The Couragemakers Podcast | Encouragement, Inspiration & Rebel Rousing For Mission Driven Doers Makers & Shakers |

Hello and welcome to the last Couragemakers episode of September! I don’t know about you, but for me, September is a real back to school kind of month and I love planning and putting things in motion. Behind the scenes I’ve been working on The Epic Shit Sessions: a series of four stand alone coaching and mentoring sessions for creatives and multi-passionates. They’re designed to help you put the work only you can do in the world,  and to help you along every stage of the creative journey. I’ll be sharing more about them next week, but just wanted to share what I’ve been up to! What about you? What have you been working on this September? Email me: meg@thathummingbirdlife.com and let me know! Now, onto this week’s episode! This week, I’m chatting with the lovely Kaite Welsh. Kaite is an author, critic and journalist. Her work has appeared in various publications from The Times Literary Supplement to Cosmopolitan and she covers LGBT issues for the Daily Telegraph. She is also Books Editor of DIVA. Her short fic

Hello Couragemakers and welcome to episode 69 of The Couragemakers Podcast! It is so good to be back to our weekly rhythm, and I have so many wonderful episodes I can't wait to share with you! This week I’m delighted to share with you my wonderful conversation with Zoë Dearborn. Zoë is a creativity teacher, art coach, expressive arts therapist, writer, performer & artist. She holds a Master's in Counseling Psychology and Expressive Arts Therapy and her life’s work is developing and teaching her Life As Art philosophy and methodology through her classroom laboratories, writing, songs, drawing, dance, video & design. She is deeply committed to helping humans awaken to their deepest potential and highest purpose and inspiring artists to make their most meaningful and authentic work. Brooklyn born and bred, she now lives off the grid in a homemade desert homestead in Baja, Mexico with her husband and 8 year old son. Zoë's greatest loves include: quirky art rock, dance of all varieties, comedy, improvisati

Hello Couragemakers and welcome back to The Couragemakers Podcast! It’s so good to be back after a summer break! If you’ve missed Couragemakers during the break, rest assured that the podcast is back and I’ll be bringing you ridiculously honest conversations with couragemakers all over the world every Monday. And if you’re new here – welcome! If you want a good dose of encouragement and rebel-rousing, real conversations with real people and you want to spend some time in the company of bullshit-free women and great storytelling, you’re in the right place! This week I’m so excited to be sharing my conversation with Lea Rice. Lea Rice is the siren-haired, stiletto-clad lady behind Lea Rice Communications. Based in London, Lea is a Digital Marketing Specialist dedicated to changing lives in big and small ways through digital media. Lea does this through working with organisations and individuals to unleash their offerings and find their voice online. Lea spends her time mostly working at her business but also pl

Hello Couragemakers and welcome to episode 67 of The Couragemakers Podcast! Before we dive into this week’s episode, I wanted to let you know that Couragemakers is going to be taking a short break over the summer. Couragemakers will be back on September 4th, and I’m already excited to share the amazing episodes that are lined up! There might be some spontaneous solo shows released over the summer, so keep your eyes peeled! Over the summer, I’ll taking a break, sorting out various health issues which have really been draining me and spending lots of time with Mr. Meg! Rest assured, that Couragemakers is absolutely going nowhere! Now, onto today’s show! This week, I’m happy to share my conversation with Lily Calfee. Lily describes herself as a foodie, health nut, and journal scribbler who lives in Denver, Colorado. Lily is a baker-turned-nutritionist, a control freak-turned-intuitive eater, and manages her own private practice coaching women who want to experience more freedom and ease with food and their bodi

Hello lovely Couragemakers, and welcome to episode 66 of The Couragemakers Podcast! This week I’m excited to be sharing my conversation with Mary Ann Clements. Mary Ann is founder of Jijaze: a community supporting women to replenish and take care of themselves as they work to change the world. She is also the co-host of the Change Making Women podcast with Ziada Abeid; A Tanzanian broadcaster. Originally trained as an anthropologist she has many years experience in International Development as a leader and grant maker. She’s also a storyteller, podcaster, writer, connector, #nia teacher, action learning facilitator and shadow work coach. She co-founded both The Story Party and the Red Tent Directory. Her work is all about bringing women together to make big change happen in the world.  In this episode, Mary Ann shares her journey as a change making woman, from her background in the international development and women’s sector, to burning out and creating a community for change making women. We really dive int

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

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 thi

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 cre

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, ho

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 s

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 y

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 o

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, be

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 an

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:   How I completely missed the irony of Mean Girls aged 13 Why you can't just take yourself out of your story The problem with chasing mythical versions of yourself   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

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

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 What time of th

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 q

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

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 heari