Courageous Pivot with Meghan Telpner

EP 024: Trust the Redirection: Finding Courage When Everything Falls Apart with Amber Joliat

This episode is a masterclass in resilience, the courage to question narratives (even about yourself), and what it means to keep moving when everything falls apart. Amber Joliat built a thriving wellness empire in Toronto—teaching movement, yoga, and Pilates to thousands, creating community in multiple studios across the city. Then, in June 2020, it all burned down in 72 hours. She had been 'cancelled'. In this raw and revelatory conversation, Amber shares what happened when she became the target of a coordinated cancel campaign during the height of pandemic-era social justice movements. From public accusations to media takedowns, she lost her business, her community, and nearly her sense of self. But the story doesn't end there. This episode traces Amber's journey from childhood grief and the healing power of movement, through entrepreneurial success and devastating loss, to a diagnosis that forced yet another reckoning. Essential listening for anyone who has endured a pivot that was not of their choosing and continues to seek out their inner courage to navigate the challenges as they come. Links + Resources * Full show notes [https://fun.meghantelpner.com/blog] * Shop: 30% off Rise + Shine: Guided Path to Heart-Led Living and Leadership [https://fun.meghantelpner.com/offers/Nt3QgZam?coupon_code=PIVOT30]

EP 023: Learning How to Listen: When Your Story Requires An Unexpected Pivot with Productivity Expert Tiago Forte

What if the thing you're known for—the very success that defines you—is actually holding you back? Tiago Forte built an empire teaching millions how to organize their digital minds. Wall Street Journal bestseller. Sold-out courses. Eight-figure business. Then he walked away from 95% of his revenue. In this conversation, Tiago shares why he reinvents himself every single year like clockwork, how meditation and fasting unlock his next chapter, and what it means to watch AI devour your entire industry and choose to ride the wave instead of drown. For anyone who's achieved everything they thought they wanted and still hears that whisper saying "this isn't it"—Tiago maps the territory between success and fulfillment, between logic and intuition, between who you were and who you're becoming. Essential listening for anyone whose body knows something their brain hasn't admitted yet. Links + Resources * Full show notes [https://fun.meghantelpner.com/blog] * Shop: 30% off Rise + Shine: Guided Path to Heart-Led Living and Leadership [https://fun.meghantelpner.com/offers/Nt3QgZam?coupon_code=PIVOT30]

EP 022 - A Midlife Chrysalis: Designing Your Next Chapter From the Heart

What if the discomfort you're feeling isn't a midlife crisis, but a chrysalis—an invitation to become who you were always meant to be? In this episode, airing just after her 46th birthday, Meghan Telpner explores how midlife isn't about decline, but about designing your next chapter from the heart rather than from obligation or fear. Learn why your body's whispers are getting louder, how to distinguish between what's truly yours and what you've been performing, and why the chrysalis stage requires dissolving old versions of yourself to make room for what wants to emerge. If you're ready to stop living from the outside in and start designing from your deepest knowing, this episode offers both permission and a path forward. Essential listening for anyone in their 40s and 50s who's ready to pivot from who they think they should be to who they actually are. Links + Resources * Full show notes [https://meghantelpner.substack.com/podcast] * Shop: 30% off Rise + Shine: Guided Path to Heart-Led Living and Leadership [https://fun.meghantelpner.com/offers/Nt3QgZam?coupon_code=PIVOT30]

EP 021: A Creative Pivot: Why Being Good at Something Isn't Enough with Textile Artist Jen Arron

Textile artist Jen Arron shares her transformative journey from established Toronto photographer to full-time artist, revealing the messy, beautiful process of reinventing your creative identity. In this honest and vulnerable conversation, Jen shares the difference between being good at something and being truly creative, the terror and liberation of change, and the life shift that crystallized her need for work that felt essential. This episode offers practical wisdom about protecting your creative whispers, redefining success metrics, and the courage required to claim "artist" as your identity when everyone knows you as something else. Essential listening for anyone feeling the tension between commercial success and the whispers to follow creative authenticity. Links + Resources * Full show notes [https://meghantelpner.substack.com/podcast]

EP 020: The Price of Alignment: How To Rebuild A Life with (former) Ethics Professor Julie Ponesse

What happens when standing for your principles means losing everything you've built? Dr. Julie Ponesse, an ethics professor for 20 years, faced exactly that choice when her university policies fell out of alignment with her personal ethics. With a newborn baby and no backup plan, she refused—not because the decision was easy, but because staying silent would have meant abandoning who she was. In this profound conversation, Julie unpacks the difference between having "no choice" due to fear versus having no choice if you want to remain in integrity with yourself. She speaks candidly about moral injury, the loss of trust, and the recovery time she now needs. But she also shares the unexpected gifts that came from having clarity about her core values, and a surprising new path helping others achieve financial freedom. This is a story about being faithful to yourself even when the cost is everything. Essential listening for anyone who's ever wondered if they have the courage to choose their principles over their security. * Full show notes [https://meghantelpner.substack.com/podcast] * Money Mastery [https://fun.meghantelpner.com/MoneyMastery] - A wildly practical approach to financial literacy, empowered money mindset, and wealth building for a life of joy and freedom (use code PIVOT30 at checkout to save 30% on the course).