For Real: Life, Leadership, & Unlearning

TikTok is a platform I have not invested my time in outside creating my profile because it’s yet another app that I feel like I have to check, and to be honest, TikTok just feels like one more thing I have to do. But I keep hearing about how great it is - from other educators that I love and respect, from wedding pros, and from my hair person… obviously - and not just for funny videos or going dow...

The Unraveling series, where amazing and inspiring entrepreneurs share the unraveling of old habits and mindset that holds us back, and the rebirth of new.  Today we feature Brian Green, Chief Event Architect and Creative Visionary of By BrianGreen LLC based in Atlanta. For previous Unravelings: 156 157 with Adrianna McDermott 161 with Aleya Harris 177 with Sara Margulis 184 with Andrea Eppollito...

Many of you are running your own business, and that’s something you should be extremely proud of. It takes a lot of guts to step out on your own and take your vision for a company and turn it into your reality. It doesn’t matter whether you’re side hustling for extra spending money or you have dozens of employees - you’ve taken the risk and I applaud you for it.   But when you’re leading your comp...

Megan and Jason Gillikin talk about their wins for 2022, their failures, word-of-the-year, and goals for 2023.  Tune in and reflect along. Share your 2022 reflections on social media @weddingsforreal. This episode is brought to you by The Planner's Vault , my online membership site for wedding planners who are hungry to grow, ready to hustle, and actively seeking community and education. In the va...

Today we're sharing an episode that Megan guested on - Wedding Industry Insider , hosted by Eddie Babbage, CEO of Timeline Genius . Enjoy, and we'll be back with new episodes soon! --- Stuck in fear about your business? Megan Gillikin talks about making the decision to succeed - and explains how to get your foot in the door with local vendors. In this episode, Megan shares about the lessons she ga...

Today we're sharing an episode that Megan guested on - Women on Work, hosted by Alysia Eve and Liz Fuller. Enjoy, and we'll be back with new episodes soon! --- As we get further in our careers and lives, we all encounter a space where transformation is necessary to find success and personal fulfillment — however we define that. Sometimes we even find what brought us success previously is now holdi...

I've heard you loud and clear - you're overwhelmed by all the wedding pro educators out there, and you're not sure who to listen to and what to do. What could be valuable learnings wind up leaving you frustrated and paralyzed. So what can you do about it?  Join me today for five tips on how to identify who to listen to and what content you should be consuming to help you take your business to the...

Let me ask you a couple tough questions - What is your innate brand advantage over your competition?  Are you unique, or are you swimming in a sea of sameness? If you’re just starting your business, you might not really know what your brand is or where to even begin.  If you’ve been at it for a while, you might be so head down in the day-to-day that you don’t pause often enough to reevaluate what...

Last week, we were at Wedding MBA in Las Vegas, and it was memorable to say the least - and at some points it felt like an out-of-body experience. I had two presentations this time, with one of them on the main stage which was juuuusstt a bit intimidating.   Today we talk about the journey from rejection to the main stage, the experiences of Wedding MBA 2022, and then we get to hear from you. That...

Starting a small business is not for the faint of heart. There’s fear that you’re not the right person to lead a company. There’s uncertainty that you’ll ever be able to make as much money as you did in your corporate job. There’s doubt that anyone will book you or that you can sustain the mental health hurdles running a small business requires. If you’re with me as a small business owner, congrat...

We all have some opinions about the wedding industry that might be considered unpopular. But as I say in the intro, this podcast is a safe space to dish about the real of our industry. And someone who’s not afraid to give his opinion is amazingly talented and hilarious Atlanta based florist Shean Strong . If you’re not driving, follow Shean on instagram and check out his highlights called Opinions...

The Unraveling series, where amazing and inspiring entrepreneurs share the unraveling of old habits and mindset that holds us back, and the rebirth of new.  Today we feature Sandra Cassios, owner and lead planner at Sandra Bettina Weddings and Events , and owner of XO and Mane Gift Shop . For previous Unravelings: 156 157 with Adrianna McDermott 161 with Aleya Harris 177 with Sara Margulis 184 wit...

Ever since I got into podcasts (and believe it or not, it actually took me a while), I’ve been focused on growth: getting to the life that I want and not settling for less. If you’re listening to this podcast, I’m thinking that’s your mindset too. And that could mean so many things. A bigger house. Freedom from the 9 to 5. Working more. Working less. Spending more time with your family. Taking mor...

One of the reasons we started the Weddings For Real podcast and then formed The Planner’s Vault is because we want to create a community of wedding professionals who can share ideas, grow together, and avoid the feeling of being on an island with your businesses.  You’re not alone. And yet, sometimes we feel like we’re the only ones who feel overwhelmed. We’re the only ones who feel like the to-do...

A couple weeks ago, I asked you the listeners for any questions you've been wanting to ask, and I received some truly thought-provoking submissions (so thank you!).  So today, I answer those questions, touching on burnout, why I refer (or don't refer) wedding pros, navigating the busy season, selling my planning business, and more! This episode is brought to you by The Planner's Vault , my online...

The Unraveling series, where amazing and inspiring entrepreneurs share the unraveling of old habits and mindset that holds us back, and the rebirth of new.  Today we feature Rachel DeAlto , Communication & Relatability Expert, Keynote Speaker, Chief Dating Expert at Match.com, former relationship expert on Married at First Sight, and Author of the book Relatable: How to Connect with Anyone, An...

You may have heard of Timeline Genius , the platform that creates beautiful, detailed wedding day timelines, saving you hours in the process. But have you heard how CEO Eddie Babbage built the company? Today, Eddie shares the mistakes made, lessons learned, and mindset shifts that led to Timeline Genius's success. This episode is brought to you by The Planner's Vault , my online membership site fo...

As we gain experience and raise our prices, we start to get into the luxury market. It’s something many of us strive for because it means we’ve made it - we beat out the competition for the best weddings, they become great portfolio pieces, and you can make better money. But how do we attract the luxury clientele?  And when we get those weddings, are they really all that we hoped for? Laura Ritchi...

The Unraveling series, where amazing and inspiring entrepreneurs share the unraveling of old habits and mindset that holds us back, and the rebirth of new.  Today we feature Kristen Mullins, aka The Pie Lady. Kristen is the owner of Slice Pie Company , and while everything on social media looks amazing - new retail shop, selling hundreds of pies a day, all the awards - the reality is that Kristen...

If you’re looking to grow your business, a hard realization is that you can only go so far if you do it alone. If you’re a wedding planner, maybe you can do 25-30 weddings a year by yourself. If you’re a DJ, maybe 50 weddings. An officiant? You could probably do 100 weddings a year. But no matter what, there’s a limit in how much you can make - unless you build a team. Of course, that comes with i...

The Unraveling series, where amazing and inspiring entrepreneurs share the unraveling of old habits and mindset that holds us back, and the rebirth of new.  Today we feature Ashlyn Carter, founder of Ashlyn Writes . On the surface, Ashlyn looks like she's crushing it (because she is). She has over 30,000 YouTube followers and always seems so poised and focused on camera. But underneath it all, she...

You probably use Canva almost every day, but if you're just using it to create social media graphics, you're barely scratching the surface of what it can offer. Today, Verified Global Canva Expert (one of 26 in the world) Brenda Cadman comes on to tell us how we can maximize Canva to its full potential and unlock branding and marketing efficiency. Brenda Cadman's Courses: The Canva Recipe Canva fo...

According to the WeddingWire Newlywed Report, the most common sentiments couples feel when planning their wedding right now are stress, uncertainty, and overwhelm that my friends. That is why we're gonna talk about how to use empathy, authority and authenticity as superpowers to set yourself apart as a wedding professional This episode is brought to you by The Planner's Vault , my online membershi...

When you feel your phone buzzing, and you look down to see your client's name, what do you think?  Are you worried it’s something bad? What about when you KNOW it’s something bad? The client isn’t happy for whatever reason, and they’re calling to tell you about it.  Do you get a pit in your stomach?  Of course you do, everyone does.  But how do you handle it? Today we're talking to conflict resolu...

The Unraveling series, where amazing and inspiring entrepreneurs share the unraveling of old habits and mindset that holds us back, and the rebirth of new.  Today we talk to Las Vegas luxury wedding planner Andrea Eppolito, who was crushing the Vegas wedding scene in 2016 - until she went home and told her husband, "I hate what I'm doing. I hate who I'm doing it for. I hate who I'm doing it with....