MSH Podcast in Times Square?! LIFE UPDATE: Istanbul, NYC, & my current vibe in business
31 May 2024 · 49 min
In this bonus episode of the Makeshift Happen Podcast, host Samantha Daly (Sam) delivers a comprehensive life‑and‑business update. She recounts a spontaneous stop‑over in Istanbul after completing a pilgrimage in Egypt, describing the luxurious hotel upgrade, the soothing hammam experience, and the challenges of motion‑sickness on a rainy Bosphorus boat. Sam reflects on how the Turkey trip helped her integrate the intense spiritual work from Egypt, noting lingering dizziness, emotional processing, and the supportive presence of her friend and hypno‑breathwork guide, Susie. Sam then shifts to a surprise‑filled New York City anniversary trip planned by her partner Jaime, highlighting a helicopter tour, a Times Square billboard ad for the podcast, and a whirlwind of food, sightseeing, and a bout of illness that forced her to pause her schedule. She uses the New York experience to illustrate the contrast between post‑pilgrimage calm and urban overstimulation, and how the subsequent sickness became another integration lesson. The episode transitions into business news: Sam promotes her "Sold Out Stories" Instagram‑story framework for premium‑buyer conversions, announces the live Top Tier Immersion weekend for her mastermind cohort, shares a forthcoming corporate speaking engagement with a major fashion brand, and opens a limited‑slot private mentorship program for July. She also reminds listeners of the monthly $50 Listener‑of‑the‑Month giveaway and encourages reviews. Throughout, Sam emphasizes her current "soft CEO" mindset—posting less, moving at a slower, more intentional pace, and feeling at peace while still serving a record‑size cohort of 48 women in her Abundant & Ambitious program.
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What's up guys, welcome back to the podcast. Today is a little bonus episode, one of those extra episodes I drop here and there just to kind of give you life updates, recaps, things that have been going on, sort of what I got up to in this month. So we're gonna do a recap of the month of May together, and I'm going to talk about my trip to Turkey and New York City and how I'm integrating after Egypt. I have some business updates. And yeah, I'm just gonna kind of share with you all the things that have been happening in my life lately. So if you like these kind of episodes, stick around. Welcome to the Makeshift Happen Podcast. I'm your host, Samantha Daly, entrepreneur, life coach, and your no BS bestie here to bring you all things mindset, manifestation, and personal development. This podcast is designed to help you expand your mind and uplevel your life. So turn the volume up and roll the windows down. On if you're coming along for the ride. Let's go makeshift happen! So we'll start with my trip to Turkey right after I finished the pilgrimage in Egypt. My flights were coming both ways in and out of Istanbul. Like I had to stop over in Istanbul both ways. And so my friend Susie actually lives in Turkey. She doesn't live in Istanbul, but she lives in Turkey. Some of you guys might be familiar with Susie. She does the hypno breathwork on my retreats and in-person experiences, and she has been on the podcast before and she is also a client of mine. She is in Top Tier Mastermind. And she's also just like a sister and a friend and someone that I love so much. So Suzy lives in Turkey, and when I saw that the flight paths going to Egypt had to stop through Istanbul, I was like, I wonder if I just made like a little— instead of just going right through, if I just stopped and stayed for a few days, if Suzy would want to come up and meet me in Istanbul, and then we could just like do a couple days there together. So I asked her if she wanted to do that, and she was like, yes, absolutely. And so once I finished the pilgrimage in Egypt, on my way back, it was kind of nice because I ending that experience. Obviously it was so intense, the whole experience of Egypt, and it was nice to not immediately have to get on like a 15-hour flight and just go directly back home, but to actually just have to, you know, do a quick like 2-hour flight, I think. And then I was able to spend a couple of days there and kind of like integrate and relax and all that. So I get there and Susie picks me up at the airport. She kind of arrived like around the same time as me. We get in this like amazing we ordered this car to take us to our hotel, and it was— I guess this is quite common in Turkey, but they have these like cars with— it's like, it's almost like you're riding in a limo. It's like a taxi but like a limo where the back is like super bougie and they have like drinks for you and like there's curtains on all the windows, and then they have like these little lights in the ceiling of the car so that it looks like there's like stars in the ceiling. And so we're, we're riding to the hotel in this car, and I'm starting to tell her all of the stories and things from from Egypt. And then we get to the hotel and we stayed at this like super nice hotel. It was honestly exactly what I needed just to like recalibrate, like calm my nervous system down. Like everything was just like so beautiful and nice and taken care of and organized. And yeah, it was amazing. So we get to the hotel and we go to the front desk and we're checking in and we immediately get upgraded, which I'm like, this would only happen to me if I'm with Susie because Susie just has like the most angelic, beautiful, magnetic energy ever. Like, she— if you want to learn feminine energy, like, learn it from Susie because she is so good at it. So I don't even think— we weren't even trying, but like, we just went up to the front desk and we were in such a good mood because we were so excited to be together and we couldn't wait for our little like weekend girls trip in Turkey. And so we're smiling and we're happy, and Susie has this like really beautiful, like soothing voice, and she's checking in with the guy and he's just like, oh, I'm gonna give you guys a bigger room. I'm gonna upgrade you to a suite. It's much better. You'll, you'll like it much better. And we're like, oh, okay, perfect. So we get upgraded to a suite. Our room was beautiful. It was so big. We kind of had like a, like a lounge living room area, a little like kitchen area, and then yeah, the bathroom was super nice, the shower was super nice. It was just like nice to be in a very nice space so that I could, yeah, like recalibrate myself and just like calm the fuck down essentially after Egypt. So we get into our room and we're like, okay, let's— we're, we're starving, let's go out, let's get some lunch. So we went to a restaurant that's attached to the hotel and we got steak and french fries and champagne, and it was just like the perfect kind of like kickoff to, all right, this is going to be a great girls weekend. And then that night was super chill. We didn't actually end up doing anything because in the evening, I mean, like, we were talking a lot. I was sharing with her all the stories and the things from Egypt, but I, I started to like not feel that well. And I was, I was dealing with that dizziness that I had talked about after Egypt, like those kind of like dizzy spells. And after like one glass of wine at the lunch that we had, I was, I looked at Susie and I was like, Susie, I think this wine is like making me wasted. Like, I don't know what is happening, but I felt really drunk after one glass of wine. And I think it was because it was that, but like I also had the dizziness, so it was like enhancing that sort of feeling. And so we go back up into our room and we're playing like these like conversation card games and we're just like chatting and telling stories and catching up and all the things. And then I suddenly start to like really not feel well, like digestive issues. I'm like running to the toilet. I'm like, oh no, am I getting sick? Like, do I have traveler's diarrhea? Like, what's happening? And also the last day that we were in Egypt, um, Mel and her partner Sean and her baby all got really sick that night. Like, we finished everything for the trip and then like right at the last thing that we were doing, like, they missed the last dinner because they all got like suddenly really sick. They were puking and it was bad. Like, we thought they had food poisoning. And then I was like, oh man, what if it was a stomach bug and like I've caught it, or I don't know. And I kind of like started to get into my head and like panic, like, fuck, am I gonna be sick for the next like 3 days in Turkey in this beautiful hotel when I'm supposed to be like exploring Istanbul and all the things? So I was just like, I'm gonna call it a night. I took some Pepto-Bismol, I ordered a ginger ale to the room, and I just We fell asleep watching Friends in our bed at like 8:00 PM. So luckily I was able to actually sleep and I'm so, so grateful for that. Cuz when I'm sick, if I, it's like the worst when I'm just like shaking and shivering all night and like tossing and turning with nausea and like act like can't sleep. That's like the worst. And that's what I was like fearing was gonna happen. But luckily I kind of started to feel a little bit better around like 7 or 8, and then I just like passed out and I slept for 12 hours. We woke up late the next morning and we were just like, wow, I guess we needed that sleep. I definitely did. After Egypt, I was like, whoa, I'm like so drained. So I slept for 12 hours. I felt amazing. I was so happy that I was feeling better. And so we were able to kind of like go out and we visited the Grand Bazaar, which is obviously one of the, you know, major things that people want to do in Istanbul is like the, the Grand Bazaar for all of the markets and shopping and all that. So we shopped around the Grand Bazaar for a while. Uh, Susie and I could shop forever together. We're such bad influences on each other, but it was so much fun. And yeah, we just kind of like walked around Istanbul and we saw some of the incredible mosques and we visited the Basilica Cistern, which was cool. And yeah, just like the days that we were there were, were so fun and like easy. Um, we weren't really like doing so much of like a touristy trip. Like, I definitely didn't want to go ham and be like seeing all the monuments and touring all the things and, and doing too much of that. So it was more just like a girls weekend, and we just so happened to be in Istanbul. So we were kind of just like walking around, going to cute little cafes, like shopping, just enjoying our time in the city together. And we saw so many cats, which we loved. Um, I didn't know this, but Istanbul is apparently known for their cat population. There are cats literally everywhere, and they live like the— they take really good care of them. Like the— I don't know, it's part of their culture there that it's just like they take care of the street cats. And so a lot of them will live inside of the hotels and stores, or you'll see a cat like sleeping on top of a pile of clothes inside of the Zara or something. And it's just like they literally just like hang out and chill and people look after them and take care of them. Um, so we saw so many cats, which was good for the soul, and that was fun. What else did we do? We went out, we got so much good food, like, oh my gosh, so good. We went out to brunch, we had like traditional Turkish breakfast, which is amazing and delicious. We were supposed to go on a boat this one night with— there was gonna be like, um belly dancers and whirling dervishes, which is like this traditional kind of like spiritual dance that they do in Turkey. And it was really, really rainy that night, and we went— we got all the way there, we got on the boat, and then we were like, oh man, like we didn't realize that it was going to be so, so touristy and it was going to be packed with like hundreds and hundreds of people. You're supposed to like have dinner and like cruise around the, the bay there, and then there's be like entertainment on the boat, like belly dancers and stuff like that. But it was just kind of like, it was a nasty night, it was so rainy. And then as soon as we got on the boat, I was like, oh no, I think I'm gonna have motion sickness on, on this boat. Because it just really depends. Like, it's weird because I sailed the Nile for 5 days and I didn't have any motion sickness at all. But also the Nile River is so calm and there's not like a lot of rocking or like waves or anything. But because it was kind of stormy that night on the boat in Istanbul, I could feel the boat like rocking so much. And I also was still trying to recover from those like dizzy spells that I was having every, you know, couple of hours or so. And because I had felt sick to my stomach the night before, I was like just extra aware of like, I don't want to do anything that's going to make me feel off. So we decided to like get off the boat. We like paid for this whole experience and we're like, it's not worth it. Like, I can't get motion sickness right now. It's gonna ruin the whole night for us. It's gonna ruin the trip. Like, we have to get off. And so we're like going up to the staff and we're like, can we please get off the boat? They're like, oh my gosh, like, what's going on? No, no, like, we can give you medicine. Like, you'll be fine. I was like, I really— thank you so much, I need to get off. So I was like, I'm so sorry, Susie, we just need to get off this fucking boat. So we get off the boat and the staff was actually so nice. They coordinated a car for us and they were like Yeah, we'll get you a taxi, like wherever you want to go instead. Like, we're so sorry. And so that was really nice. And okay, so I have something I think you're really going to love and your business is going to love it even more. Do you want to steal the strategy I've been using to seduce premium buyers and sell out my offers on Instagram stories? Chances are you're already posting, you're already making sales, but if your Instagram stories aren't working as hard as you are, You're leaving money on the table. Sold Out Stories is gonna teach you exactly how to change that so that you can sell out any offer at any price point. And even high-caliber coaches miss this because selling on stories isn't about how much you post or how frequently you show up face to camera. It's about psychological sequencing. And the way you're posting right now might be giving the premium buyers in your audience the ick. 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Another sold out her event in under 6 hours with just 8 strategic story slides. No sales calls, no paid ads, just the right frameworks. You'll walk away knowing how to sequence for desire, transition into your offer seamlessly, and sell daily without ever feeling salesy. You already know your offer is incredible, so now it's just time for your stories to sell it like it is. Grab Sold Out Stories today and turn 10 slides or less into your highest converting content. Let's make your next story your most profitable one yet. Click the link in the show notes below and I'll see you inside. I don't even think they charged us for that. They just like, it was like free. So we're like, okay, let's go to Soho House because Susie has a membership to Soho House and Someone told me, one of you guys DM'd me and was like, the Soho House in Istanbul is amazing. Like, if you're there, like, you have to go. And so we're like, okay, let's go to Soho House and we will just like sit in the kind of like beautiful ambiance, the moody lighting. We'll get some tea, we'll get some dessert, we'll talk. It'll be— we'll make it a night, it'll be fine. So that's what we did. We ditched the boat and the belly dancers and instead we went to Soho House and we ordered tea and then we got this like oven-baked cookie thing with like ice cream on top and split it. And that was, that was our night. That was, that was so much better than us trying to survive on that boat. And then we did a— I had my first hammam experience. So I had no idea what a hammam was, but Suzie was like, we have to get you one. It's like the traditional spa experience when you come to Turkey. You've got to get a hammam. They're amazing. And so we went to the spa and we had hammams.. And it's basically like you start by going into, like, if you've ever been into a Turkish bath, I remember in Spain our gym had one, it was called the baño turco. So I'm calling it Turkish bath. I don't know if that's what it's actually called, but it's kind of like a steam room, you know, it's, it's not a sauna, it's a steam room. There's like so much, um, it, it is extremely hot, but there's like all of the steam and sometimes they infuse like eucalyptus or different smells in there and it's just like very cleansing. So you start by going into this steam room and you kind of like open up your pores and get all like warm and like loosey-goosey. And then they take you into the actual like private area where you're going to have the hammam. And so it's all these like, um, there's like a marble sort of like tabletop thing that you're going to lay on. And then like there's all these like marble benches around with these big, like, sinks running hot water, and then they have these, like, bowls that they're using to, like, scoop up the water and, like, pour it on you. So essentially it's like an adult bath time. It's basically like getting a bath as an adult. It's the best way I could describe it, which sounds so fucking weird. But you go in there and they're, like, pouring you in the— pouring this, like, hot water on you, and then they're exfoliating you. So you, like, lay down on the marble slab, and they're exfoliating your whole body, like, from head to toe. They're, like, really scrubbing. All of this, like, dead skin comes up, and then they rinse you off, and you feel, like, smooth like a baby. And then they cover you in, like, all these, like, suds and soap, and they're, like, you know, scrubbing and washing and kind of massaging at the same time your whole body. And then you actually do get, like, a nice this little like massage section out of it where they fully like massage your arms and your back and your neck, and then they pour more hot water all over you and like rinse all the suds and the soap off. And then we finished by going in the sauna. And I don't know, like, it was pretty nice, I gotta say. It was, it was adult bath time mixed with a little massage and some full body exfoliation. Like, sign me up. Some people think it's creepy, um, But I liked it. I think it was a good experience. I would definitely do it again. So yeah, it was just a really nice girls weekend with Susie. I was kind of processing Egypt with her. She many years ago also did a really, really similar pilgrimage through Egypt, and so she had a lot of the same— you know, she went to a lot of the same temples and had these experiences. And so it was really nice just to be able to like talk with her about it and process stuff and, and integrate. And also just to have a few extra days after the pilgrimage to like sleep really well and not be in a rush and still be quote unquote on vacation a little bit before I had to like return to life and work. So yeah, it was amazing. So then I came home and I was at home for about a week, and then I packed up again and went to New York City, which the reason that all this is like kind of happening so close together is because I didn't, I didn't plan the New York City trip. That was planned by Jaime, because it was a surprise gift that he gave me for our 9-year anniversary. And so he planned the dates of that, and it was totally fine. But like, yeah, it kind of was— I, I also didn't know how intense Egypt was going to be for me, like energetically, spiritually, all the things. So Egypt and then Turkey, and then I had a week at home to kind of like chill, and then we packed up again and we left for New York for 4 days. So our trip to New York, so fun. It was such a good time, but also like it was so— it was such a contrast coming from like the experience of, of Egypt and then like going to New York City, which is so many people, like so much busyness, so much overstimulation, so many noises, sirens, like hundreds and thousands of people just like crowding around. And it was so— it was, it was such a contrast. But overall, like, we had the best time. New York is always fun. It. I haven't been in like 2 years. Last time I went was with my assistant Lori. We did a little trip to New York and we had the best time, so I was excited to go back. And so a couple of the highlights from our New York trip was the, the helicopter that we did, which was another surprise from Jaime. He was like, I booked something special, we're doing a helicopter tour of Manhattan. And so that was really fun. We got to go up in the sky in a helicopter and just like see all of New York from above. We saw the Statue of Liberty, we got to see the World Trade Center, we got to see all of Central Park, like the whole island of Manhattan. You could just see literally everything from up there, and it was so, so amazing. But it was also like, him and I are both kind of on the same wavelength when it comes to that kind of stuff. Like, we want to do it and we're so down, but we're also like a little bit like scared once we get up there. So there was one, one point where we're flying, you know, up the Hudson River, I think it is, and we've got all these views of Manhattan. But then these big gusts of wind were blowing, and you can literally feel the wind like shaking the helicopter and like blowing it kind of. And it just makes you a little— it just makes you a little on edge. You're like, okay, I think this is enough. Um, but overall it was like Yeah, it was a really good experience and it was really fun and it was a fun surprise. So the other surprise was that Jaime had my ad for the podcast, like a Makeshift Happen podcast ad, placed in Times Square, which was so crazy. Like it was so big, you guys. It was on one of the, you know, big advertising screens in the middle of Times Square. It was on like one of the biggest screens. Huge, huge. And I feel kind of bad because when he first told me about it, because we— so we got checked into our hotel, we were— we're going out for the day, we're like, okay, what do we want to do? Let's get some lunch first. And he goes— we're getting lunch and he's like, so I have a surprise for you. And I'm like, oh God, what is it? And he's like, you're gonna be in Times Square. And I'm like, no, I'm not. Like, I'm, I'm not— like, please, no. I was, I was saying like, no, like, don't tell me, don't tell me that you put something in Times Square of me. Like, what? I was kind of like embarrassed before it happened, and I don't know like what I was— I feel like I was, I was just thinking like, obviously it's, it's like such an amazing surprise, and now looking back on it, I'm like annoyed at myself that I even had that initial reaction. And I wasn't like, I wasn't mean about it, but I was, I was smiling at him, but I was just like, no, like, no, you're kidding. Like, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Like panicking. Like people are gonna think that I think that I'm so fucking cool that I should be in Times Square. That's really what it was, was like, it's so interesting to witness yourself in experiences where you sti— where you come up against old parts of yourself and you're like, oh my God, I still really care. Like, how people perceive me or like what people will think about me because of this. And so I was actually like resistant to the idea of having the ad in Times Square. And he was just like so sweet. He's like, we don't have to do it if you don't want to do it. He's like, it's going to be amazing. Trust me. Like, we'll do it for the content. I'm going to get photos of you. Like, it'll be so cool. Like, it's going to be so cool. And I was just like, fuck. Oh my God. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. And so then we went to Times Square and It was nice because we— I've got this— I found like the perfect spot. He told me where it was going to be, and I found the perfect spot on this bench to like stand on top of. And then yeah, we got really cute pictures of it, and it was, it was a fun moment. It was. And it was wild to see like my face that big in a, in a bra top, mind you, because it's the COVID photo of the podcast. So I have like the bra top on and then like the blazer, but I'm like literally in a bra, like huge photo of me in the middle of Times Square. Like, what the fuck? It was so, so crazy. But a lot of you guys were like, oh my gosh, my boyfriend, uh, needs to step it up because this is next level, when I shared about the surprise on Instagram. And you know what, you're right. Like, your, your reactions to me sharing that were so pure and so like lovely that it made me be like, oh my God, like, I was such a loser about it, like, initially. Like, why did I have that reaction? Like, that was so— like, you, you ruined it. Like, why did you do that? And obviously I didn't ruin it, and we didn't get in a fight. Like, nothing happened. But it was just like, I wish that my reaction was as excited as your guys' reaction, because people were messaging me and they were like, oh my God, like, Jaime's 'Best, like, this is amazing.' My business coach sent me a Voxer message and she was like, 'I told my— I told my, um, partner about what Jaime did for you in Times Square, and he like kind of got jealous because he was like, well, I do nice things for you too.' Because she was so amped up about it. She was like, 'Oh my God, babe, look at this! Look at— look at what Jaime did for Sam! Look at— look at this!' And he— and he like got jealous about it and was like, 'I do nice things for you too.' And I'm like, 'Oh my God, like, I wish that I had that just pure excitement reaction. But can't go back in time. I was happy with it overall, but I think I was just, I don't know, I was a little nervous, a little embarrassed, but it was really nice. It was a fun surprise. Okay, what else about New York? Um, the food, obviously. You always get to eat amazing food in New York. We had Smashburgers. We went to this like famous taco place, Number One something something, I can't remember, tacos. Um, we had New York bagels for breakfast the one day. We went to brunch at this really cute French place that Jaime found in West Village, and it was so, so delicious. I got the best like waffle topped with like fresh berries and then, um, over-easy eggs with like bacon and sourdough toast. And oh my God, it was just so good. We also the one night found this like hidden gem Thai place. We were both like really wanting Thai, so I just looked up some of the best Thai places. And one place was in Hell's Kitchen, and it wasn't too far of a walk from where we were staying. And we're like, okay, let's go, let's try it. The place had amazing reviews, so I was like, I trust this. We get there and it's like this little— like, you would never notice it from the street. It's like this little— like, you can barely see the door in the— as like the storefront. You go inside and it is packed. There's so many people in there, and they walk you through and you just go through the back, and then they take you to this other area. You turn, you're in like another side. There's a whole other section of like all these people eating, and like tables are full. We're like, wow, okay, this place is popping. And there was two people sitting on either side of our tables, and we overheard both of them say like, yeah, this is definitely the best Thai I've ever had. And we were just like, yeah, I can, I can agree, this is so freaking good. So that was delicious. And then after that, we— there was a Ben Jerry's across the street, so We walked over there, we got some ice cream. We had authentic Italian one night, pizza, pasta, and then we had this delicious Mediterranean dinner at Kaima, which was recommended to me multiple times. So we're like, okay, let's go there. So we went to Kaima and it was like really, really like healthy, um, super like high quality, like where they source like the fish and the meat and the vegetables and everything. It was so, so, so delicious. And then we had to get baklava for dessert. Is it baklava or is it baklava? Because between Turkey and, um, Egypt and New York, like, I was eating that a lot and I love it. I used to work in a Greek restaurant and I swear they called it baklava, but like, who knows. Anyway, let me know if you know how to pronounce it. So what else? Oh, we got— we went to Eataly one day just while we were walking around to get gelato because they have really good like Italian gelato in, in the Eatalys. So that was fun. We did so much walking. We were averaging like 20 to 25K steps a day. One of my favorite days, we just like in the morning we were doing a little stroll through Central Park, just like talking. We got iced matcha lattes. We obviously did a bunch of sightseeing, kind of walking around. But Jaime and I have both been to New York multiple times. He actually lived, um, in Manhattan when he was doing part of his master's degree in law. While I was finishing my last year of university, he was doing his master's, and he spent 4 or 5 months in New York doing part of his master's degree at Berkeley there. And so I went to visit him during that time. And so we've, we've both seen New York, so it wasn't like we needed to like do absolutely everything, but it's still fun. Like, what else you gonna do? Like, it's fun to like walk around and see all the things. So we went to the New York Public Library, we went to the Met, we went down to Wall Street. We saw the World Trade Center Memorial, the Flatiron, Rockefeller Center, like all the classic things. And then we went to The Edge, which is something I haven't done that before. So you go up and it's this like, uh, it's a building that has this kind of like triangular slab that just like sticks out and it's like an overhang. It's like hanging over all of the city. Like you go up way, way, way, way high. I can't remember what number floor it was, but it was super fucking high. And you go out on this like slab and they've got all of the, you know, glass kind of like barriers so that it's just full 360 views of Manhattan and you can see everything from there. And then there's this one section where the floor is also glass. You can see all the way through like down to the streets and like the taxis and the people look so small below. And you can see actually tops of other buildings that are underneath you because that's how tall the building is that you're in. And that little like overhang that's sticking out off the side of the building. And wow, it just kind of gives me the— kind of gives me the tingles. But I made myself walk over it and it was fun. It was one of those things we did. We did that in Chicago once too when we were first dating. Jaime and I took him to Chicago when he came to visit America for the first time. And oh God, what's the really tall building in Chicago? It's like one of the world's tallest buildings. And they have something like that too where it's like like completely see-through glass. You're like way, way, way up high, and you go out there and you like stand on it and you feel like you're gonna fall and die. But so we've, we've done that a couple of times, and both of us are really nervous with that kind of stuff. We also did something like that— they have them everywhere now— we did something like that in Madrid over Christmas time. I posted it on my stories, but at the Riu Hotel on Gran Vía in Madrid, they made something like that where it's not as high as these ones in New York and Chicago, but they made something like that where you're up high and then they have this like little bridge that connects two different parts of like the rooftop bar and the whole bridge is glass. You can see down the whole city below you. And I don't know, that stuff freaks me out. It gives me, oh, it gives me the tingles, but I always make myself do it. I don't know. Is that toxic? I think it's just, I have this weird relationship with things where I'm like, I have to do it. Like if I'm scared, like fuck that, like I have to do it. It, except for skydiving and bungee jumping. I don't feel that way. I will not be doing those things, thank you very much. And what else did we do? Yeah, I think that's pretty much it. Like, we just ate good food, went out to restaurants, walked around. We did some shopping. It was a little bit rainy the one day, but like, it's just kind of sprinkling. But we were shopping on Fifth Ave to kind of avoid the rain. And yeah, we just had a really, really good time, and it was a really fun anniversary trip with some really amazing surprises. So on the last day in New York, I started to feel like I had a sore throat. I woke up and my throat was hurting me so much, and I was like, oh, you know, we were in the park the other day, like, my allergies are acting up here because I'm not used to so much like spring allergies anymore since I live in Florida and it's basically just like palm trees here. Like, my allergies are so like non-existent here, which is amazing. But in New York, like, there was so much pollen, and we were walking through the park and I was like, oh man, maybe it was just like postnasal drip from, you know, having more of a stuffy nose from allergies, and it'll go away. But then that whole like last day and like traveling home, my throat was burning and I was like, fuck, I think— Hey, don't forget that every month we are picking a Listener of the Month to win $50 in cash just for showing love to the show. All you have to do is leave an epic review of the podcast on Apple Podcasts screenshot the review before you hit submit, and DM that screenshot to us on Instagram @makeshifthappenpodcast. And that's it. I want to thank you for being such a loyal listener and show my appreciation by putting a little extra cash in your pocket. I know it's super easy not to do it, but every single rating and review seriously helps the show rank higher and reach new people, so we appreciate them more than you know. We'll announce the next winner at the end of the month and slide into your DMs if it's you, so keep an eye out and good luck. Love you guys, and thanks for supporting makeshift happen. I got sick because there were a lot of— I mean, there's so many people in New York, and there was a lot of people like coughing and hacking. And we were hand sanitizing like every 20 seconds. I was a psychopath with it, washing hands, like doing all the things. I really tried to not get sick while we were there, but they got me, and it took me out, let me tell you that much. So I was, I was down and out for the count. I don't know if it was COVID or if it was the flu, what it was. But like, I was sick for like a solid week. Like, I'm really just starting to feel better now. So man, that was crazy. And it just kind of like added to the whole integration of Egypt, because once we got back from New York, I felt like, okay, you know, I've got to kind of like settle back into my life. You know, one of my clients messaged me and was like, how do you go back to real life after everything that like happened in Egypt? And I'm like, I don't know. I don't know, like, I'm trying to figure it out. And I feel like the trip to New York was like very like, okay, everything's normal, everything's fine, like life is life. And then I got back from that and I was so sick and I was like, oh my God, everything is not normal, everything is not fine, what the fuck is happening? And that was like a whole initiation in and of itself. So I had to move so many calls, I had to change things on my calendar, I was down and out for the count. But luckily now, like, I'm not having any, any more dizziness, um, which is amazing. Thank God. That was not fun. Um, and I'm feeling good. I am, I am. Someone asked me, like, do you feel awakened and expanded? And I was like, awakened for sure. I feel like Egypt was a, was a whole other, like, spiritual awakening of sorts. So I definitely feel like I got really cracked open there. Um, and in terms of like the expanded part, I feel like the expansion is going to come over time as I continue to kind of like integrate and live my life calibrated to this new energy. And I don't know, so I, I don't think that, um, the effects like totally all happen like right away. I do think it's like process, and it requires time, you know. Um, I know a lot of the girls from Egypt are like, I think that, uh, like, we thought, okay, integration period, it'll be like 1-2 weeks. But like, we're all like, no, I definitely still feel like I'm in the thick of this integration, like learning the lessons, processing, thinking back to the memories, like connecting more dots, like realizing things that I didn't before. Like, it's, it's a long process. And I know Mel said to me, she was like, I think I'll be integrating for the rest of my life. Like, wow. So yeah, I definitely feel awakened. I think the expansion and the growth and progress and things that can come from doing, you know, an intense sort of spiritual upgrading experience like that will definitely come. And I'm not super attached to like the timeline of that or what that's going to look like or needing to know what that means, or what did I learn in Egypt and how is it going to affect my business or my life. Or I'm just— yeah, I'm just processing it. I'm just going to I'm just gonna live it and be open to the magic and see what happens. And I'm really, really grateful for the connections that I made in Egypt. I met some amazing women, some really inspiring 6, 7, and 8-figure entrepreneurs. Um, there were lots of moms on the trip, which was so expanding for me too. And we had the best conversations. You know, if you've ever been on a retreat, it's kind of like that. But because this group was so specifically curated, like it wasn't just anyone that could come. It was like very much curated from Mel's inner circles and her closest clients and things like that. The— it was, it was that, but like 10x because there was just a very specific type of person that was there. And so we were able to go to amazing depths and have the best conversations and just, yeah, it was very, very expanding. Okay, I have some business updates that I can share with you guys in terms of, um, what's happening right now. So as you're listening to this— actually, well, depends on when you're listening to this— but when this comes out, the Top Tier Immersion weekend is going to be happening as I speak. So you can tune into my Instagram stories if you want to catch some of the vibes. I'm sure I'll post some of the stuff that we get up to, but I am hosting all of my business clients who are inside of Top Tier Mastermind here in South Florida for a fun girls weekend, some in-person masterminding. We're going out to beautiful dinners and hanging out on the beach. We're staying at a really nice hotel on the water. And yeah, all the vibes. It's going to be so much fun. I can't wait to see them in person, squeeze them, hang out with them again, just have like amazing conversations with people who get it and make those like in-person deeper connections and friendships with other inspiring, ambitious entrepreneurial women. So I can't wait to have my clients here. They are going to come to my house for a day. We do like a little workshop in my living room and then we go out to lunch at one of my favorite places on the water, on the Intracoastal. And then we check into our hotel and we get ready together and then we have a really bougie, fun dinner night. And then we do some yoga on the beach and we do some like masterminding and workshops. In the boardroom inside the hotel, and we have like catered lunch, and we do some content creation style like workshops, and then we'll do photo shoots. I have a photographer and a videographer coming to kind of capture, so people will get like individual shots, and then we'll do like group shots, and we'll do like fun, um, photos and videos and stuff like on the beach afterwards. And then yeah, we go out to another amazing dinner. I'm really excited to bring them this new spot. And what else? And then we have, um, some breathwork and some like sisterhood circles and just like conversation time. And then we go out to brunch the last day. And yeah, it's going to be a full jam-packed weekend, but it's going to be so much fun. So yeah, if you're listening to this in real time, Top Tier is actually going to be enrolling on presale starting June 1st, which is this weekend when this goes live. So if you are looking for a high-touch, close proximity small group mastermind with that in-person retreat experience included in it, shoot me a DM so that I can send you the details. It's going to be on pre-sales. You can save a couple thousand dollars. We're not fully in launch mode yet, but we are starting to open applications. So if you're interested, send me a message and I'll send you the details. Other things that are coming up, uh, soon as it relates to business: I have a speaking engagement next month that I'm really excited about, and I'll be able to share more about that in June. But I'm traveling to the headquarters of a major fashion brand, and I'm going to be speaking there in person for their employees. And I'm really, really excited about it. And this was kind of like a manifestation because last year I remember, you know, thinking about my business and some of the new things that I wanted to, to do and like challenge myself with. And I was like, I'd really love to do like some corporate workshops. Like, I really want to, because, you know, you guys know I started my business in like life and, and mindset coaching. And I still infuse all of that into the way that I, that I teach business. But in terms of like the impact that I'm making in the world, I feel like the corporate girlies and just like the corporate environment in general is such an underserved area because all of us like entrepreneurs, we're so into personal development. We're learning all these things, we're doing all these things, we're exposing ourselves to these, these workshops, these transcendental experiences, these spiritual retreats, all of that. But a lot of people that work in corporate, like, they're not exposed to the same type of content, podcasts, information. I mean, of course some of them are because they want to be, but I feel like there needs to be more, um, there needs to be more education. And like, we need to go to those places and inspire those people so that they can wake up, you know, and expand their consciousness and see the world in new ways and learn about the power of manifesting and mindfulness and like all these other amazing tools that we've been thriving with as entrepreneurs because we're so deep in personal development. But a lot of people that, you know, work regular 9-to-5 jobs in corporate, like, they don't— they're not operating in that frequency. They're not operating in that version of, of, you know, believing that they're the creator of their reality and, and doing all these different types of experiences and all of that stuff. So I was like, I would really love to help spread that farther and wider. And I think an amazing place to do that would be through corporate organizations. And I just kind of like put the desire out there. I think I may have mentioned it to my business coach. I can't remember. Like, I know I talked to someone about it. Like, I spoke it out loud. I shared the desire with someone. I was like, I think— well, I definitely talked about it with Jaime. I was like, I think I would love to do this. Like, that would be cool. Maybe I'll, you know, try and start looking for opportunities next year. And then I kid you not, it was like a week later, an email like dropped into our inbox and my assistant sent it to me and she was like, hey, you know, this company just reached out. Like, apparently they listen to your podcast. They want you to come, they want you to come and like speak, you know, they have this like, um, enrichment program for, uh, the women in their company and, and they want you to speak. And I was just like, oh wow, okay. Like, okay, manifested. Amazing. So yeah, we've been planning it for a really long time and it's just kind of like taken a while to, um, pick the dates and for it to all come to fruition. But that will be happening next month, so I'm really, really excited about that. I'll share more about it with you guys. And, um, I believe my videographer is going to be coming with me, so we're gonna try and shoot kind of like a little vlog of the experience and hopefully upload that to my YouTube. So yeah, I'm excited to share more. And I think in general, I, I posted about this on Instagram recently, like I've just been feeling really at peace in my business lately. Like when it comes to business updates for me, like I feel like that's the main update is I've been feeling really at peace. Um, one of my clients recently told me like, cuz we were talking about like my soft CEO era and how she noticed the shift and she was curious about, you know, what that's looked like in my life and how it's benefiting me and and all that. And she was sharing with me that some people had been asking her, like, do you know if Sam is okay? Like, what's going on with her? And I think it's just because I'm not as— like, I'm not, I'm not posting on social media as much as I used to. But like, I'm fine. I'm honestly thriving, you guys. Business is amazing. Um, I'm just— yeah, I'm just like moving at a different pace, honestly. And this year I have absolutely posted less on social, but it's really just because I'm getting my priorities in gear for this like season of life. Um, and it's not that, you know, there's not gonna be other seasons where I'm feeling super like explosive and like growth mode and like hustle. Like I'm sure that will come back. Like everything goes in waves, you know, but I'm in my soft CEO era. And I'm posting less. So that's just what it is. And it doesn't mean that anything's wrong. It doesn't mean that I'm sad. It doesn't mean like, I mean, of course, like I still cry, you know, I'm a Cancer moon. Like, I'm, I cry, but everything is fine and I'm just really, really at peace in my business. And of course there's always gonna be that part of me that wants to compete or, you know, always be doing the next biggest thing, even if it's just you know, something that I want to prove to myself. But I have really been releasing that more and more and just really kind of being in the zone of what I'm good at and being unbothered by outside noise or feeling like I need to keep up with all the trends or what other people in my industry are doing. Like, I'm just not really doing that right now. I'm, I'm just doing me and I love me and I love my clients and I'm really proud of the work that I'm putting out there. I'm really proud of this podcast. I'm proud of the trainings that I am building and have been building for my Mastermind students. Like, I, I love what I do and how I do it, and I love how much of my heart is in everything that I do. And I think I'm just like really anchoring in the fact that like, yeah, like I have interesting, helpful, insightful things to say, and I'm really happy to share that, but from a place of unrushed, non-manufactured Like genuine enthusiasm and just trusting that the right opportunities are always gonna find me. I don't need to hunt for them, at least not in this season right now. And I can just continue to do good work and help my clients and lean harder into what I know and let the magic unfold, you know? And that feels like a really big exhale. So if you are feeling that same way, or if you want to feel that way in your business, like here's a permission slip. To live more from your heart and to live less from this idea of like, what do I need to do to get a result? And like, it's okay to move at a different pace and your growth isn't always gonna be linear and you don't need to be topping yourself every 5 seconds and you don't always need to feel like you're the most, like the most relevant person on social media or like you are the loudest or you're sharing the the flashiest wins, or like, if that's not who you are in the season, then you don't need to be that person. And it doesn't mean that your business is going to go to shit, you know. Like, I'm still so happy in my business and I'm thriving and I'm serving so many clients. There's 48 women inside Abundant and Ambitious right now. That blows my fucking mind. That is wild. It's our largest cohort ever. So yeah, big permission slip, big exhale, just like moving at the pace that feels right for you. You know. So last update that I'll share with you guys is I do have at least one, but maybe two spots that are going to be opening for private mentorship starting in July. So this is where you can get access to my marketing brain and have my eyes all over your stuff, keep me in your back pocket for that on-the-go support and guidance with voice notes and text, and really just like build a really beautiful relationship together and work on your business hand in hand for the rest of the year. So we would work together from, yeah, basically like July until the end of the year. So I have a few spots for that that will probably be opening up unless some of my current or past clients swoop those up. So we'll see. But if you have been thinking about mentorship, if you want like my highest proximity offer and you really want to be in like a one-to-one space, let me know. Send me a DM. I am more than happy to give you all information, no strings attached. I really only serve like 4, maybe 5 clients at a time because I want to be able to give them my best. So that's kind of where I'm at with that. Thank you guys so much for tuning in to this little life and business update. I love you all, and I will talk to you very, very soon. Bye!
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