Thrive Solo

Send us a textSupport the showIn this week's episode, I talk to poet, writer, teacher and editor, Tania Hershman. Tania, as she describes herself on her website, is “a queer writer of odd things, short, very short, and longer.” Now based in Manchester, UK, she moved to Jerusalem from London in 1994 where she was a science journalist for 13 years, writing for publications such as WIRED and NewScientist. She subsequently gave it all up to pursue her love of writing fiction and later, poetry. Tania has a degree in Maths & Physics, a diploma in Journalism, an MSc in Philosophy of Science, and MA and a PhD in Creative Writing. Tania has published multiple short stories and poetry books, and last year released her debut novel, ‘Go On’ - a ‘fictional memoir-in-collage’ about a woman moving very happily through the world alone.Topics that Tania & I cover are:how she defines the word ‘queer’ and applies it to herself;how the way she writes has never been particularly conventional;Tania’s fascination with cemeteries, and the BBC Radio 4 programme she made around the second biggest cemetery in Europe in which she explored how, as a single woman, she might want to be remembered;how she was described in a review of the programme as ‘baffling’ due to her single status;how she has always felt like the ‘weirdo in the room’, and now uses the word queer as an empowering term;why Tania loves the word ‘permission’ and dislikes the word ‘should’;how she loves ’stealing’ from science and using it as inspiration for her writing;her time in Jerusalem, and how while she loved her work and her time there, the extreme pressure on single people made her feel like a weirdo;the 10 year relationship she never expected to have which she embarked upon, in part, to conform to what was expected of her; and how her parents seemed to take her more seriously as part of a couple;how Tania is an introvert and needs time alone in order to feel well;the death of her beloved cat, her subsequent breakdown, and how it actually helped her to come back to the truth of who she was;how frustrating it can be when people don’t believe that, as single people, we can be happy;Tania’s upcoming novel in which being single is the default, solitude is celebrated, and being in a couple is not only considered suspicious, it’s possibly a crime! I CANNOT WAIT to read this.Tania’s Website:https://www.taniahershma Support the showPre-Order my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book Download my FREE PDF 'The Top 10 Answers To The Most Irritating Questions That Single People Get Asked On The Regular...& How To (Devilishly) Respond'? Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/questions Join the waitlist for my membership, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson Interested in my 1-1 Coaching? Work with me HERE: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/workwithme Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/ Email me: lucy@lucymeggeson.com And thank you so much for listening!

Send us a textSupport the showIn this week's minisode, I'm talking about why my part-time job as my sister's cleaner is actually totally awesome. As many of you will know, following some big changes in my life, I've been cleaning my sister's house once a week for the last two years. And I'm getting used to the gasps of surprise / horror when people discover that this is one of my day jobs (along with being a part-time barista in a coffee shop).But although at first glance this may not seem like the obvious career choice for a 47 year old woman with an MSc in Psychology and a former career at BBC Radio 2, it's actually bloody great. Press 'Play' to find out why...! Support the showPre-Order my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book Download my FREE PDF 'The Top 10 Answers To The Most Irritating Questions That Single People Get Asked On The Regular...& How To (Devilishly) Respond'? Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/questions Join the waitlist for my membership, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson Interested in my 1-1 Coaching? Work with me HERE: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/workwithme Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/ Email me: lucy@lucymeggeson.com And thank you so much for listening!

Send us a textSupport the showIn this week's episode I talk to High Sensory Coach and Creative Empath, Elisha May. Elisha is a High Sensory Leader and Coach which means she is able to energetically and intuitively assist transformation in others, and achieve quicker results than a normal coach or therapist. She offers High Sensory Facilitation, for those with the trait of Sensory Processing Sensitivity, now known as High Sensory People, but have been known as Highly Sensitive People and Empaths. She specialises in people wanting to live a life in a non-conventional way, with freedom, adventure, and independence as the theme.Elisha has a deep understanding of the challenges faced by people that have chosen the conventional route but feel this hasn’t enabled them to always remain in their truth and connection with their inner knowing. She is an expert at helping people come back into alignment with the truth of who they are when they have been at the mercy of the conditions and conventions of their society, step out of the depletion and negative exhausting effects of the human conditioning that people have experienced in their life.Elisha is about to launch a new podcast and YouTube channel called High Sensory People with another High Sensory Coach and Empath.Topics that Elisha & I cover are:How she experiences life as a High Sensory Person and Empath;How she has always led an unconventional life and been a free spirit;Elisha’s thoughts and her own story around being childfree;How explaining why you didn’t have kids can be triggering for women who have them;People pleasing, and how it tends to be a largely female issue;The ‘one size fits all’ expectation of life, and how societal programming can sometimes make us feel as though we don’t have choice about our lives;The difference between the true self / soul, and the false self / ego, and how we are slowly learning to bring into union the soul and the ‘human self’;How important it is to come out of our minds, drop down into our bodies, and subsequently bring our consciousness into our heart centre;How humans have a tendency to think they are superior to Mother Earth, how this is simply not the case, and the truth is we are all connected;How women who don’t have children, whatever the reason, are saving the planet!The concept of the Free Woman, and we are needed in this world.How disengaging from the news and adverts would make the world a better place for Support the showPre-Order my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book Download my FREE PDF 'The Top 10 Answers To The Most Irritating Questions That Single People Get Asked On The Regular...& How To (Devilishly) Respond'? Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/questions Join the waitlist for my membership, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson Interested in my 1-1 Coaching? Work with me HERE: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/workwithme Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/ Email me: lucy@lucymeggeson.com And thank you so much for listening!

Send us a textSupport the showIn this week's minisode, I'm talking about our tendency to think that we'll be happy when...we meet the guy / get the promotion / finish the kitchen etc.But the danger with this way of thinking is that it means our happiness is always conditional, always dependent on something or someone outside of ourselves. And when you think about it, this is doesn't make rational sense. The truth is that we are all responsible for generating our own happiness, and the good news is that all of us have everything we need in order to do this. And the cherry on the cake? When we generate good feelings inside of ourselves, we tend to attract more of what we want into our lives.  Support the showPre-Order my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book Download my FREE PDF 'The Top 10 Answers To The Most Irritating Questions That Single People Get Asked On The Regular...& How To (Devilishly) Respond'? Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/questions Join the waitlist for my membership, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson Interested in my 1-1 Coaching? Work with me HERE: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/workwithme Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/ Email me: lucy@lucymeggeson.com And thank you so much for listening!

Send us a textSupport the showIn this week's episode I talk to writer, Christina Campbell. Christina lives in Northern Virginia, USA, with her cats. She writes about invisible illness, singles’ rights, and the inexorable onslaught of entropy. Her book, And Sarah His Wife, won the Michigan Writers’ Cooperative Press Chapbook Contest in 2017. After earning her Master of Fine Arts in Creative Nonfiction from George Mason University, Christina co-founded the singles’ advocacy blog, Onely, with her MFA classmate, Lisa Arnold. The site deconstructs cultural stereotypes about single hood, such as the myth that unmarried people die alone, eaten by their cats! Christina’s writing on Onely has been featured, quoted, or referenced in numerous publications, including The Atlantic.com;  PsychologyToday.com; the book Going Solo: the book Singlism: What It Is, Why It Matters, and How to Stop It by Bella DePaulo; and the book It’s Not You: 27 (Wrong) Reasons You’re Single, by Sara Eckel.Topics that Christina & I cover are: What motivated her and her college classmate, Lisa Arnold, to start their blog, Onely;Why Christina started writing about systemic singlism and discrimination against single people;How Christina has been affected personally by systemic singlism;Bereavement leave, how even that seems to favour those who are married, and how Christina wasn’t entitled to take bereavement leave for two of her close relatives;How single people aren’t able to choose recipients of certain benefits, whereas married people are automatically allowed to benefit their spouses;How single hood has meant that Christina has been hugely financially disadvantaged in respect of her health care;The project Christina worked on which found that single people, at a certain salary rate, finish their life at least $1,000,000 worse off than their married counterparts;How both Christina and I have been asked by 6 year old girls why we’re not married, and why we live alone; and how important it is to show little girls that it’s ok to be alone.Despite several relationships, Christina has always been very content on her own and never really felt the need to couple up;The stigma around childless women and how they are often perceived as ‘selfish’.Bella DePaulo’s term ‘single at heart’ and how Christina and I feel about it.How our ‘women’s intuition’ is our strongest tool against the patriarchal narratives;Last Support the showPre-Order my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book Download my FREE PDF 'The Top 10 Answers To The Most Irritating Questions That Single People Get Asked On The Regular...& How To (Devilishly) Respond'? Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/questions Join the waitlist for my membership, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson Interested in my 1-1 Coaching? Work with me HERE: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/workwithme Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/ Email me: lucy@lucymeggeson.com And thank you so much for listening!

Send us a textThis week's minisode is the second part of a workshop I did on Valentine's Day.Following on from last week, I talk more about living an intentional life, the incredible power of the mind and what that means for us, how we have more agency over our lives than most of us realise, the importance of leaning into the things that make us feel good, how many of us don't dare to dream because we often don't believe that the things we truly want are possible for us, and much, much more.I hope you enjoy it! Support the showPre-Order my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book Download my FREE PDF 'The Top 10 Answers To The Most Irritating Questions That Single People Get Asked On The Regular...& How To (Devilishly) Respond'? Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/questions Join the waitlist for my membership, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson Interested in my 1-1 Coaching? Work with me HERE: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/workwithme Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/ Email me: lucy@lucymeggeson.com And thank you so much for listening!

Send us a textSupport the showIn this week's episode, I talk to writer and presenter, Bev Turner. Bev has had a hugely successful career as a writer, author, radio and TV presenter. She is also mum to three kids and girlfriend to her gorgeous boyfriend, James. She has her own TV show - Bev Turner Today - on GB News, and has been a regular on ITV’s This Morning and Good Morning Britain, BBC Breakfast, Channel 5’s Jeremy Vine Show as well as many others. Her radio work includes 5 years hosting her own show on LBC, as well as three years co-hosting with Eammon Holmes on BBC Radio 5 Live. She co-hosted her own podcast, As Good As It Gets, for a year with her friend, Marina Fogle, and has guested on Marina’s own podcast, The Parent Hood, and Lorraine Candy and Trish Halpin’s Postcards From Midlife podcast.Bev is also the author of three books, Touching Distance, The Pits, and The Happy Birth Book. Plus, she has written for multiple publications including The Times, The Telegraph, The Daily Mail, The Sunday Mirror and Good Housekeeping Magazine.Topics that Bev & I cover are:How Bev was “born broody” and knew from a very young age that she wanted kids;How she bought into the pronatalist view of having children which turned out to be quite different from the realities of motherhood;How her ex-husband went off to row the Atlantic Ocean when their first child was very young;How married women with children often look at single, childfree women with a ‘sliding doors’ view;Bev’s version of a blissful - but rare - Friday evening home alone which allowed her to reconnect with who she is;That lack of headspace and the incredible weight of responsibility are the two things Bev finds hardest about being a mum;How there is no lonelier place than a bad relationship;The story of how her ex-husband, James Cracknell, suffered a severe brain injury whilst cycling across America, and how the impact of the injury had a devastating effect on their marriage;The idea that being single does not equate to loneliness, and neither does being married equate to not being lonely;  How we should all be aiming to change, because if we’re not changing then we’re not growing;How there is no such thing as the perfect family life.Bev’s website:https://www.thebevturner.co.uk/ Support the showPre-Order my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book Download my FREE PDF 'The Top 10 Answers To The Most Irritating Questions That Single People Get Asked On The Regular...& How To (Devilishly) Respond'? Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/questions Join the waitlist for my membership, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson Interested in my 1-1 Coaching? Work with me HERE: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/workwithme Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/ Email me: lucy@lucymeggeson.com And thank you so much for listening!

Send us a textThis week's minisode is taken from a workshop I did on Valentine's Day.I talk about my own journey of personal growth, the narratives around single, childless women and their impact on our lives, our subconscious beliefs, living a more intentional life, how we need to choose where we place our focus, the lens through which we look at life, and much, much more.I hope you enjoy it!  Support the showPre-Order my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book Download my FREE PDF 'The Top 10 Answers To The Most Irritating Questions That Single People Get Asked On The Regular...& How To (Devilishly) Respond'? Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/questions Join the waitlist for my membership, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson Interested in my 1-1 Coaching? Work with me HERE: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/workwithme Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/ Email me: lucy@lucymeggeson.com And thank you so much for listening!

Send us a textIn this week's episode, I talk to financial planner, author, and founder of Childfree Wealth, Jay Zigmont. Jay is the founder of Childfree Wealth which focuses on helping childfree people figure out their finances. He has been a life and business coach for over a decade, has a PhD in Adult Learning from the University of Connecticut, an MBA from SCSU and is a certified financial planner and a Childfree Wealth Specialist. He’s also the author of the book ‘Portraits of Childfree Wealth’ and the co-host of the ‘Childfree Life and Money Podcast’. He and his wife are childfree and live in Water Valley, Mississippi.Topics Jay & I cover are:Jay’s own story of him and his wife being childfree;How he thinks that the stigma around being childfree is harder for women than men, but how men are not exempt from judgement;How his state of Mississippi does not embrace the childfree, and is heavily judgemental regarding reproductive rights;The difference between financial planning for childfree and ‘permanently childless’ people;The term ‘solo ager’;How both of us dislike the question “Who’s going to look after you when you get older?”Why being a parent doesn’t guarantee that your offspring will take care of you in your old age;The ‘standard life script’ and the many assumptions that come with it;The concept of the ‘childfree midlife crisis’ and how the problem can often be too many choices;Grieving what you thought your life was going to be, and choosing a new one;Jay’s study, Being Childfree May Not Make You Rich, But It May Make You Happy, and how 94% of the childfree people involved said they were happy with their lives;How one of the growing reasons for not having children is environmental factors;Jay’s book, Portraits of Childfree Wealth, which unwittingly revealed people’s lack of regret at not having children.How the definition of childfree wealth means having the time, money and freedom to do what you want.Find out more at:https://childfreewealth.com/ Download your FREE copy of Jay’s book here:https://childfreewealth.com/book Free 30 Minute Session with Jay (US Only) https://childfreewealth.com/30-minute-q-a-with-dr-jayFollow Jay on Instagram: @childfreewealth Support the showPre-Order my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book Download my FREE PDF 'The Top 10 Answers To The Most Irritating Questions That Single People Get Asked On The Regular...& How To (Devilishly) Respond'? Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/questions Join the waitlist for my membership, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson Interested in my 1-1 Coaching? Work with me HERE: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/workwithme Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/ Email me: lucy@lucymeggeson.com And thank you so much for listening!

Send us a textIn this week's minisode, I'm talking about courage.I was inspired by the following quote - "Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage." - to talk about how we must learn to cultivate courage if we want to grow, change, and become more of who we want to be.Whatever it is we desire in life, if it's something we've never been, done or had before,  then without doubt it will require courage. Whilst our comfort zones are safe, familiar and secure, they will never allow us to get to where we truly want to go in life. So we have to get comfortable being uncomfortable.And it's worth remembering that those people who seem to be courageous are actually no different to the likes of you and I; it's simply that they have taken action in spite of their inevitable fears.Although courage doesn't come overnight, we can start flexing that muscle by taking some baby steps - every day 'small' acts of courage - like making that scary phone call, buying that pair of shoes that are a bit more whacky than our usual taste, or saying hello to that old boyfriend standing a few people ahead of us in the supermarket queue! So go on...do something that scares you this weekend! And watch your confidence grow as a result.    Support the showPre-Order my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book Download my FREE PDF 'The Top 10 Answers To The Most Irritating Questions That Single People Get Asked On The Regular...& How To (Devilishly) Respond'? Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/questions Join the waitlist for my membership, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson Interested in my 1-1 Coaching? Work with me HERE: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/workwithme Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/ Email me: lucy@lucymeggeson.com And thank you so much for listening!