for your upcoming trip, Meghan will work closely with you to ensure you get the very best recommendations for your time in Paris.
With over 500 trips booked since July 2019 and glowing testimonials to boot - Paris, Perfected is the way to experience Paris at its best.
Resources:
Connect with Meghan:
Trip Planning: Paris, Perfected
Website: wit & whimsy
Instagram: @meghandono
TikTok: @parisperfected
Pinterest: @meghandono
Connect with Shannon:
Website: thisissyrup.com
Instagram: @shannonpfef
Private FB Community: Eating 4 Energy Wellness Community
Facebook: www.facebook.com/syrupcoaching
Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/syrupcoaching
Syrup free resources: thisissyrup.com/resource-library
Full episode transcript:
Hi! My name is Shannon Pfeffer. I'm obsessed with understanding the how and the why behind feeling good and translating that knowledge into strategies that help you live better.
Each week we'll dive into conversations about food, fitness, stress, career, and family. We'll learn from each other, feel more connected, and we'll explore ways to design a life you love.
So what are you waiting for? Keep listening for tips, tricks, and fun facts about feeling good, looking good, and living better. And don't forget to bring a snack. This is the A Side of Syrup Podcast.
00:00.00
syrupcoaching
Hello everybody today. 1 of my favorite people and probably somebody you guys have been following on social media and her blog for quite some time now. But I am thrilled to introduce. If. You don't know her get ready to know her Megan Donovan and Megan and I worked together eons ago and she has come so far building her own brand her own company and this lifestyle that is just. Just want to step into your Instagram feed every day and like be your bestise um, but Megan in in your own words tell me tell me who you are what you do I want everybody to know the the whole gamut of your expertise and then we'll kind of.
00:34.94
Meghan
Um, perfect.
00:48.71
syrupcoaching
Dive into everything else.
00:50.84
Meghan
Amazing. Well thank you so much for having me shan and it's fun to reconnect and revisit with you. Um, my name is Megan Donovan I'm the founder of both wit and whimsy which is a lifestyle blog really tailored towards elevated living. And then also the founder of Paris perfected which is a bespoke Paris trip planning service.
01:09.89
syrupcoaching
Which I have used in like a couple years. Yeah right? Yes, yes, ah cores and also like former very satisfied client because.
01:13.10
Meghan
Yes, by former client. You were one of my first clients. So thank you? ah.
01:24.97
syrupcoaching
When I got my like Paris perfected itinerary I was like I I mean I'm here for you know this is certain I don't know if I can do all this I want to do all of this and more and like show ah go back and show Megan like I did it all? um.
01:33.94
Meghan
Yeah, that's always my challenge is I always give more because I'm like people like to have options but then everyone comes back to me and they're like we can't wait to use more of your rocks on our next trip which I'm like okay that's.
01:42.62
syrupcoaching
He has. No one.
01:50.33
Meghan
Job all done that I've inspired you that you want to get back to Paris but yeah, it's always Paris is one of those places where I say it's like you can never do it all in 1 trip and you just have to like you know manifest a return so that you can do everything else that you didn't get to on the first trip.
02:03.46
syrupcoaching
Exactly exactly it's like 1 of those places where every time I'm there I'm like it's an annual trip like I I mean you're you're much closer on the East Coast it's like easier flight for him. But for us I'm like it's it's just a stopover like we'll go there for a couple days. Not.
02:10.84
Meghan
Um, yes.
02:22.60
syrupcoaching
Actually that sounds terrible. Paris is not a stop over destin. It's a destination but you know like yeah.
02:23.70
Meghan
Yeah, yeah, so it's a good combo with London though. It's like a good combination. So I mean you have kids so I feel like London is at London and Paris I feel like are so well suited to bringing children and so you just have to to plan for it. Yeah, but you're right I'm I'm a little bit spoiled being based.
02:34.70
syrupcoaching
Listen.
02:41.30
Meghan
I say now that I'm based in New York and in Paris because I'm over there frequently enough but it is almost too easy to go from New York city it's under 6 hours so it's it's really wonderful I don't think I can ever like leave these coast because of that.
02:52.43
syrupcoaching
You know, no, it's so the cozy thing that I forgot about too like it's like you go to San Francisco or go to Paris I choose Paris a hundred out of a hundred times. Yeah, ah, okay, well so let's.
03:02.30
Meghan
Yeah.
03:08.47
syrupcoaching
Ah, dive back into a little bit about um the story of win and whimsy for everybody on on listening today Megan and I worked at um, a global pr and ad agency together for quite a long time and we got to.
03:21.82
Meghan
My first job out of college was my first job out of college is so crazy.
03:26.77
syrupcoaching
Crazy crazy and we did events together and traveled together and worked together and collaborate on so many things and in the background Megan had a blog and at the time it was still like sort of this like foreign thing like a how do you have the time to even keep it up.
03:44.20
Meghan
But.
03:46.40
syrupcoaching
And be like oh like you're in the digital world like what? what's going on like so did you start your blog in college.
03:50.83
Meghan
Um, yeah I started it when I was a junior in college. Um by blog. Origin story is really deeply related to my brother who one of my brothers he and I were together at the. Um, kitchen table I think was the day after Christmas um in 2006 and he was. He was very into emerging technologies at the time which is so funny because he was like in eighth grade I want to say um and he was like you should really start a blog these are going to be the next.
04:12.70
syrupcoaching
Well.
04:18.74
Meghan
Big thing. Everyone's starting them right now and you have a lot to say and you have things to say about things. No one else in this family is interested in which was totally true like I've always been the shopper I've always had a lot of opinions I was the friend in college that people would come to and be like I'm going to Walgreens what masquera should I get and be like oh get this one. This is the one I love.
04:27.40
syrupcoaching
And yeah.
04:38.11
Meghan
And so wt and whimsy was really born out of my love of kind of like sharing good fines and storytelling. Um I also was the kid in school who was always told I wrote too much like I had too many words too many pages needed to edit down and so I was like this block. No one's going to tell me that I need to edit it down. It's just going to be my own.
04:55.48
syrupcoaching
Yeah, yeah.
04:57.52
Meghan
Um, but yeah, that was that was before Twitter had not been invented Instagram had not been invented I think the only social media platform at the time was Facebook and that was obviously still relatively new. Um, as well. So yeah I just started as a hobby did not predict that I would be doing it all these years later. But. Did keep it up. Um for the entirety that I worked in in corporate America including when when you and I crossed over.
05:20.70
syrupcoaching
Yeah, yeah, and you had poed something on social recently and I sent it to my husband and I it's like this is motivation of like you know, well not believing in in your dream or like what are you doing you know like questioning that and.
05:27.26
Meghan
Um.
05:32.89
Meghan
Yeah I had a lot of that back in that well I mean I'm sure it still happens now I hear hear of it less. But yeah, when you think when you're doing anything new or that people feel like is more risky because you're putting your life out of there. It is very intimidating and I had to really. Drown out a lot of the hate that I got or the judgments or the you know glances of especially when I started taking photos of myself to put on the internet. Um, but yeah it it was a lot of persistence I think but it it was always something that brought me joy and it was actually something I look forward to after. Ah, 12 hour work day because you and I worked in an environment that was extremely stressful, very long hours. Um, working with clients that personally I wasn't necessarily very interested in I wanted to do a great job on them. But it was for my personal level of interest like I wasn't particularly interested in motor vehicles or digital payments.
06:28.70
syrupcoaching
Mean.
06:30.69
Meghan
So for me to be able to like go home after a long day and work on something that I was like okay I'm going to talk about this new Shoe Brand I discovered or Essie's New Nail polish collection like that was fun for me and it was kind of a way to like decompress after a very intense workday and that's what kind of like you know. Kept me going I obviously had a very different cadence of posting when I was like new in the workforce. But I'm glad I Even if it was like one post a week or couple posts a month I was glad I like at least sat down and kept it up.
06:57.60
syrupcoaching
Totally totally and I think that's what a lot of people struggle with like you know I'm going to do this one thing but then taking all of like the day-to-day action to make it happen. That's where like the give up is and like it doesn't matter if you're like.
07:11.69
Meghan
And Henry.
07:16.36
syrupcoaching
Too busy or there's a lot going on if you look if you do sort of chip away every day over time. It becomes such a habit such a such an easy thing like brushing your teeth. You know it just becomes a way of the day So speaking of sort of like that pivot I mean.
07:24.71
Meghan
Completely.
07:35.19
syrupcoaching
You moved to New York and you left the west coast and you figure out like this agency. Corporate world is not for me like what kind of kind of like made you come to that decision and then what'd you do.
07:53.23
Meghan
Yeah, so I did my career path was that I worked in 3 rather large Pr agencies or um, one smaller agency that was part of a big um pire conglomerate but I worked in Pr agencies and i. Had interviewed for a lot of jobs over my time in New York city so I moved to New York when I was 25 I want to say and so I was very ripe for like a new opportunity started a new job was constantly interviewing at different places and that I thought would make me happy or be the the career move that I wanted I wouldn't get the positions. Um. So I stayed in the agency world and I I distinctly remember my breaking point because I had finally gotten I always was one of those people that was like very driven towards like titles and I wanted to be able to say that I was like a vp by the time I was 30 and I reached that precipice and crossed over and I was so excited about it. but then I was like but I don't even really like my job so like why was I chasing this title that you know wasn't going to actually bring me happiness or change my day to day.
08:51.96
syrupcoaching
The.
08:53.96
Meghan
And all the while I was doing um, doing my blog and that required a ton of discipline because I had to do blog photo shoots before seven thirty Eight Eight a m ah before I would get into the office I would work weekends most weekends and I was just really burning out. But my my real awakening moment was the day after Thanksgiving and this would have been ah the day after Thanksgiving in 2015 and I was working with a client where we had to do all this stuff for black friday and I did not go to the bathroom that day I did not eat I was. Chained to a computer and no one else on my team seemed to be carrying as much and I just like came out of the room I was working in and like burst into tears and I was like this is not what life is meant to be. This is not how I should feel at 30 years old in a career that I feel like I have really worked very hard at and I just.
09:41.85
syrupcoaching
The hair.
09:44.66
Meghan
What am I working for and I felt I had gotten to that point where I was like really working for things that drained me instead of things that filled my cup and so that was my breaking point where I was like I need to completely step back and so determine like what does happiness look like from a career standpoint and I had started to. Like so the kind of think you know do I want to be able to um, do I really want to be able to like work for myself. Do I think I have the discipline to do it and so I started talking to a lot of ah friends of mine colleagues. You know all sorts of different people. In varying industries that worked for themselves and started asking them all my questions about you know, being self-employed and um, the picture by that March of 2 16 kind of had come together where I was like ok by June I want to be self-employed I want to be.
10:22.32
syrupcoaching
Yeah.
10:35.27
Meghan
Starting my own care consultancy but also doing wit and whimsy more full time I want to be able to split my time fifty fifty and it was the best decision I ever made I'm coming up on 7 years of being self-employed my career has actually wildly changed even since then um.
10:48.90
syrupcoaching
Okay.
10:51.26
Meghan
But I think you know so often we feel really stuck in careers because we feel like okay this is the thing I went to college for or this is the thing I told everybody in my life was going to make me happy or this is the career that I always imagined for myself and then there's like a sense of feeling a little bit embarrassed where you're like oh wait but that's. This hasn't made me happier. This isn't what I want to do? Um, and I I Love the world that we live in now where it feels like there's a lot more opportunity to pivot and to change. But you know what you might want to do and that's that's really just. I Think hopeful to look at if you're in a job that you don't necessarily feel like fills your cup like what are the steps you can take and even if those steps do involve work on weekends work and night work early in the morning like start taking them now in order to to begin to to try and change what what's. How you spend your days because it's a lot of days that we spend in our lifetimes at work.
11:46.18
syrupcoaching
Yeah, Absolutely yeah I think you know oftentimes we set these like high goals for ourselves and it's like I'm going to do this in my life I'm going to. Um. Get this where in my career I'm going to be with this person I'm going to have kids I'm going to travel here and then sometimes when you reach that destination. The Dream Falls flat. It's truly. It's it's a box you wanted to check versus like you personally want.
12:06.87
Meghan
Um, yeah, yeah.
12:16.38
syrupcoaching
And so I think I've seen that happen to so so many in my lives and it's you you see people late in their careers I mean there are many people we worked with in the agency world where I love them. But they were miserable and they had gotten so far.
12:30.64
Meghan
A hair.
12:34.79
syrupcoaching
Evp Svps managing directors whatever title it was but I started off being like I want to be like her and then being like I want to do everything I can to not be like her.
12:44.42
Meghan
Um, yeah, exactly exactly? yeah that was such a wake up call for me to be like oh wait. This is what I thought I was chasing and it's not at all what. Was actually making me happy day to day and I'm someone that really really cares about my work and it almost to my detriment at times so working in an agency environment where oftentimes a lot of the decisions were made without you for what you were spending your time doing that it was like well this isn't.
13:00.60
syrupcoaching
Yeah, yeah.
13:08.15
syrupcoaching
Sure yeah.
13:15.30
Meghan
You know I think I could be even more of an asset if I was working on things that I really enjoyed Um, but if you were a top performer oftentimes you were put in the most difficult scenarios that really just caused burnout and there were no solutions really to burnout like you're not going to.. You're not going to solve burnout with an extra week of vacation or anything like that and so it it really felt um, it really felt like something that I had to like completely shift my perspective on what my career could look like um and.
13:42.10
syrupcoaching
Yeah.
13:45.73
Meghan
It was a big decision but definitely like worth the risk for me personally.
13:47.58
syrupcoaching
For sure for sure and then how did you? How do I hate to use the word balance because no one really balances up anymore. But how did you manage then like okay, a jumping into entrepreneurship.
13:58.32
Meghan
Yeah, yeah.
14:05.94
syrupcoaching
And then running 2 things at 1 time like was that a recipe for more burnout or did did you feel like more fueled in a way.
14:17.40
Meghan
I feel like I got definitely burnt myself out in the first six months because I like essentially was barely sleeping because I was like so afraid of paying my bills even though like I was fine but like I live in the world's most expensive city and so I was like I have rent to pay and now I have to pay self expensiveive selfemp employmentyment insurance and all of these things.
14:24.78
syrupcoaching
What.
14:35.77
Meghan
So I I really felt this like deep-seated fear um of you know, being able to ensure that I was paying my bills. Um, so I burnt myself out in the first six months but then I also I found such happiness in the freedom that I felt. So that no one was telling me you have to be in this meeting at this time. No one was telling me. There's a Monday morning meeting every morning or every week um and so I was able to really pick and choose the pockets and where I was working so like I would do client work. You know on certain days I would block off all Fridays for no calls.
15:07.45
syrupcoaching
Um, and.
15:10.38
Meghan
So that I had all the time in the world to be able to work on blog posts I was able to go to like events that helped me from a networking perspective for my blog at two zero p M in the afternoon which I was never able to do on a weekday previously.
15:20.30
syrupcoaching
And here.
15:22.22
Meghan
So I was able to really kind of like craft my schedule in a way that fueled me and that to me is like the thing I still love the most about being self-employed is I love the freedom and no one's counting my vacation days and things like that of course with all those benefits come. You know the cons of It's a very It's very stressful to be self-employed it is um it is hard to turn off I think if no one is telling you hey no definitely we have that closed as a holiday like I work I work so many different holidays during the year that a lot of people have off because I'm like oh wait I forgot that this is supposed to be a holiday but no one told me to take it off. So I guess I'm at my laptop. Um, so yeah, there's certainly pros and cons with those but I really um I really love the freedom that comes with you know, being my own boss.
16:09.44
syrupcoaching
Oh yeah, one ah hundred percent and then I think while it's it's nice to envision like the corporate world is shifting and and it becoming more flexible. It's still hard to be like imagine yourself back in that because you can go to a doctor's appointment without anyone.
16:22.49
Meghan
In may.
16:26.85
syrupcoaching
Asking anyone's permission. You know you can live your life when you you wanted to so that is huge and then okay so give me the timeline of when Paris perfected came out of this and and I guess like also how did that come up because i'm.
16:29.90
Meghan
Um, yeah.
16:43.46
Meghan
Um, yeah.
16:44.46
syrupcoaching
Consumption here if like you were able to travel a lot more without being like chain like a butt in a seat.
16:48.33
Meghan
Um, yes, completely exactly that and I so I had gone to back as I studied in background my family lived in London in the 90 s my parents had taken us to Paris several times. Fell in love. It's like the first place I remember really having like the feeling of like oh my god this place is so beautiful I love it here. I want to come back and I was only in fourth grade at the time and um then I went on to study abroad there I had studied french since I was in fourth grade so that was like the very natural choice for me for study abroad was okay. To go to Paris I'm in the limpther for four months it was very very transformational but as an experience for me and I felt like it was the first time I really owned my independence I felt very moved and inspired and those were things that I hadn't really felt prior to being twenty years old um and so I finally returned I had returned a couple times but I returned um in 2014 and then I returned in 2015 and then I started to be like okay I think I want to go back in 2016 I went back and so these annual trips. Um were then very feasible after 16 when I became my own boss and so I would go.
17:47.21
syrupcoaching
That.
17:56.92
Meghan
Um, back for like a week it completely filled my soul I would feel so inspired I would get different ideas I would shoot things for my blog posts. Um and it was my trip I was in Paris in 2019 for my birthday and it was I just couldn't even keep up with the Dms and I didn't even I don't really have a humongous. Social media following but I just could not keep up with the amount of Dms of like my mom and I are coming to Paris where should we stay? What's your favorite chrissant Where do you What neighborhood do you like to stay in and I was walking in Paris and I was looking at all these Dms and I was like I think there's something here that would be a business and. I felt like people really understood and connected with what I call my version of Paris because like obviously my version of Paris is different than anyone else's but I also felt like 2016 was peak ah or Cb 2019 was peak what I would call the Kardashian version of Paris where like I felt like everyone was going to the same places that are not very good and I'm like there's just.
18:49.90
syrupcoaching
Yeah.
18:53.10
Meghan
So much better options in Paris so it was kind of killing me to see people all go to the same restaurants that it's just maybe it has a good view but the food's bad or 1 of the number 1 places that people go to that gave me food poisoning so I'm like I just think that I have like service to provide here and um I came up with the name.
18:59.70
syrupcoaching
Um, yeah, oh.
19:13.10
Meghan
Right? then and there and I came back and a month later I like put up a blog post I had no service I had no product I had no website no brand really I just had the name and I was like let's just see what this happens and I launched a really affordable price and within 7 minutes I had my first order and I was like.
19:18.66
syrupcoaching
Yeah.
19:29.60
Meghan
Oh and then within five months I had 100 orders and I was like okay this is definitely a viable business. There's um, you know something to this and I went back in February Twenty Twenty which we all know what happened shortly thereafter. Um, but I had really grown it I had to you know.
19:48.93
Meghan
I had to really lean into you know, a very different muscle of like helping people plan these trips and then it was also adding another business to my plate but it was it remains like the most fun for me to be able to help people plan their trips to Paris um, but it was they had a lot of momentum and then covid. And um, but as we all did you know we pivoted and took a pause and now I'm happy to say that it is back and growing growing growing. Um, since everyone's been able to finally return to international travel and and get back to Paris.
20:17.65
syrupcoaching
And then you've added on you expanded to have London correct.
20:24.16
Meghan
Yeah I have London as an add on now which like is just it kind of was a natural it was I got asked a lot about it. Um I would like to you know, eventually be able to help people with any element of France.
20:33.20
syrupcoaching
Like.
20:34.39
Meghan
Planning. So hopefully that will be. You know a workable goal for me in the coming years I love traveling in France and I just I really love the the french people. So um, hopefully that will be a continued ah pursuit for me as we move forward with like the Paris perfected brand.
20:41.78
syrupcoaching
No.
20:50.44
syrupcoaching
Oh my gosh keep me posted we we we would champagne but we want to go back and and do some more of the the wine country and beaches and all. So.
20:59.30
Meghan
Yes, oh there's just so much to do in France that's it's like that's the challenge is like choosing what it is you want to do like bordeaux so beautiful proven in this summer is just everything you could wish for and more in the Riviera. So yeah, that's it's a wonderful thing that there is.
21:15.60
syrupcoaching
So much. Oh my gosh I'm I'm so thrilled because you know every trip that you go on to Paris I'm super stoked to gout and I take screen grabs of like the super cool decor in restaurants for like inspiration and I also.
21:16.20
Meghan
So much to do there.
21:26.70
Meghan
Yeah.
21:34.74
syrupcoaching
I'm one of the the people who are like you like I'm like getting teased but I like want to know more every time you also share out like this is for this restaurant's great. It's for my my specialty my clients only and I'm like damn it Why can't I be another.
21:45.77
Meghan
Yeah.
21:52.27
Meghan
Ah, come back and there's now a return client product. So I can refresh your recommendations. Um, yeah, because that I mean Paris is it's like any big city in the world right? that there is always something new. There's always something exciting to do and I just really keep very close tabs on.
21:53.81
syrupcoaching
Perfect.
22:08.96
Meghan
Best new restaurants opening who's doing interesting things in the city. What are special exhibits happening at museums and so I'm kind of obsessive in the way that I like track what's happening in Paris and then I go back several times a year to kind of like suss it out because if I see a thing like 12 times on Tiktok I'm like I'm gonna go check to see if this is actually good. Sometimes it is.
22:24.79
syrupcoaching
Um, yeah.
22:28.63
Meghan
Sometimes it's awful. But I like to personally vet everything which I think is an interesting element of the service versus you know someone that just like writes a guide publishes it you can buy it for twenty bucks off the internet like that's fine and there's certainly a market for that. Um, but I like my record.
22:41.20
syrupcoaching
Yeah.
22:44.91
Meghan
I like my recommendations to be really bespoke because when you went with your husband, you're that was a very different trip than when you go and you bring your three kids right? like you guys will have a very different trip and so I plan for honeymoons I plan for girls going on a solo trip I planned so many thirtieth birthdays which is so fun.
22:50.33
syrupcoaching
My exam. Yes.
22:59.53
syrupcoaching
Then.
23:02.31
Meghan
Um, I've planned every type of trip at this point. Um I planned for someone who's bringing their mom who's 75 years old who's never gone to Paris and like it just is so fun to play a part in these Paris is such a special place and it's a big occasion place like it may be a place you only get to once in your year it once in your life. And so whatever that trip is I want to make it as seamless as easy and as rewarding as possible. Um, and I always say that I think that you know for me in Paris I found a place that just truly truly like inspires and moves me and I hope that everyone in their lifetime can find a place that. That does that for them because I think if you have a place that every time you go back to your heart swells a little bit in your chest like that is a form of self-care and so um, I really hope that you know that could be central park in New York City for you. It doesn't have to be an international destination. But.
23:57.30
syrupcoaching
Neil.
23:58.10
Meghan
I Think it's so worth finding a place that really just like moves you and just brings a smile to your face.
24:03.97
syrupcoaching
Yeah, absolutely agree I think there's there's so much that we can do for ourselves to be happy or find that joy or there's ah a line someone. My husband had told me years ago that he you used to be like i. Um, an agent and and 1 of his clients had told him this and it was like you know the secret to happiness is always having something to look forward to like if you don't have anything to look forward to then life is like blah and if you have that the destination that place that.
24:32.66
Meghan
Um, yeah.
24:39.11
syrupcoaching
It could be a symbol as like a bookstore or coffee shop. You know that makes you feel whole then what's your spot and it's yours you know it could everybody else could like it too but like you got to find your thing. Ah.
24:42.69
Meghan
Um, yeah, um.
24:52.17
Meghan
Yes I love that I think that's such a good point.
24:58.80
syrupcoaching
So with all the travel like I have to ask because I'm one of the people who gets on a plane and gets a cold. Ah how how do you like keep up like any sort of like a health routine wellness routine. You know how do you stay healthy and.
25:04.57
Meghan
Um, yeah.
25:15.29
syrupcoaching
Take care of yourself.
25:16.20
Meghan
I probably am not the best person to answer this because I don't do a great job. But when I'm on the road I definitely do not work out what I'm in ferres unless you count like me lifting Chris ons to my face.
25:26.23
syrupcoaching
You wanting I.
25:30.20
Meghan
But I'm walking yeah, that's true I'm walking a lot I'm walking like 25000 steps a day. So yeah, that's my that's my form of workout so that I can eat as many Chris ons as possible. Um I do little things for myself where it's like I know I'm not going to sleep as well. If I don't sleep with ear plugs and I mask so like I'm going to do that every night so that even if I'm only getting 5 hours I'm getting those.
25:34.90
syrupcoaching
I like.
25:49.59
Meghan
Like 5 hours or I'm asleep the whole time and I take probiotics whenever I travel. Um so I try to do things like that that are very small self-care items and then what I've really learned to do is like before I leave and after I leave I need time that is just like.
25:50.23
syrupcoaching
Here.
26:07.93
Meghan
Relaxed and chill. So like I've stopped being the person who has to go to the event that is the day after I get back from a trip like I just am not going to say yes to it because I know I'm going to cancel and I don't want to be the person that cancels. So I'm really kind of like building in time for myself where I don't overbook myself pre your book.
26:17.67
syrupcoaching
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
26:26.48
Meghan
Pre your post trip has been really important. Um, which is really that's like flexing a muscle saying no which I'm not the best at I Think when you are self-employed. You're like I have to say yes to everything What if this is the next big opportunity like what if this person's going to be a client. Yeah, so you say you want to say yes to everything but in the last like two years I've really exercised.
26:29.54
syrupcoaching
Um, oh.
26:38.20
syrupcoaching
Right.
26:45.80
syrupcoaching
1 here.
26:46.30
Meghan
Say no more? Um, so I feel like I I definitely try to do the smaller things that I hope will keep me healthy um versus like trying to be the person that's going to like wake up early and go to the hotel gym because I just I know that's not myself. Um. And I also try to like bake in a little solo time. So if I'm not in a place by myself like I really really thrive off of solo time when I'm in Paris so I never make any plans for the morning I leave I usually take a two thirty flight back to New York which means I usually head to the airport around ten ten thirty and i.
27:17.18
syrupcoaching
Yeah.
27:20.49
Meghan
That time in the morning is my time I wake up at 7 and I walk the city I wake I go get croissants I get snacks for the plane I go to the parks. It is Paris by itself in the morning when there's not a lot of people out. It's just it is magical. It truly brings me to tears most times and so like.
27:26.67
syrupcoaching
Hi.
27:37.18
Meghan
I I really try to build in time like that on my schedule that is just like me time it is time for me to reflect time for me to have ideas. Um and not be you know feeling like I have to be with other people. So I think that's something that I really try to like bake in for my own mental health as well when I'm traveling.
27:40.54
syrupcoaching
Wow.
27:55.38
syrupcoaching
That sounds dreamy. Yeah I am I am reading a book now called the comfort crisis and there's a section of the book and it's all about the um amount of time you should be spending by yourself outside.
28:09.36
Meghan
Ah, in here.
28:10.30
syrupcoaching
Yeah, and without distraction like there's different There's like 3 different levels of spending time outside like 1 is like you know you're out there like you're running out with your keys and your phone and but you're still like by yourself in it in your own world and then the next is like you are out for many hours not checking in and the third is obviously like wilderness level which. And don't really know if that's you and I ah, yeah, yeah, but but it's all about like the benefits of like shutting off and having that that personal time because it it does. It's sort of like is like your reset button and you know.
28:31.32
Meghan
Um, yeah, not so much.
28:46.50
syrupcoaching
It's been a while for me because I haven't traveled in a bit but like I've seen you have these walks in the morning and it's like the walks bringing you to tears and like having that reset button and like starting the moment like the next phase of your journey back in New York and back sort of to the grind. Um, that is.
28:56.71
Meghan
We.
29:05.41
syrupcoaching
So so needed for self-care and something like a lot of us just don't take that time to do because we're just like got to go to the next gotta go to that event when I get off the.
29:09.22
Meghan
Yeah, and I think too like if you travel with other people like it's very okay to be like I'm going to take the next hour for myself like I'm going to go sit in a coffee shop and like read my book I'm going to do you know I'm just going to walk and go get myself a coffee and you I'll bring one back when I've you know.
29:28.26
syrupcoaching
Yeah.
29:29.50
Meghan
When I'm coming home. But I think people often feel like they have to be with each other at all times I see this of a lot of like groups of younger roles that travel together. It's like they're like we feel like we have to have every single minute and it's like it's really okay to say like I want an hour out of this trip just to myself because. I get a lot I plan a lot of trips for solo travelers I get a lot of questions about how do you solo travel and feel safe and you know I live I've lived in big cities most of my life. So I feel like I usually have my wits about me but it's.
29:53.61
syrupcoaching
Nice.
29:56.27
Meghan
It's one of those things where I think like people are almost uncomfortable to be by themselves or they feel like okay if I'm going to be by myself I have to be on my phone and I'm totally actually living in Paris for study abroad made me comfortable with dining alone but that was certainly something I was not comfortable with prior and now it's like I have meals by myself all the time. And so I just bring my Kindle That's my company is a good book I try not to be on my phone because I don't need to be looking at Instagram in that moment I should be really tasting what I'm eating and taking in my surroundings and just enjoying my own company and I think so often, especially in a world now where you have entertainment at your fingertips at all times.
30:15.55
syrupcoaching
Here.
30:34.71
Meghan
We're so afraid to be our own company and I think sometimes like we have the best ideas when we're our own company. So I I really try to cherish that and I don't do it enough in New York City um but I really when I travel you know when I travel solo um I like to get certain meals with friends and I'll you know bake in friend time.
30:34.97
syrupcoaching
Moral.
30:43.84
syrupcoaching
Here.
30:54.47
Meghan
And like in Paris I have a lot of friends that live there and so I'll have dinners with them and certain events and things with them. But then I always bacon alone time because frankly, it's like such a gift to ourselves and then I also really my favorite form of self-care when I travel alone is to like get a glass of wine and a dessert. From room service and then have it in my pajamas like watching a good Nancy Myers film and it's just the best. It's very good medicine. But.
31:22.13
syrupcoaching
Yes, it sounds magical magical right now. Um yeah I know I think I feel like we're similar in that way of I've gone I I actually love traveling alone. It's amazing.
31:25.30
Meghan
Yeah.
31:40.12
syrupcoaching
Um, amazing. Um, yeah, yeah, ah it's just it's I mean I would leave I would leave every kids at home just like go somewhere. Um and a notebook.
31:41.30
Meghan
Ah, once you know you know you once you know the beauty of self travel or you you solo travel. You know.
31:51.11
Meghan
K Five a.
31:56.58
syrupcoaching
You know I've gotten called out by waiters before up bringing you like I bring a Notebook a brand New Notebook for every trip and sketching it. Yeah I'll write down like a cocktail I had like here's the recipe I liked you know or like just ideas. Um I.
32:04.35
Meghan
Ah, we love this.
32:14.72
syrupcoaching
I'd like to say I'm a drawer but I can't draw so but you know putting that on and and the waiters have been like what are you? What are you doing? Yeah and they're like we don't see people like this and it's just it's just a.
32:23.17
Meghan
Um, what are you working on? yeah.
32:30.90
Meghan
Um I love I Want to try that.
32:32.81
syrupcoaching
Yeah, it's really, it's really nice because then also like you and look back on it like months later years later and be like oh that was fun or like in this moment I was like real. Yeah yeah, yeah, that's that's a really fraying. Um.
32:42.75
Meghan
I'm going to make this cocktail I Remember how good it was like yeah I love that I think that's such a good practice.
32:52.30
syrupcoaching
But I I know I wanted to dive back into something you said in the very beginning and and tie you to something else like you are also a person like who knows like all the beauty products and and everything.
33:04.76
Meghan
Um, yeah, ah.
33:04.96
syrupcoaching
Um, yes, ah recommendations are gold and thank you for that new face trinity recommendation because that is.
33:11.50
Meghan
Oh my god I'm so glad you like it I've been using my every night since the start of the year
33:17.60
syrupcoaching
Oh it is like ah in the beginning it was. It's not gonna work. It's not gonna work and then now I'm like Holyll Moly this like makes them. Yes, yes, um so thank you for that hot tip. Um.
33:25.15
Meghan
Um, yes, it's such a good device.
33:36.62
syrupcoaching
I Wanted to also um, sort of ask you a couple questions about another area of what wellness you've been public about um but you know sort of like because you've been in the health and beauty space too. Um, maybe some tips for everybody. You know you got diagnosed with skin cancer.
33:53.84
Meghan
And.
33:54.74
syrupcoaching
And and you it but you know you live in New York City and you and you travel to Paris a lot not necessarily the bright and sunny destination all the time like how did you even know and and what what are things like we could look out for.
34:13.50
Meghan
Yeah, that was a real that was a very hard time. Um, that was in August of 2019? Um, and I will say like I definitely was somebody who was not great at suncare I'm very fair fair skinned and I was not great at sun care when I was growing up. Um, and. I had a lot of bad burns and I had this spot on my upper kind of like um back lower neck upper shoulder area and it just kind of had stuck around and it looked kind of problematic and I had I have a history of. Skin cancer in my family and so I was very good about going to get annual skin checks and which I just am the biggest advocate for it takes 1 hour of your time once a year to go book with a dermatologist and have your skin done in a full skin scan um, so that they can look for any abnormalities and sure enough this. Once they had biopsies. It came back as cancerous. Thankfully it was basal sal which is of all the 3 types is the best to have but in doing so it's also once you find that ah they tell you you know all these statistics where it's um, your you know your.
35:09.66
syrupcoaching
Um, walk.
35:21.12
Meghan
Chance of finding more skin cancer after you've had 1 increases for the next two years ah the chance of finding skin cancer also increases your chance of having additional cancers which that's a very scary thing to be told at I think I was 34 or something at the time. Um. And so I've yeah I've become a real big advocate for people going to do their annual skin scans and then really just having sunscreen on you at all times. Um and understanding the difference in sunscreens on the market because there are chemical sunscreens and there are middle mineral sentencecreens my doctor essentially told me like you should not.
35:51.37
syrupcoaching
And.
35:55.99
Meghan
Outside for long periods of time without a hat on and you should not be outside for at any time even if it is dark and gray without physical or excuse me physical mineral sunscreens on. So um, i. Constantly have like a little mini spf on me and whatever bag I'm carrying so that I can reapply I have tested a ah hundred onscreens trying to find the good mineral ones because there's so many bad ones. Um, and so finding the ones that are really good and actually like.
36:21.80
syrupcoaching
Um, we have yeah.
36:24.28
Meghan
Lifestyle they work for your lifestyle like being able to put a makeup on over um, being able to touch up over Makeup. So um, yeah I just I I want people to know what to look for and I think you know sunscreen is a pain but it is something that can like truly you know, change your life if you're using it regularly. And so now I just I try to talk about it a couple times every year to just remind people. Um, and thankfully I have been skin cancer free since 2019 so I hope that continues. Um, but truly, it's 1 of the best things that you you can do for yourself.
36:58.24
syrupcoaching
Yeah I have 2 questions is mineral sunscreen the one that like turns your face white and is okay, all right? and if we the sdf in makeup enough.
37:07.31
Meghan
Yes, unfortunately. Ah.
37:15.30
Meghan
Um, no so makeup. Um, if if it has svf you're basically not doing enough. Um, and that is because the SSpf is watered down as soon as it's put into a formula with foundation bb cream. Whatever.
37:23.45
syrupcoaching
My.
37:28.60
Meghan
Um, and so you really should be using your own skin your own sunscreen. Um, and it should just be a sunscreen product. So if you have like a foundation with spf in it put that on after you put on sunscreen. Um, but yes, the physical sunscreens are the mineral ones that have a lot of them have the really bad white cast. They're getting.
37:38.91
syrupcoaching
Okay.
37:47.48
Meghan
So much better though in the last two years I've found like at least 3 that I really like that I think are they almost look like a tinted sunscreen but they're not actually tinted. It's just that they kind of put in a little bit of an undertone so you don't get that horrible white test I have not found a body one that I love yet. So I'm still on the search for that. Um.
37:58.86
syrupcoaching
But now.
38:06.72
Meghan
But for face ons screens. They've gotten a lot better in terms of like not making you look like you've just put on a white face mask and have left the house. So um, I'm glad that the technology is improving and but the reason being is that mineral provides a physical Blocker versus chemical is actually seeping into your skin.
38:12.83
syrupcoaching
Or we hope.
38:24.20
Meghan
And so that's why they say like with chemical sunscreens if you apply them. You have to wait 30 minutes before you have sun exposure physicals. You don't have to like a mineral sunscreen you're putting on. It's like you have created the physical barrier between you and the sun and so that's also kind of nice too is like if you want to roll up to the pool and put on your sunscreen wider away and like get in.
38:34.90
syrupcoaching
Yeah, yeah.
38:43.13
Meghan
You can.
38:44.56
syrupcoaching
That's really good to know Also that that sunscreen that is like very like white on your skin on your body because we have a ton of that here ah doesn't come off. So.
38:53.67
Meghan
Yeah, it's so hard to get off I don't not too the thing that you like have to have a loffa in the shower. It's I know it truly is not like that's why I actually don't go and sit on beaches anymore because I'm like it's not even worth it like I'll go and honestly just like sit under an umbrella.
39:03.94
syrupcoaching
Ah.
39:07.89
syrupcoaching
You hope with me.
39:13.16
Meghan
Um, always have a hat on but like yeah, it's the it is I hope this is the year where someone comes out with a body svf that is a mineral sense grain that is not awful to put on or awful to take off. Yeah.
39:25.65
syrupcoaching
Nick Yes, um I mean I don't care how much you caught I will I will take it I also have supremely fair skin and I ah terrified I Ah I haven't done it yet. But when I moved to L la.
39:31.84
Meghan
Yeah, yeah.
39:42.65
syrupcoaching
Someone said that you'll notice like one side of your body is so much more like sun tinted than the other because of driving and that is true but the other thing is this is this true or this is false Megan at airplanes I heard airplanes.
39:46.62
Meghan
Ah.
39:49.10
Meghan
Um, yep.
40:01.11
syrupcoaching
The the Uv Rays are so much smooth I don't know.
40:02.36
Meghan
Oh I don't know you probably I know people that definitely wear Svf like on a plane. Um I feel like I never sit with the window open like I might put it open for a photo but um, that's probably true. You're closer to the sun. But.
40:08.85
syrupcoaching
I, didnt.
40:17.60
syrupcoaching
Yeah, yes, yes, any just.
40:28.38
syrupcoaching
This yeah.
40:31.34
Meghan
Be able to know what runs in your family history and as I said I have familial history of skin cancer and you just have to know like what are the things that are you know is it driving like should you be putting sunscreen on all over should you have a hat on things like that. So.
40:45.20
syrupcoaching
Yeah, and and I'll have ah in the show notes guys I'll link to some of Megan's blog posts where she talks about skin cancer scare and and sunscreens and all of those things so we can you can go directly to them. Um. And because I'm sort of I'm on the quest too because it's just it's so important and especially that the weather's so much weirder here in l la than in and and you know just slather on a little bit in the morning on the face is like just done enough or like oh this this.
41:09.48
Meghan
Um, yeah.
41:20.70
Meghan
Um, yeah.
41:21.57
syrupcoaching
Yeah, 40 in it I'm good. No I'm not good. So so yeah for sure. Okay, well I have one last question and it's a question that I ask everybody who comes on the podcast.
41:23.53
Meghan
Yeah, exactly it's like the reapplying is the is the pain also but it's it's definitely worth it.
41:41.45
syrupcoaching
And so Amazon's kind of scooped me on this when they actually came out with fiscal buttons by the way but I had this question long before. So if you had a button to do anything in your life and it was just like with you all the time and this thing could happen every single time you pressed it.
41:48.56
Meghan
Um, yeah.
42:01.34
syrupcoaching
What would that button. Do.
42:06.30
Meghan
I Think a lot about how I just I wish that everyone treated every scenario in life with a little bit more kindness I think we're so we're in a um. We're In. We're living in a world where people really want immediate results and immediate things and they don't want to wait in lines and they get frustrated and impatient and I just I Always like I come back to that phrase around you. What is a you catch Moreflies with honey that you know like that phrase where I just.
42:31.83
syrupcoaching
Um, and.
42:35.45
Meghan
I Think you can go so far in life and just so far and day to day if you treat such scenarios with a little bit of extra kindness. My mom always tells me the thing that she one of the things she likes me most is that I when I interact with someone I say how are you and most of the time she's witnessed. Everyone.
42:48.74
syrupcoaching
The head.
42:53.81
Meghan
Reply like it could be for example like a server in a restaurant and they'll say hi. How are you today you know can I talk to you runner I'm like good. How are you and they their reaction oftentimes is thank you so much for asking and it's like it's just such a small thing and it's even just like saying have a good day to the person that put my groceries in the bags or something.
42:58.92
syrupcoaching
And.
43:09.99
syrupcoaching
Feeling.
43:12.57
Meghan
And I think if you go through life emitting that sort of like kindness and that sort of more positive energy I think everyone would be and like such a better place and happier. Overall so I feel like just emitting a little bit more kindness to everyone's day-to-day would probably be what I would choose to do with my special magic button. But I hope eventually is made.
43:34.16
syrupcoaching
Yes, I'm gonna work on it. Um I love that because you do something every year on the holidays that this year I was like I'm doing this of like getting Starbucks stars and handing them out just to you know people who who need it um people who had.
43:42.83
Meghan
Um, yeah, it's a really easy thing to do? Yeah yeah nature I Just try to like you know, try to make a.
43:51.81
syrupcoaching
Yeah, yeah.
43:55.80
Meghan
A little bit more kindness and whoever I like encounter and I hope that that you know comes off in my online presence but also in my offline presence. Um, because I just I believe that everyone needs a little bit more dose of happiness in their life and if you can do it in a really easy way. It's worth doing.
44:10.34
syrupcoaching
Yeah, yeah, cause you you don't know anybody else's story. You can make a ton of assumptions about why someone might be in a bad mood or why someone said something or why someone is like you know, sort of has a despondent look on their face but you know just one little thing.
44:16.32
Meghan
Yeah.
44:26.63
Meghan
Um, yeah, yeah, exactly exactly.
44:27.26
syrupcoaching
Change somebody's world. So awesome. Awesome well Megan this has been a treat to have you on I wish we could be sharing a coffee and croissant together. But one day one day in New York or Paris.
44:38.60
Meghan
I Know one day come visit? Yes, oh my gosh I know I would love that I also need to get back to L a so I always love visiting L A so.
44:51.22
syrupcoaching
Come The rain is over. Yeah, it's It's beautiful. It's green is blush. Yeah ah, awesome. Well thank you so much. Thank you, Thank you? Thank you? I'm just gonna hit stop you.
44:56.10
Meghan
Bye.