Pivot With Purpose Season 5 Episode 18 Meghan Schelzi Full Transcript

Meghan Houle (00:05.147) Welcome to the Pivot With Purpose podcast. How are you? Yay. Good. Yeah. So, what are you up to lately? Where are we catching you in this world, in this life right now? Meghan (00:07.77) Yay! Good! Meghan (00:18.258) Well, this week you're catching me on school vacation week, which is a fun, fun space to play in. I am a transformational education coach. I work with kids to shift their relationship with learning, specifically around literacy. Yeah, so I have the best job in the world working with kids right now. Meghan Houle (00:39.258) And then you're like, I follow the school calendar, but I don't technically have to be in a school. So you have your own little cutesy school and all the things we'll get into. But I know it's crazy driving in, coming from the gym today. I'm like, wow, it is nuts how school vacation also really affects the Boston traffic. Because I mean, good for parents. They're like, we out. And I'm like, thank you, roadways, for keeping it nice and open. But then we'll all return to normal. Meghan (00:58.442) Mm-hmm. Meghan (01:02.008) Hahaha Meghan (01:08.119) Totally. Meghan Houle (01:09.018) So, no, that's so amazing. We hope you're enjoying your time. I'm so excited to have you on the podcast as I know through various channels. You and I have been connected and so proud of you in also kind of a pivotal moment, which we can dive deeper into. Really took a pivot with purpose on your own to carve out. a space that I feel like is so needed and any moms or families or individuals with kids listening in. I mean, I feel like for education, reading, you know, you probably see it firsthand some things where these poor kids lost so much from the pandemic of like being so disconnected, you know, and should I hear your take if you feel like it's reversed things a bit, but like also thank God for someone like Megan and like all your offerings. Meghan (01:33.587) Yeah. Meghan (01:53.474) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (02:04.49) to really get kids on track and feeling confident at all levels. I know you work with a little bit of everyone, but before we dive into all that, early career Megan, were you always set out to be a teacher? I feel like it's one of those occupations as a kid. I was like, I'm going to be a teacher and I would line up on my Barbies and my teddy bears and I would teach them things and also put on dances. I'm a one-trick pony and do it all. Meghan (02:23.486) Uh-huh. Meghan (02:28.831) Yup. Meghan Houle (02:32.21) But what was that journey like for you? Yeah. Meghan (02:34.758) Yeah, you say that and I think I wasn't lining up my Barbies, I was lining up my siblings like going down the line helping. I still remember like after school going into my sister's room, my younger sister and like helping her with like her math homework and that kind of thing. So like teaching was very much I think a calling for me. I think it's like clear to anyone who knew me, like kids will always have my heart, like I've always loved kids and working with kids. Meghan Houle (02:40.634) You're like, hey guys, yeah, let me teach you. Meghan Houle (02:50.586) Oh, geez. Yeah. Meghan Houle (02:58.336) Yeah. Meghan (03:00.63) coached skating and coached tennis and all that kind of stuff growing up, babysat forever. But, um, I was a journalism major in college and I actually wanted either journalism or children's book publishing was like where I was going to go. Um, but I graduated 2010 when newspapers were dying and the online space hadn't really become what, um, it became like even within a couple of years. So I did what I do and I went back to school and I, Meghan Houle (03:13.13) Cool. Yeah. Hmm. Meghan (03:27.994) I went back to school the fall after I graduated college, went to BC, got my master's in early childhood education. And then I actually started in high school English. I was doing high school English for a semester. And then after a semester of that, I was like, absolutely not. This is not something I love teaching, but this is not the right age group for me. So. Meghan Houle (03:36.338) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (03:42.875) Oh wow. Meghan Houle (03:49.19) Oh my gosh, yeah, what was what is that high school age? Because you feel like we're so young, and then the kids are young. But I feel like the gap and like aging is like really starting to like, close because I don't know, I never know how old anyone is these days, we all are like looking amazing. But you do feel at a certain point like those 1314 1516. It's like they all got like little attitudes. Oh, god. Oh, Meghan (03:53.687) Yep. Meghan (04:05.686) Yeah Meghan (04:10.014) Yeah, yeah, yeah. Oh, yeah. No, I was 22 teaching 18 year olds high school English. Meghan Houle (04:19.679) That's like not, I mean, that's like not a, yeah. If you think about it, how messed up, right? There's like 20 year olds married to six year old, like people out there. And then you're like, the three are different. It's like, it's not that different, right? Yeah, oh my God. Meghan (04:20.022) So pretty quickly, pretty quickly I was like... Meghan (04:30.674) It was not, it was, I knew, and that's very much been me. It's like, I knew the direction, but it was just slightly like off. And it was like, I knew it was teaching. Like I loved being in a classroom and going to school and walking through the hallways, but it wasn't like the right group. So then I shifted, I took like one early childhood class in the next semester. And then that summer I was like, oh, a hundred percent, like so obvious, this is what I'm meant to be doing. So did my student teaching. I was in Newton and then. Meghan Houle (04:34.918) Yeah. Meghan Houle (04:53.694) Yeah. Meghan (04:58.73) Yeah, got my master's, I worked, and then I started working in schools. I was in special ed, I was a teaching assistant, maternity leave, teacher, all the things, covered it all. Mostly early childhood, like K to two, yeah. Meghan Houle (05:06.186) Wow, yeah. Meghan Houle (05:10.454) Yeah. So have you always, Megan's in Boston. Have you always been in like the Northeast? Like, is this, you know, an area that you've just grown up in, loved, kind of keep in here where your people are? Yes. Yeah. Meghan (05:14.978) Thank you. Meghan (05:20.215) Yeah. Meghan (05:25.679) Yeah, yeah, up until now. We'll see where it takes me. But yeah, I grew up in just outside of Boston, went to college in Connecticut, and then came back to Boston. So this is where I'm at. Meghan Houle (05:31.118) Nice. And then here. So where did that big pivot come for you within school systems kind of leading you to where you are now? At the heart of the podcast, there's that point where you're like, maybe this isn't meant for me. So what did that look like for you? Meghan (05:43.64) Yeah. Meghan (05:46.975) Mm-hmm. Meghan (05:52.21) It's so crazy looking back because that's where I really feel like this is what I'm meant to be doing because I never could have predicted how the decisions I made would play out. I taught for 10 years and then in the summer of 2019, after 10 years of teaching, I just kind of felt this like pull, like there was something more out there, which was crazy because like... Meghan Houle (06:15.442) Mm-hmm. Meghan (06:17.722) I had the best class ever that year. Like I joked all year, I was teaching second grade. I loved them, they were such a great class. It was just like easy and fun. And I had so much like freedom. I was at a Catholic school, so I had a little bit of freedom to do. Teaching first communion was like part of our curriculum. Like it was just so special. And then the school year ended. In that summer, I was just kinda like, I don't think I'm going back. Like I just, I don't know where it came from. Meghan Houle (06:29.283) Oh fun, yeah. Aww. Yeah. Meghan (06:44.15) But I just felt like there was something more out there I was never going to find, just like within those walls of the classroom. And at the time, I was training for a Chicago marathon, which is Columbus Day weekend. So I was like, all right, I'm just going to focus on that for the next six weeks, two months, and then see where I'm at. Never could have predicted five, six months later, COVID was going to shut down the world and change everything. I thought at the time, teaching is such a steady career. I can always come back to it. If I take a year or six months out of the classroom, Meghan Houle (07:06.291) Mm-hmm. Meghan (07:13.514) I can always get a teaching job. Nothing ever changes in teaching. And I stepped away and in stepping away, it allowed me the space to fill when COVID shut down everything. And when people were reaching out, looking for help and families I taught or babysat or coached who were needing help, I was like this like free agent to be able to go anywhere and just help kids. And I joke all the time that like, if I ever thought I'd be going back to the classroom, I never would have. Meghan Houle (07:24.615) Yeah. Meghan Houle (07:30.708) Yeah. Meghan Houle (07:36.583) Yeah. Meghan (07:40.942) thrown away as much stuff when I was cleaning out my classroom. Like truly, I didn't see myself. I thought maybe in like 20 years, once my kids were raised, I would be an assistant teacher or something someday. But yeah, making that decision just like opened up endless possibility that looking back on like, how could I ever have known that a pandemic would come to change everything. Meghan Houle (07:46.17) No. Meghan Houle (08:00.438) Right? No, I mean, it's so weird, right? The universe sometimes shows us in mysterious ways, but I know 2020 gave many of us a pause that we didn't ask for, but we all kind of had to take that pivot. And for you, I think sort of already having it in your soul was like, oh, okay, this is kind of it. And then I remember too, so many parents were like brokering. Meghan (08:12.17) We're going. Meghan (08:21.346) Yeah. Meghan Houle (08:29.426) teaching at home of like, we will pay you anything. Please come in and doing the private teaching. Oh my gosh, I have to imagine you were getting inundated. What was that point, maybe March 2020, going back to it where the inquiries were coming in? How were you serving this community? How did you start to format that business plan for yourself with all these people coming in, but then also you're very specialized in something, right? Yeah. Meghan (08:32.838) Mm-hmm. Yeah. Meghan (08:51.853) Yeah. Meghan (08:57.302) Yeah, yeah, it was definitely like meant to be. Like, I don't know how else to describe it. Like I was so fortunate to be able to reconnect with some families. It's funny, one of the families I worked with pretty deeply, the mom had been my elementary school teacher. I actually had her two years. So it was her youngest that I got to work with who I had, you know, babysat when he was a little tiny kid. So that was really, I felt so fortunate not only to be like doing what I loved, but it was basically like, Meghan Houle (09:02.542) Uh huh. Yeah. Meghan Houle (09:15.453) Oh, full circle. Yeah. Meghan (09:26.39) all of these people that I loved. Like I got to go, it was a really special time because for me, like COVID, I had a really hard time during COVID. Like I was super anxious about it. And like I lived by myself, so there was that. And it was like, Megan, even at this like scariest moment in the world, you are able to bring something to these peoples, not only their lives, but their homes. Like people weren't seeing grandparents and cousins and, you know. Meghan Houle (09:28.071) Yeah. Aw. Meghan Houle (09:46.343) Yeah. Meghan (09:49.75) I was somebody that people were regularly seeing. That was a really special gift to be able to go into people's lives and help them in a way that they really, really needed. So I mean, I joke now. I'm like, I had my mobile office. I just had everything like. Meghan Houle (09:53.862) Yeah. Meghan Houle (09:58.002) Yeah. Meghan Houle (10:04.778) You're like, Ms. Megan is coming over with books. That's awesome though. Gives the kids something to look forward to because it was so uncertain and scary, especially young where you're not necessarily understanding. You're like, oh, we're not going to school and there's like something going on in the world but depends on like how much two parents are willing to share with their kids and things like that. You're probably that wonderful buffer of. Meghan (10:07.466) Yeah, my trunk was full of things and I would just... Yeah. Meghan (10:16.246) Yeah. Yep. Meghan (10:28.807) Yeah. Meghan Houle (10:31.746) normalcy, right? A little bit of normalcy and routine. Yes, girl. You're like, I'm fed and booked and busy and fed. Amazing. Oh my gosh. So what were you doing in those periods that then sort of led you to the next level? Meghan (10:32.842) Yeah. Oh yeah, there were lots of baked goods made for me and my pictures. Meghan (10:43.506) Yeah. Meghan Houle (10:50.058) to now kind of building what you have today. So you have your mobile thing, but now I know you have this like beautiful space where you're really able to impact and like work one-on-one, but what was that transition like for you? Yeah. Meghan (11:00.522) Yeah, yeah, yeah. So, I mean, it's crazy. I think, um, this is my going into my fifth summer of doing this, which is wild. I know. I know it's crazy. It's crazy. Um, yeah, I started that first year was kind of just me and truthfully, it was like, you know, I was looking to pay my bills. I was like, this is something I'm good at. It's something the world needs. Like I'll kind of ride out the school year. We never knew the impact it would have. So Meghan Houle (11:08.715) Oh my God, time freaking flies. I remember talking to you in the pandemic. I'm like, Megan, what are you doing? How can I refer people to you? Yeah, yeah. Meghan Houle (11:29.062) Right. Yeah. Meghan (11:30.226) I was on my own kind of that first year, that summer, that school year. And then by the fall of 2021, I had more kids from the summer and more kids returning for the school year than I could take on. So I ended up hiring my first person, which seemed crazy. I was like, who am I to be like posting on Instagram saying like, if anybody wants to connect and work for me, like it was a wild, it felt surreal. So I hired my first person. She was amazing. And then Meghan Houle (11:41.863) Oh wow. Meghan Houle (11:52.97) Hmm. Yeah. Meghan (11:57.814) hired two more people pretty quickly, and that was like December. And then by March, April, I had like 20 teachers working with me, which was insane. And it was just like, that was kind of my favorite part, was these conversations with these teachers who were going through this challenging time and still wanting to like do more, wanting to connect with kids, wanting to teach, like be a part of a community, like that's what I really wanted to build. So I did that and it was crazy. Meghan Houle (12:05.682) Wow. Yeah. Meghan (12:25.33) And then after a while, I kind of learned that managing a team of that size and the way it was, was not the best fit for me. I had stopped teaching. I was just purely managing. So essentially I'd outsourced all the parts of my business that I loved. And I was doing all the parts of my business I did not love. Meghan Houle (12:32.494) Mm-hmm. Mmm. Meghan Houle (12:38.862) Yeah. Ooh, interesting there because I know as like entrepreneurs and like all the things that we build, it's the reverse, right? It's like hire for the things that you don't want to do. But that was a very good self-awareness moment for you. Mm-hmm. Meghan (12:49.526) Right. It was, yeah, that was like a big moment. I mean, it took me getting to a point of just complete like overwhelm to be like, oh, like something has to change. So that was like about almost a year and a half ago. And then I started just kind of working my way back into, what would it look like? What kind of offer could I put together that I would feel really good about doing and teaching and who do I really wanna work with? And so then it came with a really difficult decision to part ways with all of those teachers who were working with me, which was very. Meghan Houle (13:00.764) Yeah. Meghan Houle (13:18.831) Oh wow. Yeah. Meghan (13:21.43) very difficult, but it was right. Like I was miserable and at the end of the day, I couldn't serve anybody when I was like that unhappy. So I did that and I got back into it. And as soon as I decided what I wanted, people started coming for exactly what I wanted to offer. You know, more of this like transformational relationship with learning lens and less of the like workbooks and homework help lens. That's kind of what I feel like is special and unique about like what I'm doing is really that like whole confidence package. Meghan Houle (13:28.266) Totally. Meghan Houle (13:41.094) Mmm. Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (13:48.179) Yeah. Meghan (13:49.046) So once I started doing that, it just became pretty clear that, OK, if I'm really in this, I don't want to just go back to driving around crazy to people's houses. I actually did a writing retreat, and one of the visualizations in that was talking about, I was helping write a book. And it was like, where do you see this book being? Who do you see it helping? And then it became really clear to me having a space. People would come in, and they would see it, and it would support them. So yeah, I called a property management company that I'd been connected with probably a year before and just did nothing with. And as soon as I called, it was like, you know, saw two spaces the next day. And one was like, looks like a little schoolhouse. And I was just like, this is it. So, yeah, that was last summer. And now we're closing in on, I don't know, six, nine months there. Meghan Houle (14:21.29) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (14:25.126) Awesome. Yeah. Aww. Yes. So cool. Wow. And I feel like what a time too for like commercial real estate wherein, you know, a lot of offices still haven't and some may never get booked in. So good for you for like really identifying the things that you were doing that were just straining you, releasing them to move forward and expand and even a bigger space to serve and then creating your own four walls. Meghan (14:55.273) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (15:03.47) to have full control of your offerings and kind of keeping everything in one space. So it's kind of like the appointments, right, that the kids come and they work with you and they're booked with you. So how do you fill in around what they're doing in school? Like what do people sort of come to you with for many moms or families or individuals listening in with kids? Yeah, where do you fill in around the blanks in your zone of genius? Meghan (15:26.018) Mm-hmm. Meghan (15:30.182) Yeah, so my jam is like K-1-2, really like first second grade literacy. Again, like back in 2020, 2021, one of those online years, I was trained in Orton Gillingham, which is like specific to help like support students who struggle with dyslexia. So it's this really like sequential explicit method of teaching literacy. Spelling in particular is like my thing. And Meghan Houle (15:38.184) Yeah. Meghan Houle (15:48.862) Bye bye. Meghan Houle (15:57.418) I love it. Can you teach me? I'm like terrible at spelling. I love it. It's like the things that you give up on when you rely on technology, Megan. Me, spelling. Like, words I put together or sentences that are not even like in the English language, but I'm like, spell check will fix it, but it's so dangerous. So it's amazing, right? You use the foundational things. Yeah. Meghan (16:01.266) Yeah, I mean, it's really like. Meghan (16:17.702) Well, that's a whole nother conversation of what's starting to happen. Yeah. And I see it in elementary, my best friend teaches high school math and we were just away for a couple of days talking and that was one of our conversations that always comes up is just the relationship with technology. I feel like that could be a whole nother episode, but like technology and education, right? Like it's the way of the future. It's a part of the world we live in. But like when my third, fourth graders are telling me that they just, you know, Meghan Houle (16:41.358) You need foundations. Meghan (16:44.718) type everything on the iPad and just hit the blue squiggly line to fix the spelling of a word, like, it's scary. Meghan Houle (16:51.098) Right? So you're like writing hands down, like no technology. It's like we're in it kids. Like this is old fashioned learning. Amen. Yeah. Meghan (16:58.262) Pencil and paper, yeah. Yeah. And focusing on that foundation. I mean, there's so much research behind it. But when you're closing those gaps at an earlier age, I mean, it makes sense, right? The gaps are smaller to close. They're going to close faster than if you're waiting till fourth, fifth, sixth grade. The gaps are going to be bigger and a lot harder to close. So that's really my zone of genius is get in at the beginning. Make that foundation really solid. I have a really high bar. I tell parents I have a really high bar for the students that I work with. high expectations and write down to like handwriting and lowercase letters and all of that stuff. But like I make it fun because I love it and like I love kids probably even more than I love teaching. So like that's really what I lead with and I think that they feel that and the parents feel that and that's really that's what I love most. Meghan Houle (17:36.106) Hmm. Oh. Yeah. Meghan Houle (17:46.778) That's so special. Well, who do you serve in terms of the population, kind of being local in and around Boston area, suburbs? Who is that ideal client? I understand kid and age and grade wide, but yeah, what's your service bubble, so to speak? Yeah. Meghan (18:04.286) Yeah, yeah, so that is something with coming away from the virtual space and putting my roots down geographically has been the geographic piece of it, although it hasn't really stopped people. I had students, so I'm in Wellesley. I have a lot of students in like Needham, Wayland, Weston, Newton, but last summer like I had a student coming from Sharon twice a week. I have a couple kids now who come out from Boston to work with me a couple days a week, so I mean. Meghan Houle (18:11.55) Yeah. Meghan Houle (18:17.359) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (18:20.798) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (18:24.369) awesome. Meghan Houle (18:28.764) Yeah. Meghan (18:30.638) Yeah, I love what I do. And I think it's definitely a different take on the whole. I don't love the word tutor. I think it's more deeper than that. But I think it's pretty unique. There's a lot of math centers around. But I haven't really found a lot of places that are really doing the literacy. So I'm just like, and that's what I love. So I'm looking to be able to support more kids and do more group stuff. I'm not sure if I'm going to hire again or what that might look like. I have a question. Meghan Houle (18:37.769) Yeah. Meghan Houle (18:42.782) Right. Meghan Houle (18:47.604) Yeah. Meghan (18:57.794) building a wait list for the first time in ever, which feels really exciting and kind of gearing up for summer and how I can support more kids during the summer. Cause that's such a, such a time that really needs that. Yeah, critical. Meghan Houle (18:59.37) Woo! Yes! Meghan Houle (19:06.058) Critical time. Yeah. It's almost like when kids go to camp and parents need a break. There are those moments where you're not learning or you're not staying engaged and maybe somebody with struggling with reading and writing and whatnot to then lose out on those months and have to pick back up. I'm sure that's super stressful. I guess what are you seeing coming from schools like… Meghan (19:28.758) summer slot. Meghan Houle (19:33.366) I just, you know, we have a lot of nieces and nephews. I think anxiety is an all-time high ADHD in terms of kids, like really being diagnosed and not being able to pay attention, maybe because of all of the technology and the iPads and how we regulate that. You know, what are you seeing when kids come to you, maybe even like first, you know, conversations or intakes? Meghan (19:36.189) Mm-hmm. Meghan (19:46.477) Yeah. Meghan (19:51.999) Yep. Meghan Houle (20:02.134) Is there a moment where you kind of have to do like a little reset of like an energy if they're coming in and like kind of crazy from school, but then to have something private one on one, that's a shift, Megan. So like, what are you seeing like kids struggling with even like mentally, emotionally and like, how are you kind of managing that too? Yeah. Meghan (20:07.658) Yeah. Meghan (20:15.126) Yeah. Totally. Yeah, and I mean, and that's something that I have. dove into in the last year or two for myself is coaching around this energy first approach to it. And I feel like that's what I'm bringing to my students is kind of more of that energy first shift, right? They have to be available to the learning, right? At some point they have to, even though they're young, there has to be that connection and that engagement. And I think that's where I'm looking to build out more of the empowering parent side of things, because it really has to be a partnership, especially when the kids are this young. Meghan Houle (20:32.622) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (20:38.633) Yeah. Meghan Houle (20:54.062) Oh yeah. Yeah. Meghan (20:55.762) And I think one of the biggest things like, yeah, in those initial conversations with parents, I mean, I get on the phone with some of these parents and like, they cry. Like they're so upset because for a lot of them, especially because I work with kids who are so young, this is the first time their kids ever really like struggled, right? Like this is the first time they've ever had to like reach out and like kind of come to terms with asking for help for their kids. So it's definitely like a tender topic to bring up, but I think a lot of like comparison. Meghan Houle (21:18.7) Uh-huh. Right. Meghan (21:25.994) Like, you know, I have like the mom who's saying, you know, she walked into back to school night and her kids, you know, work was hanging on the door next to his classmates and like seeing that and like what that does. And that's I joke about the handwriting all day. But like, I really believe like that's such a foundational piece of that, like, confidence for the kids, like literally teaching them to write their name with like lowercase letters, right? Going the right direction so that when it is hanging up on the wall, they're proud of it. You know, it seems foundational. But. Meghan Houle (21:26.452) Yeah. Meghan Houle (21:45.267) Yeah. Meghan Houle (21:49.13) Nice letters. Yeah. Wow. Yeah. Meghan (21:56.438) Big impact. Meghan Houle (21:57.322) No, huge impact. I mean, like, you know, in those comparison games, gosh, like, it's enough as adults for us to get through it and see all the things and the mom shaming and like, oh, my kid's not doing enough or I'm not doing enough as a mom. And then you're going in and then shaming yourself further of like, oh, my kid isn't further along and whatnot. But you're right, it has to be a partnership. And I have a lot of family members that are teachers. And, you know, we know it's just like getting so crazy in schools at like all levels. Meghan (22:04.918) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (22:26.578) But sometimes parents can really be hindering their child's growth or growth because they're inserting their own goals on their kids, but not allowing their kids to be present and showing up and committing to the process as well. Because like anything, we know, you and I, if we're forced to do something, we're just talking about this. That's like a full body hell no. So I wondered, is there a moment too where you're coaching the parents? Meghan (22:30.006) Mm-hmm. Meghan (22:45.726) Yes. Totally. Meghan Houle (22:54.034) a little bit because I can imagine just like kids like putting on coats in the winter or kicking and screaming going to the doctors. You know, I'm sure maybe there's a little bit, I don't want to go to second school again. You know, so how do you work with parents maybe to like help them cultivate a positive mindset? I mean, you're such a beautiful soul and so much energy. Like I would, I'd spend all day with you like in reading and what not be like, get me out of school. Just let me work with Megan. But how do you work with parents to be like? Meghan (22:55.618) Totally. Meghan (23:05.198) Mm-hmm. Meghan (23:15.274) Yeah, yeah. Meghan (23:21.197) Yeah. Meghan Houle (23:21.21) Okay, like if there's a problem or the kid is feeling a certain way, like we need to kind of do this together to like make it fun. Meghan (23:26.582) Yeah, yeah, yeah. And I mean, I think like we talked about, like that's where I really, it's like, I love working with the kids. And now, right, like I'm such an academic at heart too. And so I'm always looking for like, what are the patterns I'm seeing, right? Like big picture perspective. And I think now that I've been doing it for a couple of years in this way, really seeing like, it has to be that partnership. Meghan Houle (23:31.55) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (23:36.359) Yeah. Meghan Houle (23:42.515) Yeah. Meghan Houle (23:49.354) Mm-hmm. Meghan (23:49.45) Like it can't just, you're only gonna get so far if you're just dropping the kid off and picking them up and bring them home. Like there has to be that level of support in some way at home. I mean, I could throw statistics out all day about the research behind reading for 20 minutes a day. But like when you actually look at it, it's like if you're reading 20 minutes a day, you're reading 1.8 million words a year. And if you're only reading five minutes a day, it's 8,000. Meghan Houle (23:55.134) Yeah. Meghan Houle (23:58.75) Mm-hmm. Meghan (24:16.362) So like it's huge, like the impact that it's gonna make. And it doesn't have to be 20 minutes every single day. But when you have that perspective to know the bigger difference it's gonna make, I think parents don't feel confident that they can support their kids. They think I'm sending them to school, their teacher knows everything, I don't know how to be their teacher. And it's like, you don't have to be their teacher. You don't have to sit down and teach them how to do like multiplication, the way they teach it in schools now, which is crazy. I don't even understand it. But like you can still... Meghan Houle (24:16.948) Yeah. Meghan Houle (24:21.779) Right. Meghan Houle (24:25.424) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (24:30.43) Mmm. Meghan Houle (24:41.226) crazy. Where's my calculator? Meghan (24:45.602) have that impact and like you can read stories to them or you can model that you read, right? Like children are gonna look up to you. So what example is being set and just like, you know, talking about the books you're reading or like building oral communication skills or using vocabulary that's gonna expand their thinking. Things like that are gonna make a bigger impact than probably it's not, I've had parents say to me like it's out of my wheelhouse to support my kid. And it's like, Meghan Houle (24:46.715) Yeah. Meghan Houle (24:51.546) Right. Love that. Meghan Houle (25:06.67) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (25:13.124) Oh, geez. Meghan (25:14.13) No, and that's where I'm like, let me work with you. Like, I wanna work with you and show you the skills you do have and the ways you can support your kid. Because you're their first teacher and you're their most important teacher, Frosha. Meghan Houle (25:17.233) Yeah. Meghan Houle (25:22.004) Wow. Heck yeah. And you're the teacher they're seeing all day, every day, you know, and following those leads and examples. So, yeah, there's only so much you can do. But that's awesome that, you know, you identify, too, the partnership relationship with the parents of like, we're just not dropping off and getting this like one hour and then you go home and then the whole time you spend with them is just released and then you see them next week, you're like, wow, what's going on? Like, what did you do between now and then? You know? Yeah. Meghan (25:28.382) Mm-hmm. Yep. Meghan (25:47.254) Yeah. Right. Like I sent home these little like passages or whatever and it's like, let's read that for five minutes. Don't try and get them to push through a chapter book, you know, whatever. Just read these little fluency pyramids for set the little sand timer for five minutes at bedtime. That is gonna do more. Yeah. Meghan Houle (25:54.862) Yeah. Right. Meghan Houle (26:02.562) Right, make it fun. Yeah, yeah. And isn't it so crazy? Because there's so much resistance at times around reading, but then you get those kids like me, like I loved reading. And I feel like sometimes it's innate, right? Where you find the bookworms of the kids, like one of my nieces was very advanced, like early on, like always ahead in a book. And God bless her, same with me. I mean, I wish I was a little better now. Meghan (26:13.774) Mm-hmm. Meghan (26:19.746) We're here. Meghan (26:25.526) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (26:30.758) what if you left to the side of my desk, I probably have like 15 books. I'm like, let me just buy another book. You're like, Megan, just like get through your book. I know. But do you see that often where you can tell if there's someone innately that like loves like reading and is there any different way you work with them versus the kids that you know just like hate reading? Like, no. And then I don't want to write and my handwriting is like wild and they're just like feeling sad about everything. Yeah. Meghan (26:30.77) No. Meghan (26:36.161) Same. Oh, I'm at target, 20% off. Let me grab it. Meghan (26:52.958) Yeah. I mean, the majority of the kids I work with don't like to, it's not even that they don't like to read. They don't know how. Like we're talking, like they're learning to sound out like three letter words. Like it's so foundational. It's more, it's like you and I both know, right? Like working out, like you're building those muscles, you're Meghan Houle (27:07.066) They just don't know. Yeah. Like young, young. Yes, yes, yes. Yeah. Meghan Houle (27:18.154) The habits, yeah. Meghan (27:20.53) I feel like my job is to just find like creative ways to get them to do the same work. Like, okay, like if reading some like, that's why it's been so significant for me to have a space for people to come to. Because if something's not working, I can run and grab something else or I can run something off or I can grab something different. Whereas before when I was going to home, I was limited by what I had packed like the night before. So yeah, I mean, I've like partnered with some really cool people who make like awesome like curriculum and materials. Meghan Houle (27:26.846) Yeah. Meghan Houle (27:32.843) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (27:42.683) Right. Yeah. Meghan (27:49.366) that are really like fun for kids that are building those fluency skills and those reading skills and decoding skills. But it's like, sentences about a snowman or we're talking about hot chocolate rhyming words, like with a marshmallow on it. And it just is engaging. Yeah, just finding ways to make it like unique and individual for them, I feel like is like my greatest gift. Meghan Houle (28:01.082) Yeah, yeah, yes. That's what we need. Meghan Houle (28:11.05) Yeah. We make it fun and then building in habits. And then so many life lessons learned in there that you're teaching kids far beyond probably what you even see when they're spending time with you. So it's incredible. They have you. And in terms of anyone listening in where they may be struggling, their kids are struggling, what advice would you give to someone listening in, kids of parents Meghan (28:17.587) Mm-hmm. Meghan (28:22.574) Yeah. Meghan Houle (28:41.158) just really struggling to get their kid on track or like knowing where the resources are. Like, of course, if you're local in Boston, you can work with Megan, but like, yeah, what sort of advice or guidance would you give to someone struggling? Like maybe if there isn't any options, Megan, like what's going on in these schools too, you know? Yeah. Meghan (28:47.085) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Meghan (29:00.718) Yeah, yeah, I mean, yeah, I think like the first thing that we kind of already talked about, like, as best you can is to like let go of that comparison, like, it's not going to do anyone any good. I used to work with a teacher who always said like, learning to read is like a developmental milestone that's different for every kid, like they learn to walk and they learn to talk at a different point. It's not like, oh, they turned five, so they're gonna learn to read a doctor book. Meghan Houle (29:22.09) Hmm. They should be doing this, right? Yeah. Meghan (29:26.538) Yeah, so I think like holding that perspective, I think also like I work with a lot of my kids right now, I feel like are like the second or the third sibling. So there's like comparison within families too, which is definitely hard because I feel, yeah. Meghan Houle (29:37.042) Uh, yeah. It can be heavy, right? If like, oh, your brother was this advanced and you're like, shut up, I'm, you know, I'm doing my best. Well, they're like second grade, hopefully. They're maybe thinking. Yeah. Meghan (29:45.082) Yeah, yeah. Meghan (29:49.494) Totally. And I feel like, like just, like books I love, right? Like going, I tell parents all the time, like especially at this foundational age, like there's not a lot of books out there that you can just get, you know? Like a lot of the work I do is like. Meghan Houle (29:56.298) Mm. Yeah. Meghan Houle (30:05.631) Hmm. Meghan (30:07.902) Indicotables or things that you're not going to go buy at the bookstore like a lot of those early reader books at the bookstore Are not actually great for kids just learning to read because they have so many new words or words They can't sound out and stuff like that. So it promotes Guessing and looking at the picture in that whole conversation, which is not the way that I teach learning to read I teach like breaking down the word and learning the sounds the letters make So Even just like but promoting like a love of reading Meghan Houle (30:19.01) Oh Meghan (30:36.254) Right and like I tell parents all the time like don't buy the books like kids are going to outgrow the books Anyway, those early books go to the library. It's free. They can pick out 20 books that they want like there's definitely You know not even just books that they can read but parents reading books to kids Stories like non-fiction books read about sharks or volcanoes or the weather a lot of kids who struggle with reading like love like that fact You know stuff read about dogs or read about you know the weather um Meghan Houle (30:43.142) Right. Yeah. Meghan Houle (30:51.774) Right. Meghan Houle (30:56.391) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (30:59.72) Mmm. Meghan Houle (31:03.722) Mm-hmm. Meghan (31:04.682) or look at the pictures, like just promoting, like that engagement with literacy is gonna do a lot. Meghan Houle (31:08.35) Right. Yeah. Ooh, maybe we should link in the podcast notes or our web page, like some of your like must reads of the books where you suggest. Yeah, that would be amazing. No, well, we should definitely link it. What are, so in each season, how do you create your curriculum? Because now you're like 365, Megan, like, I mean, you follow the school year, but then also, like you said, summertime probably really ramps up. Meghan (31:17.246) Oh yeah, I have a PDF of my favorites. Meghan (31:27.918) Mm-hmm. Yeah. Meghan (31:34.914) busiest here. Meghan Houle (31:35.799) Yeah, are there different seasons and every year you kind of are making also like pivots in your business? What does that look like for you since creating this space? Meghan (31:38.647) Yeah. Totally. Yeah. I mean, like every year of my business has been so different since I started. Like it's looked different. I feel like it's always going to be that way. Right? Like that's one of my biggest takeaways from like the coaching I've been a part of is like following what feels alive. Right. And sometimes when I get too caught up in planning too far ahead, it there's resistance because it wasn't actually what felt alive in the moment by the time I get there. I think Meghan Houle (31:48.499) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (32:02.323) Mmm. Meghan Houle (32:07.05) Okay, yeah. Meghan (32:10.482) Yeah, so essentially like the way I feel like I hold like an academic curriculum and then I hold like a Like a mindset personal growth curriculum for these kids and it's balancing the two Which is part of why like the work I do is so intensive. I like require the kids I work with It's a commitment of like twice a week Because like once a week is just not going to allow us to do everything we need to do um, like in terms of like academic curriculum like I follow the specific like scope and sequence of teaching like essentially like Meghan Houle (32:30.519) No, yeah. Yeah. Meghan (32:40.358) spelling skills. That's the way I was trained and I think it makes a lot of sense to build, you know, least complex to most complex and like most frequently used words and word patterns to more less frequent. So I like follow that and then I'm building in, you know, like seasonal activities, right? Like I work with this like curriculum developer who makes really fun, like games, right? Like the snowman stuff or the... Meghan Houle (32:41.522) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (32:49.208) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (33:04.696) Awesome. Yeah. Meghan (33:06.562) fall harvest stuff. So it's just themed and things like that really engage the kids in a different way. I do a lot of, I think writing is really important and getting kids to connect with writing, even when they're in kindergarten, writing a sentence. We do some, I wouldn't call them crafts, but it's a writing project where then there's a little mini art component to it. They cut out the snowman and stick it on there or something just to kind of give them two minutes to have a coloring break, just to make it fun. And I'd like to say, Meghan Houle (33:11.902) Oh yeah, yeah. Meghan Houle (33:27.096) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (33:33.23) Right? Yeah. Meghan (33:37.395) something that they're going to hang up on the fridge and be proud of. Like when was the last time your kid came home from school with one of those things they wanted to like hang up on the wall? And like, I love giving kids opportunities to like carry those things home and feel so good about themselves and, and have that moment with their families at home. Meghan Houle (33:39.771) Right. Meghan Houle (33:44.862) Yeah. Meghan Houle (33:49.652) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (33:53.578) That's awesome. No, and I love that you're trying to stay present and not too far planning out, because I'm sure things change. Or you have an epiphany, mine come in the shower, or like at 2 a.m., or in my journal, and I'm like, wait, I wanna focus on this. So you kinda have to take it right chunk at a time. Meghan (34:02.421) Mm-hmm. Meghan (34:07.498) Uh-huh. Yeah, it's me on a long one. Meghan Houle (34:14.298) Because things change, but yes, I love adding in those fun elements like even as adults right for us learning There are so many different learning types right to the visual learning the audible learning, you know The creative the hands in I'm someone who like has to do something. I'm like don't show me just like let me do it But I mean, I'm also an old lady over here, but is that like should have my learning skills down for you what Meghan (34:20.503) Mm-hmm. No. Yep. Uh-huh. Meghan (34:30.102) Yeah. Meghan Houle (34:42.622) have you had to do for yourself to take care of Megan in this process of creation where you and I are both big time energy givers? I'm more of like an extra intro, so I give energy, but then introvertedly, I have to come home and lay on the floor for two days if I'm doing something great, but you're kind of always, you're always on, girl. And then I know you're super active in community and whatnot, but what have you had to invest in terms of yourself? Meghan (34:45.303) Mm. Meghan Houle (35:11.886) or like what are some non-negotiables like in your life that have to happen in order for you to now show up now that you're not being drained from managing 20 people and all the things, yeah. Meghan (35:11.903) Mm-hmm. Meghan (35:20.354) Yeah, yeah. The last year has probably been the biggest year of growth in that area. I've done a lot of different coaching programs over the years, like one-on-one and group coaching programs and masterminds and from more on the fitness-y side to more on the mindset to more on the business side. But about a year and a half ago, I was fortunate enough to cross paths with Meghan Houle (35:29.331) Yeah. Meghan Houle (35:34.271) Uh huh. Meghan (35:48.294) an amazing coach who I'm still working with now. And it's just been, yeah, a lot of, I mean, you know, as an entrepreneur, like it's not just your business, it's your personal life too. And it's balancing the two and what shows up in one is inevitable to show up in the other and vice versa in all the good and the bad ways. So I think like, I can't imagine ever not having that support in some form or fashion. Meghan Houle (35:51.164) Awesome. Meghan Houle (36:04.206) I know, yeah, yeah. Meghan Houle (36:12.851) Mm-hmm. Meghan (36:13.558) We worked one-on-one for like over the last year and now I'm in a couple of different like group containers that she's a part of. And that's just been a really inspiring way to be around people who are on, I feel like there's entrepreneurs and then there's like a group of entrepreneurs who are in like the, not just the business space, but wanting to like just up level themselves as a human and like dig into the things that are actually holding them back to just like create that impact. Meghan Houle (36:19.358) Good. Meghan Houle (36:35.122) Yeah. Meghan (36:41.214) in a way that is really like truly aligned and not forced. Yeah, it's been, it's, you know, you gotta clear out things to make space for new things. And it's definitely been a year of kind of moving things around. Meghan Houle (36:46.811) Yeah, I love that. Meghan Houle (36:51.69) I mean, amen. Yes. And it's lonely at the top, right? I mean, as much as you're surrounded by people in so many ways, it can feel so lonely. So do you feel like you also find community in being a part of coaching in these groups where it gives you a piece of mind to know that you're not alone? Because I think sometimes we feel super shameful to talk about what's not going well in our business. Meghan (36:58.414) sure is. Meghan (37:05.043) Thank you. Meghan (37:14.125) Oh yeah. Meghan (37:19.516) and Meghan Houle (37:19.902) We're not freaking crushing it because again, a lot of people posting on Insta are like, I'm doing all these things. You're like, oh, today I got out of bed and washed my hair. That's pretty much how I'm just feeling accomplished. And that's OK because I know at times we are very bad at giving ourselves rest moments, especially in an entrepreneurial soul where you're like, Meghan (37:30.907) No. Yep. Meghan (37:40.226) Mm-hmm. Yeah. Meghan Houle (37:43.046) Okay, next, next. What do I have to build? Like I just have been in creation like you for the past like four years. So do you feel like you find community and in that, you know, how have you become maybe more vulnerable in sharing like what you're struggling with? Yeah, or has that been something, I've been always very vocal about it, yeah. Meghan (37:49.515) Yeah. Totally. Meghan (37:56.803) Mm. Hmm. Totally. Meghan (38:05.507) Yeah, I mean, I think I definitely love being a part of community. I'm everybody who knows me knows I just want to be surrounded by people 24 seven. Yeah, like being in those communities has definitely been that outlet for me. I feel like, you know, I've had that space on and off in Boston, like in in-person connections. But it's been really cool to in these different coaching containers I've been in to be connected with people like Meghan Houle (38:12.678) I know you're so good. God bless you. Yeah. Meghan (38:31.626) not only across the country, but across the world. And not only in like, rarely do I ever, have I worked with people who are necessarily in the education entrepreneur space. There's some I've connected with, but more like just in other spaces. And now kind of surrounding myself more with people who are that like energy first container where maybe they're doing coaching or maybe they're doing, you know, I don't even know in lots of different areas, but we're aligned in ways that feels good. And Meghan Houle (38:33.735) Oh cool. Meghan Houle (38:44.39) Uh huh. Meghan Houle (38:58.075) Uh-huh. Meghan (38:59.222) You know, like Facebook groups within those containers where people are sharing and weekly coaching calls where people are sharing and some weeks it's sharing about their business and some weeks it's just sharing like real life because you know it's all the same and it's all connected. And if you're just gonna like deny certain things, it's gonna come up in your business and it's gonna be a roadblock. So, yeah. Meghan Houle (39:11.206) Unloading, yeah. Yeah. Meghan Houle (39:20.666) Oh, I feel that. Yeah, I went on a diatribe yesterday actually about what it's like to work with someone like me, which maybe you have to say out loud quite often of like maybe parents come or people also like love to assume they know all the ways they can push your buttons and whatnot. But you come to a point where you're like, anybody is going to assume and also… maybe want to take that time and energy and how generous you are just in your personality of saying, how can I help? How can I help? But also to at the end of the day, if there are things that are happening that are keeping like building up in you building up in you and you're just like, oh, it's just a part of business. It's like, you know, it is. Yeah, eventually that volcano top is gonna explode where you're like, okay, this is happening. And now it's starting to affect me as I know that there are those heavy energy days for me. Meghan (40:12.878) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (40:16.658) that I just get so drained where I'm like, but I'm not setting my own boundaries. So it's like a self-awareness moment, but it is freaking good to say it out loud. So, you know, for anyone, say it out loud. If you're really struggling with something, whether you have a community or, you know, an advisor or a mentor, you know, maybe not. Meghan (40:21.543) Yeah. Meghan (40:26.274) Yeah. Meghan Houle (40:37.974) always unloading on your friends because eventually they're going to stop texting you back. No, I'm just kidding. But I think that that's where you find so much value in community because you can see your truth and be in this non-judgment zone. Right? Yeah. I love that. Meghan (40:40.49) Yeah. Yes. Um, yeah. Meghan (40:50.642) Yeah, yeah. And I think it's like, yeah, I mean, it's, it's everything who you surround yourself with, whether it's like physically surrounding yourself with them, or just like being in communication. And like, I don't know how much you're into like human design or any of that kind of stuff. But like, I Meghan Houle (41:06.218) Oh, I am. You know I'm a weirdo. Yep. Not that that's a weirdo, but I like love crystal. Like if you also looked at this side of my desk, I have like 10,000 crystals, sage, like my routines. No, I'm just a generator. Yeah. I'm just a generator. Yeah. Meghan (41:15.446) Oh yeah, are we, are you a manifesting generator too? Generator, okay. No, but like the more I was thinking of it in terms of like, like I have a gut, that's my decision-making center is like a gut. And like the more that I've like, and that's something that I've learned a lot about in the last year and it's like how much time and energy I was wasting overriding my gut. Meghan Houle (41:29.326) Yeah. Meghan Houle (41:36.126) Yeah. Meghan (41:41.214) in going back and forth and back and forth and back and forth. And I feel like that's something I've really worked hard to clean up in the last year. It's like, if it's a yes, go. If it's a no, it's a no. And if you're not sure, wait till you have more information. But if you know, just do it. Because I like to do this thing where I like to delay letting myself have the things that I want. And it's just like this torture along the way. And it's like, if it's alive and it's a yes, just like... Meghan Houle (41:41.418) Wow. Meghan Houle (41:48.966) Yeah. Meghan Houle (42:00.49) Interesting, yeah. Meghan (42:06.838) Go for it and let yourself have it and dream that big dream or cut those people out or spend more time with those people. It plays out everywhere, but I think just really trusting and actually feeling how I actually feel. And if my gut is screaming no and I'm still choosing to go those places, why? And not making it wrong, but getting really curious about what is it out of that I'm getting. Meghan Houle (42:08.264) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (42:28.183) Mmm, yeah. Meghan Houle (42:34.139) Yeah. Meghan (42:35.158) That's been like a big shift in the last year is like actually listening to my gut because I have one not everybody does Some people are like emotional, but I'm a gut so listening to that Meghan Houle (42:39.262) Good for you. Yeah, interesting. That's awesome. I love that. Again, so much self-awareness, which kudos to you because I feel like that's what we struggle with the most at times in this process. But what else have you learned about yourself in this process of all your pivots? Yeah, like how have you grown? What have you learned? Yeah. Meghan (42:49.262) I'm sorry. Meghan (43:04.562) Oh my gosh, such a good question. I feel like, part of me feels like I never could have predicted where I would end up. And part of me feels like, of course this is where I would end up. You know what I mean? Like, I think that, you know, moving into this next year, I think doing more speaking, like on behalf of education and having more conversations like this, I think I'm learning that there's a lot of stuff that I take for granted that... Meghan Houle (43:17.276) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (43:28.53) Yeah. Meghan (43:32.894) either I know or that get me really excited about, or there are things that are like my gifts that I've had a couple of conversations about this recently with other people is like, I take them for granted because I assume everybody knows the statistic, or I assume everybody knows the impact, or I assume everybody does it like this. And it's like, I think I'm learning more like that's not necessarily true. So kind of like what places and spaces and conversations can I put myself in that are actually gonna like honor. Meghan Houle (43:48.126) So, yeah. Meghan Houle (43:55.154) Yeah. Meghan (44:01.878) value those parts of me. Cause that's the stuff that lights me up. And like, as a manifesting generator, right? Like when I'm in those spaces of places that are lighting me up, I'm like unstoppable. And that feels like leadership, that feels like conversations I wanna be a part of. Meghan Houle (44:06.439) Yeah. Meghan Houle (44:12.754) You can tell. Yeah. Meghan Houle (44:20.794) Well, this is step one, putting your voice on the podcast. But in terms of speaking, throw it out there in the universe. You're saying it out loud, well, first of all, your voice is so needed, I think, to own that zone of genius and education, early childhood education, spelling the foundations, getting kids off of technology, how to help parents navigate these conversations with maybe sometimes pushback or difficult kids and get them excited about learning. Meghan (44:31.626) Thank you. Yeah. Meghan (44:43.639) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (44:48.658) Where do you feel like some of those platforms exist for you? Or like, girl, harness that voice and put it out there. As I always say, no one's going to know what you do unless you tell them. So you just kind of have to put it out there and then start being known for like, oh, Megan, she's going to talk about this. So where would you want to see as a manifesting generator yourself on stage? What would be your big yes moment with that? Meghan (44:52.491) Yeah. Meghan (44:59.52) Yeah. Meghan (45:04.172) Yeah. Yeah. Bye bye. Meghan (45:13.898) Yeah. Um, I think yes moment, uh, would be giving a Ted talk for sure. I think that would be amazing. Yeah. Um. Meghan Houle (45:17.458) Where do you feel? Yeah. There you go. You're here to hear her first a bit of a purpose. So about this time next year, we're gonna be like, Megan, how was your TED talk? Okay, it's happening. Yeah. Meghan (45:28.894) Yeah, I mean, like, my heart is so much in like academia. Like I thought about like going back and getting like a PhD or working back at BC or something like that has always kind of been in my mind. So doing something in that world, I think having conversations like more like podcast conversations, like I love telling that story of like, you know, how I left the classroom and I had no idea and then COVID happened and it opened up this possibility I never could have predicted. Like I feel so grateful for that having been my story. I couldn't have told you that back in. Meghan Houle (45:33.404) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (45:39.506) Yeah! Meghan Houle (45:53.779) Yeah. Yeah. Meghan (45:58.274) 2020 when I was like anxious and scared and things where the world was a hard place, but Doing more of that like doing more Yeah, just like spreading the word doing more like conversations like interviews like parents I just talked to like a parents magazine last week like doing that kind of stuff or Even just like, you know, like all these connections in the in the fitness space I feel like a lot of those people are parents and moms and families. So like what kinds of you know? Meghan Houle (46:15.918) Oh, good. Yeah. Meghan Houle (46:21.662) Mm-hmm. Parents? Yeah. Meghan (46:27.518) either workshops or events can I host or like my ideal, like I think it would be so cool to do more like parent child workshops, right? Like where the parents come with the kid and I'm showing them and they're playing a game together, like a literacy game together. And the parents getting to see their kid doing work that feels good and watching their confidence, like firsthand and learning kind of like the language to speak with their child. And that feels really fun. But yeah, just. Meghan Houle (46:30.238) Yeah. Meghan Houle (46:36.936) Mm-hmm. Meghan (46:57.094) spreading more awareness about like, I mean, we are in a literacy crisis right now. The statistics will lie. I think this is the only one I'll throw out there, but it's so significant. 66% of fourth graders in the country are reading below proficiency. Meghan Houle (47:01.755) Yeah, yeah. Meghan Houle (47:12.018) Yeah. I mean all those years, yeah, yeah. Because do you feel like, at what age do you feel the kids were most effective? Because with you, it's only first or couple years in school, which now we're almost like four years after. Yeah, but is it that fourth, fifth, sixth grade population that's just like really struggling? Yeah. Meghan (47:15.306) But nothing else needs to be said, like we need to do something about that. It's not getting any better. Meghan (47:32.17) Yeah, that's where I see it is like, again, like, yeah, I mean, I, it's, it's those, you know, third, fourth, fifth graders who lost those foundational years, not entirely. And like, it's never been about the teachers or anything. It's just been the way that it went, not having, when you're building a solid foundation like that, like it needs to be consistent. And that was taken away from those kids for circumstances out of everybody's hands. Like, it was not that consistent. Meghan Houle (47:39.476) Mmm. Meghan Houle (47:44.239) Yeah. Meghan Houle (47:58.281) Yeah. Meghan (48:00.178) learning that they needed at that foundational time. So now, you know, and then each year that went by, they were just put into essentially that year's curriculum, I feel like the last year. And now I feel like in conversations with friends I have who are teachers, there is more of that awareness of like, okay, we better go back and fill in these foundations. We can't just be teaching fourth grade. We have to be doing some of that. Like some of my third and fourth graders, I'm Meghan Houle (48:10.842) Right? And they're like, wait, we didn't learn the back before. Yeah. Meghan (48:28.19) I used to try and keep up with third and fourth grade spelling curriculum. Like, what are those things I need to teach? Then I had like this come to Jesus moment of like, I'm doing these first and second grade activities with my fourth graders because they do not, it is building on quicksand to just jump there. And, and then, you know, like I said, my best friend sees it on the other end teaching, you know, high school math, where she has these seniors who didn't have like freshman year and eighth grade of calculus or whatever those math subjects are. Meghan Houle (48:33.346) No, but it's not even there. Yeah. Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (48:44.49) Hmm, interesting, yeah. Meghan Houle (48:54.67) Right, like the algebra, right? Yeah, yeah, that's my husband's dad. Shout out to Bauhul High School, eighth grade algebra. Yeah, I'm like, please don't give me that paper. I would absolutely fail your class today. So I would absolutely fail. Oh my gosh, well not to like disclose what's coming up for me as the career clairvoyant in your space, but I feel a TED Talk. Meghan (48:58.655) Yeah. Meghan (49:06.194) No, absolutely not! Meghan Houle (49:17.39) I don't know, Megan, like your little building there, I think you got like a franchise building where maybe you're not managing 20 people, but you're teaching people how to create those own spaces and opening up across the country. And then maybe we need also like a little digital course, you know, for parents that like can't work with you, you know, the foundational steps and then, you know, continuing to do these in-person events and activations. Meghan (49:35.767) Yep. Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (49:43.23) my motto I live by is like, if the stage doesn't exist, girl, you go created. OK? So we got to do some fun things together somehow as well, because I feel like this community with Pivot with Purpose is all professionals at all levels, a lot of people in education, a lot of career professionals, of course, looking to make pivots, maybe very much like yours, and like following their, trusting their gut, doing the things that scare them. But now, like more than ever, I see how lit up you are, and you have so much more. Meghan (49:47.67) Yep, yep, yep. Meghan (49:54.232) Yeah. Yep. Meghan (50:01.239) Yeah. Meghan Houle (50:12.862) to do and to build and to own that voice and zone of genius and what you do. But for anyone listening before I let you go, maybe in some education roles, what advice would you give to someone today to make that pivot with purpose or something that you just really hold true that you did that maybe could help somebody else? Yeah. Meghan (50:16.266) Yeah. Meghan (50:20.994) Yeah. Meghan (50:29.43) Yeah. Meghan (50:33.534) Yeah. I think like a big shift that I've had, like I mentioned, I had the privilege of like writing this chapter in this book last year that was all about like living your optimal life. And one of the things I wrote that comes to me a lot is like for a lot, forever, I always thought that like, if there was no blueprint, that it meant that it was either like wrong or it was impossible. Like I spent so much time looking around you know, joining a mastermind and being like, I'm the only one who's in education or like, I'm the only one who's working with kids. Like, I don't fit in, I don't fit in, I don't fit in. And I think that more and more, it's like, what kind of unlimited potential is out there? If I'm finding myself in that space, like it's not wrong. And it's not impossible. It's just like not really been done yet. Like we were saying, like that blank canvas, like, I think it's, it's following what feels alive, like we said, like following what lights you up. And I think it's also like a certain point. It's like, Meghan Houle (51:03.546) Right, right, yeah. Meghan Houle (51:20.262) Right. Yeah. Meghan (51:30.61) Okay, if you feel this calling, like it's kind of your responsibility to like step into that. And that's where I'm at now. It's like, I've been feeling this pull, right? Like I've been doing the teaching thing and that feels great, but it's like more of this like leadership speaking on behalf of that's something this coach I've worked with, she called me out on like a year and a half ago being like, that's where I see you going. And now it feels like the time to like actually embody that and be like, oh, like I have something to say. And it's like my responsibility to share that with people because that is... Meghan Houle (51:49.342) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Meghan (51:59.762) my gift. My friend likes to say like your assignment like that feels like my assignment. Yeah. Meghan Houle (52:04.223) Mm-hmm. Yeah. And I think that also it's tricky with individuals. I mean, especially in teaching where you have pensions and there's so much retention financially, it'll hold you to it. But in certainty jobs, you can embrace uncertainty and get out there and build, create, pivot, and really still live an amazing, fulfilling, financially fulfilling. Meghan (52:21.39) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (52:30.298) rewarding life where your soul is also truly in alignment because I am just hoping and I understand like it can't be for everyone and I know it's not for every occupation but the days where you can wake up and just be super excited about going in and doing what you're doing purposefully in service, you know, whatever that looks like but I know it's a big jump out of certainty and walking away from things and the shutters and why are you doing that? You're crazy but... Meghan (52:46.125) Yeah. Meghan (52:53.174) Yeah. Meghan (52:57.272) Yeah. Meghan Houle (52:58.578) There's so much reward at times on that other side of fear. So I give you so much credit and I know you have so much more to do. So how can people work with you, Megan? And like, where can we find you? Like what's the best way someone can engage with you? And I can't wait to see like where you're gonna pop up with all these events and talks and we'll link everything. And next year we're gonna be celebrating your Ted talk and it's all coming together girl, but where, how can people and like, where is the best way? Meghan (53:00.546) Yeah. Meghan (53:03.97) Thanks. Meghan (53:19.933) Yeah. Meghan (53:27.59) Yeah, so I don't even know if I've said it yet, but the name of my business is Next Step Education. And yes, you can go to next or it's The Next Step Education on Instagram, or Megan Chelsea on Instagram. And I also might be bringing back my teachers inspire teachers Instagram. So yeah, lots of places. Kids, I'm like gearing up for summer now. So if you have like an early elementary kids struggling with literacy, I would love to connect. Meghan Houle (53:27.948) to find and work with you. Yeah. Okay. Meghan Houle (53:36.602) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (53:46.911) How awesome. Yeah. Meghan (53:56.574) about summer programming. If you're a parent who's looking for kind of like tools and connection and ways to support your kid, we talked about geographically but I'm also open to working with parents online so if that isn't a geographic fit like that's still something that's definitely we could do. And then I think yeah just teachers stay tuned because retreats are coming. Meghan Houle (54:06.595) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (54:15.282) Oh my gosh. And I feel like they need them, you know, bringing teachers together. But like you said, with meaningful activities and whatnot, you know, not just like a download of everything that's like going wrong in the system, but intentionally bringing people together. And absolutely, we will link everything up. And I feel like the podcast now and releasing for anyone listening, you know, is definitely as kids, you know, and before we're transitioning into summer, so great time. Meghan (54:22.77) intention yeah Meghan (54:27.224) Yeah. Meghan Houle (54:41.566) to find, Megan, especially if you're local, but also ways to do it where maybe somebody isn't local. And I am just so grateful for you and to come into my world and my space and to be in a zone of genius of educating, but in different ways and really shaping the future of America. You are doing God's work. I'm a GKF girl. No, I mean, seriously, it's just not something. And I'm working with kids and all of that. You really have to have, I would say, a very unique and special. Meghan (54:42.829) Yeah! Meghan (54:47.857) Mm-hmm. Meghan Houle (55:11.346) personality. So you are incredible. And I am so proud of you. And thank you so much for all of your support and all that I do. And yeah, I can't wait to see you soon. So thanks for being on the podcast. Meghan (55:12.822) Thank you. Meghan (55:23.786) Yeah. Thanks for having me. So fun to chat. Meghan Houle (55:27.975) Yay!