Eat Blog Talk

In this episode, Megan teaches us five practical ideas to alleviate the stress and overwhelm often associated with Mondays, offering insights and strategies to make the start of our week more manageable and fulfilling. Planning can make a notable difference to the start of your week. The better you prepare for what you have to do on a Monday, the better you will feel. In this episode, Megan explains how she prepares for Mondays in order to set a positive tone for the week ahead. Megan covers the following key points: 1. The 15 Minute Friday Plan: Plan ahead by dedicating just 15 minutes on Friday to map out your upcoming week. By scheduling downtime and aligning tasks with your goals, you can reduce mental clutter and increase productivity. 2. The One Hour Friday To-Do List Tackle: Allocate one hour on Friday or Saturday to tackle small tasks from your to-do list for the following week to minimize Monday morning stress and set yourself up for a smoother week. 3. Inbox Zero: Dedicate time on the weekend to clear out your inbox. By organizing emails into folders and archiving non-essential items, you can start Monday with a clean slate and reduce mental clutter. 4. Tidy Up: Declutter and tidy up your physical environment. By maintaining order in your surroundings you can positively impact your mindset and productivity on Monday mornings. 5. Plan and Protect the Monday Morning Routine: Establishing and sticking to a morning routine sets the tone for a successful week. Remember to prioritize sleep, visualize your morning routine, and set intentions before bed to ensure a smooth start to Monday. Get in touch with Megan if there is a specific mindset and self-care topic you'd like her to cover. Website | Instagram

In episode 516, Jo Keohane teaches us how to style food to make it look as delicious as possible in order to drive more traffic to our blogs. Since graduating from Culinary School in NYC in 2010 Jo Keohane freelanced as a Recipe Developer and Food Stylist in test kitchens of many America's best known publications, like Bon Appetit Magazine, Epicurious and Saveur. She has also worked with a variety of household brands like William Sonoma, Weightwatchers, Staub Cookware, Danone, Kraft and more. She started off life as a BBC journalist and then worked in PR in London. But a love of cooking and a desire to find a fulfilling career which would allow her to spend more time with her 3 kids took her back to school to study cooking. After moving to the USA in she was lucky enough to attend the Institute of Culinary Education in New York City. Now she runs her own food blog - The Family Food Kitchen - helping other busy families to eat well even when time is short! her blog focusses on easy, delicious and do-able recipes - and contains lots of one pot, sheet pan and easy meal ideas. In this episode, you'll learn about what to consider before you start shooting your recipe, including how to layer and pick ingredients, backdrops, props and garnishes. - Food Styling is a Problem Solving Exercise: During recipe development, plan ahead to make sure your ingredients will help you make your dish look appealing. - Don't Hold Back on Good-Quality Ingredients: Better quality ingredients will have more vibrancy and make your photos pop more. - Create Depth and Movement in Food Photography: Use layering to create depth in your photos and take photos of movement (e.g. pouring a sauce). - Balance Perfection and Authenticity: While it's important to make your photos look appealing and create intrigue avoid overly perfect photos - crumbs and spills in small quantities add character. - Proper Ingredient Storage: Store ingredients to maintain freshness and quality. For example improper storage of herbs can lead to wilting and might detract from your photos. - Adjust Cooking Times for Food Photography: There's a difference between cooking to eat food and cooking for photography. Adjust cooking times to ensure that the food looks its best on camera. - Use Props and Tools for Food Styling: Jo discusses the importance of having a set tray with essential tools and props for food styling, such as sharp knives, tweezers, Q-tips, paper towels, toothpicks, spritz bottles, squeeze bottles, spatulas, and brushes to aid in food styling. - Layering Garnishes to Enhance the Dish: Use different garnishing techniques to elevate the appearance of dishes for photography. By layering garnishes strategically, you can add depth and visual interest to the dish. Connect with Jo Keohane Website | Instagram

In episode 515, Jenn Trepeck teaches us why comparison is natural and how to deal with it in a healthy way that leads us closer to our goals by building our confidence instead of creating self-doubt. Jenn Trepeck has been described as a "force of nature" in the wellness space, recognized as one of Podcast Magazine's 40 under 40, and nominated for the 2022 International Women's Podcast Award for Visionary Leadership. She is an Optimal Health Coach, Podcaster, and Business Consultant. After graduating from the University of Michigan Ross School of Business, Jenn founded Better Life Now LLC while working full time in hedge funds. After over a decade of building her practice as a side-hustle, Jenn took the leap to full-time self-employment. That's when she launched Salad with a Side of Fries Podcast, empowering larger audiences to achieve optimal health. She helps aspiring wellness warriors break into the health world, and mentors entrepreneurs to get started or level-up. In this episode, you'll learn why our brains are hard-wired for comparison and practical strategies to handle the frustration of feeling that we are not doing as well as others in our space and how to reframe the situation in order to unlock more opportunities. Key points include: - Understand the Psychological Basis of Comparison: The innate tendency of human brains to compare is a natural response rather than a flaw. By acknowledging this tendency, individuals can adopt a more compassionate approach towards themselves and others. - Reframe Your Perspective: Instead of viewing others' success as a threat, recognize the abundance of opportunities within your niche by embracing a mindset of collaboration over competition. - Cultivate Grounded Confidence: Grounded confidence means that you stay true to your vision amidst external comparisons. By cultivating confidence in your expertise and audience, you can can navigate challenges with resilience and creativity. - Journal and Seek Support: By articulating your thoughts and seeking alternative perspectives, you can gain clarity and resilience in the face of comparison. - Creating New Neuropathways: Create new neuropathways by interrupting negative thought patterns with a simple "Cancel, cancel" technique. By replacing unproductive thoughts with positive affirmations, you can shift their mindset towards growth and possibility. - Observing the Mind: Meditation is highlighted as a powerful tool for observing the mind rather than trying to control it. - Strategic Competition Analysis: While it's essential to stay informed about competitors' strategies, it's important to do strategic analysis at specific intervals rather than constant comparison. - Make Changes in a Constructive Way: If you do decide to change your strategy in line with competitors, make sure that it's still in line with your values and not shiny object syndrome. Connect with Jenn Trepeck Website | Instagram Book a 30-min complimentary consultation with Jenn Trepeck.

Megan shares five powerful questions to help shift our perspective during challenging times and help us find clarity. What do you do when you are experiencing a tough time in your life? It is when we face challenges that mindset shifts can really make a difference. Megan talks through the diverse range of challenges faced by entrepreneurs and emphasizes the importance of embracing difficulties as opportunities for growth. She shares her recent experience with a significant challenge and reveals how she navigated through it using mindset strategies. She covers the following questions points: 1. Who would I be without this thought? Challenge your thoughts during a rough time and envision a perspective free from negativity and embrace acceptance and peace instead. 2. What if it's a gift? Challenges can be potentially life-changing in a positive way. Recognize the unexpected gifts that emerge from these times in your life. 3. Who would I be without this challenge? Consider the personal growth and resilience cultivated through confronting challenges. Envision yourself without the current challenge, can you recognize your strength and adaptability? 4. How can I take care of myself? Self-care is a foundation for resilience and emotional well-being during challenging times. Which self-care practices can help you pull through adversity? 5. Who can I lean on for support? Seek support from trusted individuals during difficult times or engage with supportive communities and reach out for assistance when needed. Get in touch with Megan if there is a specific mindset and self-care topic you'd like her to cover. Website | Instagram

In episode 513, Megan chats to Samantha Blake about the lessons she learned from her experience as a food blogger, including the importance of niching down, SEO strategy, web design and building a blogging network. Sam began a web design & SEO business after food blogging didn't go as planned. While she still enjoys cooking and baking as a hobby, she learned she truly had a love for web design & SEO pieces when it comes to business. Sam particularly loves designing and developing websites & coming up with SEO strategies for food bloggers - it's the best of both worlds! She is so excited about the opportunity to share her experience and knowledge about SEO to help more food bloggers grow their blog. In this episode, you'll learn about the common mistakes made by food bloggers, such as neglecting niche selection and keyword strategy, underestimating the value of backlinks, and prioritizing design over functionality. Key points include: - Niche and Keyword Strategy: It's crucial to pick a clear niche and develop a proper keyword strategy to enhance topical relevance and attract organic traffic. - Start Broad, Then Narrow: Begin with a broader topic or competitor analysis, then drill down to find high-volume, low-competition keywords to target. - Avoid Primarily Seasonal Content: Prioritize evergreen content to maintain consistent traffic rather than relying solely on seasonal spikes. - Comprehensive SEO Strategy: Piecemealing SEO strategies from various sources may not yield desired results; focus on one comprehensive approach tailored to your goals. - Prioritize Functionality Over Design: In the early stages, prioritize a simple, professional, user-friendly, and searchable blog design over intricate aesthetics. - Build a Blogging Network: Connect with fellow bloggers through Facebook groups, social media, or accountability groups to learn, grow, and collaborate. - Value of Backlinks: Recognize the importance of backlinks for SEO and credibility; engage in outreach and collaborations to acquire them. - Participate in Roundups and Guest Posts: Explore opportunities to contribute to roundups or guest posts on other blogs to gain backlinks and exposure. Connect with Samantha Blake Website | Instagram Interested in taking your food blog to the next level? Here are ways to work with Sam: - Need a new website fast? Check out Sam's One-Day Website service. - Ready to take action on an extensive SEO audit & strategy? Check out Sam's SEO Audit service. - Looking for comprehensive SEO services and coaching? Check out Sam's Food Blogger SEO services.

In episode 512, Janelle Hama teaches us how to build a supportive community, especially around your blog's niche, highlighting the benefits of collaboration, networking, and accountability within such communities. Janelle is a keen plant based recipe blogger specialising in vegan Lebanese food. Due to having to change her diet a few years ago for health reasons, this, coupled with her love of cooking, started Janelle on a blogger journey 3 years ago. In this episode, you'll learn about whether you should create your own group or join an existing one as well as these topics: - Benefits of Community: Networking, collaboration, and seeking advice from others are key benefits of being part of a community. - Experience Sharing: Engaging with bloggers from diverse backgrounds brings different perspectives and learning opportunities. - Friendships and Support: Community offers emotional support, understanding, and celebration of achievements among bloggers. - Accountability: Being part of a community helps in setting and achieving goals through mutual accountability. - Start a Community: Initiate a group or join existing ones on platforms like Facebook and Instagram. - Set Clear Parameters: If you start your own group, set clear guidelines for who it caters for and what the community rules are. Connect with Janelle Hama Website | Instagram Apply to Janelle' Community for Vegan / Plant-Based Recipe Bloggers here.

Have you ever felt worried about your screen time? Megan shares her personal struggles with tech addiction and offers five actionable strategies to limit tech usage for improved well-being. In this episode, you'll learn practical methods to reduce tech dependency and reclaim control over your time and mental space. While technology makes our lives more comfortable, Megan emphasizes the importance of setting boundaries and creating healthy habits to foster a balanced relationship with tech. She covers the following key points: - Set Times for Email Dipping: Establish specific times during the day for checking and responding to emails to prevent constant distraction and maintain focus on important tasks. - Establish Downtime Before the Week Begins: Plan and schedule dedicated downtime periods in your calendar to disconnect from technology and prioritize self-care and family time. - Set Timers for Social Media: Use timers to limit the duration of social media usage, gradually reducing dependency and reclaiming valuable time and energy. - Remove Apps and Email from Your Phone: Experiment with removing addictive apps and email from your phone to minimize temptation and break unhealthy habits. - Create a Boring Phone: Make your phone less appealing by turning on grayscale mode or choosing neutral wallpapers, reducing the allure of constant screen engagement. Get in touch with Megan if there is a specific mindset and self-care topic you'd like her to cover. Website | Instagram

In episode 510, Megan chats to Lily Payen about how to transition from a full-time job to full-time blogging without getting overwhelmed and while managing responsibilities as a parent. Lily, a mom of three and former math teacher turned food blogger, never envisioned ever leaving the world of teaching, but the opportunity to blog somewhat fell into her lap and she's now enveloped into that world. When Lily had her second son, she started sharing baby-led weaning recipes online and discovered a community of parents who were also looking for similar recipes. Things took off from there and she found herself in this new profession of blogging. Now Lily can't imagine doing anything else. In this episode, you'll learn about the importance of starting with a specific niche to make it easier to rank, maintaining consistency in content creation without burning out, having backup content prepared and not being too hard on yourself when you need to rest. - Start Specific: Learn the importance of starting with a specific niche, which allows for easier ranking and targeting a more defined audience. - Consistency Matters: Maintaining consistency in content creation is vital for success, even if the frequency varies over time. The importance is in delivering quality over quantity. - Balance Work and Parenting: Managing blogging while caring for children can be difficult, so why not plan your work around nap times and find a routine that works for the family? - Invest in Learning: Investing time and money in learning about blogging, SEO, and other relevant topics is crucial for long-term success. - Adopt a Business Mindset: Transitioning from a full-time job to full-time blogging requires adopting a business mindset, being one's own boss, and holding oneself accountable. - Flexibility in Scheduling: Being flexible in scheduling and adapting to unexpected situations, such as sick days, is essential for maintaining productivity and consistency. - Use Backup Content: Having backup content ready for unforeseen circumstances to ensures consistent publishing. - Encouragement for Mom Bloggers: Despite the challenges, moms should be encouraged to pursue blogging, knowing that it gets easier with time and dedication. For example when Lily was pregnant with her 3rd child, during her first trimester she was so sick and nauseous and couldn't find the energy to pre-plan and post content and she just had to take time off from posting content. She thought that she would come back to a "dead blog", but she was surprised to know that her traffic had actually increased during that time. The work Lily had put into previous posts was picking up traction and she was still able to maintain her traffic. Connect with Lily Payen Website | Instagram

In episode 509, Amy Whiteford teaches us what to do when our niche no longer aligns with our personal or professional circumstances and the importance of mindset shifts in sustaining a successful food blog. Amy Whiteford is a food enthusiast originally from Scotland, now residing in Sydney, Australia, and has been the driving force behind the blog Healthy Little Foodies since 2012. Amy is a mum of two "Little Foodies", Finlay (12) and Rory (9), and has a background in Food Science, Education, and Childhood Nutrition. Amy is on a mission to simplify mealtime for parents of babies / young children by providing healthy and delicious recipes and feeding tips. In this episode, you'll learn about the challenges and rewards of maintaining a niche food blog as well as insights about rebranding, staying inspired, and focusing on the expertise you've gained even if you've outgrown your niche. - Niche Evolution: Sometimes you have to adapt your blog's niche to changing circumstances. - Rebranding Strategy: Rebranding can help you expand your blog's audience and content focus. - Target Audience: Identifying and catering to a specific audience, such as parents seeking baby and toddler recipes, can drive blog growth. - Niche Challenges: Can you explore other types of recipes or should you adhere to your niche's recipe standards? - Mindset Shift: Changing your mindset to appreciate the depth of knowledge and skills gained within a niche is crucial for long-term sustainability. - Recipe Diversity: Ask yourself how you can broaden your niche to include different recipes while still catering for your audience. - Secondary Blog Ventures: Starting a secondary blog can be a creative outlet while maintaining financial stability from an established blog. - Niche Flexibility and Growth: Bloggers should assess their passions, expertise, and niche viability, recognizing the need for specialization in a saturated blogging landscape. Connect with Amy Whiteford Website | Instagram

What are 5 things we do that hinder our success and happiness? Megan talks through these self-sabotaging behaviors and how to cultivate a mindset conducive to greater happiness instead. You'll learn valuable strategies to stop sabotaging yourself and your business success, including being aware when you are making excuses or resorting to inaction as a way to avoid scary tasks. She covers the following key points: 1. Making Excuses: Recognize and challenge excuses that hinder progress. By fostering awareness, individuals can break free from self-imposed limitations and pursue their goals with determination. 2. Letting Fear Run Your Life: By confronting fear head-on, you can experience growth and fulfillment. Taking bold actions can yield significant rewards and propel you towards your aspirations. 3. Caring What Others Think: It's important to overcome the need for external validation and embrace who you are. 4. Not Taking Action: Inaction is detrimental to progress; embrace the power of small steps towards your objectives. By harnessing the momentum of even the smallest actions, individuals can make meaningful progress and realize their aspirations. 5. Overthinking Everything: Discover practical techniques to combat overthinking and cultivate mindfulness. By redirecting focus and practicing gratitude, individuals can alleviate mental clutter and experience greater peace and contentment. Get in touch with Megan if there is a specific mindset and self-care topic you'd like her to cover. Website | Instagram

In this bonus episode, Megan Porta and Melissa Erdelac discuss strategies for pulling yourself out of a business rut and the importance of investing in your business to accelerate your success. They cover information about identifying when your business growth is stagnant and one of the best ways to find new inspiration and valuable knowledge through in-person or virtual blogging retreats and conferences like Flavor Media Summit. This is an exclusive event run by Megan and Melissa for experienced food bloggers who have successful and income-generating businesses. Their goal is to unite accomplished food bloggers for strategic networking, empowering them to thrive, collaborate and ignite long-term growth in an exclusive and transformative gathering. Flavor Media Summit is a two-day workshop-style event taking place on May, 2nd and 3rd in Denver, Colorado. Their goal is to ensure that attendees walk away with a TON of valuable information that they started applying during the event so that they are not stuck with information overwhelm. In thie episode, you'll learn more about: - Recognizing Signs of a Business Rut: Feeling uninspired or stagnant in business growth could indicate you're in a business rut. - Reassessing Systems and Strategies: Regularly evaluating and updating your processes ensures they remain effective and aligned with your goals. - Networking and Collaboration: Engaging with other bloggers, attending conferences, and collaborating on projects can spark new ideas and reinvigorate your business. - Overcoming Fear of Investment: Investing in your business, whether financially or through time, can lead to significant growth and transformation. - Mindset Development: Investing in mindset resources and seeking accountability can shift your perspective and propel your business forward. - Practical Investments in Tools: Investing in tools, outsourcing, and plugins can streamline operations and free up time for high-impact tasks. - Outsourcing and Building a Support Team: Having a reliable team in place for tasks like web development and hosting support can save time and ensure smoother operations. - Flavor Media Summit 2024: A unique opportunity for in-person learning, networking, and collaboration, offering valuable insights, workshops, and mindset strategies tailored to bloggers' needs. *SPECIAL OFFER* - Exclusive Post-Summit Mastermind Session: A 90-minute mastermind session hosted by Megan and Melissa, aimed at applying summit learnings to attendees' businesses and fostering collaboration and strategy development. Connect with Flavor Media Summit Website | Instagram

In episode 507, Megan chats to Sally Cameron about the process of recipe development, including thorough testing, catering for your readers' needs, food safety and building trust through recipes that succeed time and time again. Sally is a professionally trained chef, recipe developer, online content creator, speaker, and certified health and nutrition coach. She created all of the recipes for Dr. Mark Hyman's NYT best seller Eat Fat Get Thin, the NYT million copy bestseller "The Daniel Plan: 40 Days to a Healthier Life" companion cookbook, and Sony Five Essentials video series. She's been blogging at A Foodcentric Life longer than she'd like to admit. Changing her diet by going gluten-free and focusing on whole fresh foods, lots of plants, nuts, seeds, healthy fats and quality proteins helped her lose weight, get healthy, detox from heavy metals, and recover from Lyme, mold, and gut issues. With all of that, it's no surprise that special diets are her forte, because healthy is a lifestyle. Fun Fact: Sally's fun fact is they did a two week expedition to Antarctica because they like to shoot landscape photography too. It was utterly amazing. In this episode, you'll learn the different steps of developing great recipes and why this is a crucial element to a successful, revenue-generating blog. Sally provides practical tips about recipe writing and revision, including keyword consideration and making the most of flavor profiles. - Definition and Purpose: What is the purpose of the recipe? Is it for your blog or for a sponsored post or a client? - Find Inspiration: Keep notes about flavors, ingredients, beautiful photos and restaurant meals and other recipes that inspire you. - Find the Right Keyword: Before putting effort into recipe testing, research keywords and brainstorm ideas around your recipe (e.g. does your recipe fit within your niche, how is it different?). - Be Creative: Find ways to make it easier, faster and more fun for readers or ways to cater for specific dietary needs. - Recipe Testing and Revision: Test, revise, and make adjustments to your recipes to ensure your readers are able to reproduce it. - Equipment Considerations: Consider readers' kitchen equipment and provide alternative methods for those with limited tools. - Food Safety and Testing: Do a thorough test for food safety, including cooling and storage trials and check verified online resources for food safety information. - Consistency in Recipe Writing: Be consistent in recipe writing, including clear instructions, accurate measurements, and detailed notes for successful replication. Connect with Sally Cameron Website | Instagram

In episode 506, Jillian Leslie teaches us strategies for how to get our mindset in the right place for 2024 and stay positive, while navigating the ever-changing landscape of online business. Jillian Leslie loves building businesses on the internet with her husband, David. In 2009, they started Catch My Party, one of the largest party ideas sites on the web. In 2016, Jillian and David built MiloTree, a smart pop-up app to help bloggers and creators grow their social media followers and email lists. And in 2021, they built MiloTreeCart, the easiest tool for bloggers and creators to sell digital products. It's built for non-techies. For the past 4 years, Jillian has been hosting her weekly podcast called The Blogger Genius Podcast. She interviews successful bloggers, entrepreneurs, and industry experts to break down what's working now in online business. In this episode, you'll learn about the power of staying open-minded and flexible in the face of changing circumstances, the significance of surrounding yourself with positive and supportive individuals and how to leverage tools like MiloTree Cart to streamline online business endeavors and monetization efforts. - Flexibility and Adaptation – Due to the dynamic nature of business, be open to change and experimentation in business strategies. - Community Support – It's important to surround yourself with positive and supportive peers who understand the challenges and opportunities - Embrace Authenticity - Be authentic and vulnerable, even if it means being perceived as imperfect or "cringey," fostering genuine connections with audiences. - Be Proactive - Take initiative and seize opportunities for growth rather than waiting passively for success to happen. - Continuous Learning and Evolution - Embrace continuous learning, adaptation, and a willingness to pivot strategies based on feedback and changing trends. - Optimism and Resilience - Foster a mindset of optimism, resilience, and belief in your ability to overcome challenges and achieve success in the blogging and online business journey. Connect with Jillian Leslie Website | Instagram

Megan explores 5 ways to celebrate wins in our business and life so that we can cultivate happiness every day. We tend to overlook our wins while constantly striving for the next best thing or goal. This way we never truly feel happy in the present moment. Megan therefore highlights the significance of pausing to appreciate our journey and accomplishments because by reflecting on our progress and successes, we can boost our happiness and mindset. She covers the following key points: 1. Acknowledge Your Present Wins: Consider how often you appreciate your current circumstances and reflect on your journey over the past months or years. 2. Celebrate Your Achievements: Celebrating wins sends a powerful message of gratitude. Whether through quiet moments of acknowledgment or indulgent treats, celebrating reinforces the value of our accomplishments. 3. Five Wins to Celebrate Now: Track Blog Statistics, Completed Projects, Physical and Mindset Progress, Goals and Dreams realised and Financial Gains. 4. Cultivate a Habit of Celebration: Scheduled regular moments in your week/month to celebrate wins, fostering a positive outlook and reinforcing achievements. Get in touch with Megan if there is a specific mindset and self-care topic you'd like her to cover. Website | Instagram

In episode 504, Megan chats to Erin and Ben Clarke about running a business as a couple, including the importance of setting boundaries and dividing responsibilities. Erin Clarke is the creator of the tremendously popular recipe blog Well Plated and the author of the best selling Well Plated Cookbook and forthcoming book, Well Plated Every Day. She's fearlessly dedicated to making healthy cooking easy, affordable, and of course: delicious! She specializes in lightened-up comfort foods, easy weeknight meal ideas, and wholesome versions of your favorite treats. Erin lives in Milwaukee with her husband Ben and their lazy, loveable beagle mix Teddy. In this episode, you'll learn about the challenges and rewards of running a business as a couple and the importance of over-communication, mutual understanding, and adapting responsibilities to suit each partner's interests and strengths. - Over-communication is Key: Clear and frequent communication helps navigate challenges and expectations effectively. - Recognize Individual Interests: Acknowledge and leverage each partner's interests and strengths within the business to create a more fulfilling work environment. - Balance Work and Personal Life: Understand that work and personal life are interconnected, and strive to maintain a healthy balance between the two. - Be Open to Adjustments: Be willing to adjust roles and responsibilities based on individual preferences and skills to optimize productivity and happiness. - Value Shared Successes: Celebrate and share the successes and challenges of the business together, fostering a sense of teamwork and mutual support. - Embrace Fluidity: Embrace the fluidity of roles and responsibilities, understanding that flexibility is essential in adapting to the evolving needs of the business and personal life. - Find Joy in Shared Endeavors: Find joy and fulfillment in working together toward common goals, appreciating the unique contributions each partner brings to the table. Connect with Erin and Ben Clarke Website | Instagram

In episode 503, Jenny Meier teaches us 3 ways to build a community on Substack and how to use the platform to network and increase our blog's reach. Jenny founded Kitchen Skip in 2019 as a place to share easy dinner recipes with busy parents like herself. Almost 20 years earlier, Jenny had attended culinary school and spent years working in restaurants, cheese shops and wine stores before she started developing recipes for food and wellness websites in 2009. Finally, in 2019 Jenny started her own food blog. She monetized with MediaVine at the end of 2021 and started her Substack newsletter in June of 2022. In this episode, you'll learn about how to get started on Substack and why it's a great platform to build community and expand your reach and knowledge, and how embracing new writing platforms can enhance your skills and open doors to collaboration opportunities. - Alternative to Email Newsletters: Substack makes it easy to send out newsletters to subscribers, helping you build a community around exclusive content. - Getting Started with Substack: It is simple to get started on Substack. Read other people's newsletters to get an idea of how it works. - Discover Communities: Substack provides a platform for connecting with other writers and bloggers, fostering a sense of community and collaboration. - Benefits of Substack: Substack can help you improve your writing, marketing skills, and connect with like-minded individuals. - Networking Opportunities: Substack offers various networking avenues such as recommendations, discussion threads, and the Notes Feed for writers to promote their content and collaborate with others. - Additional Revenue Stream: By offering a paid subscription, you can generate extra income through your newsletters. - Start Simple, Learn by Doing: Starting with small steps and learning through experience is key to success on Substack and in any endeavor. Guest Details Connect with Jenny Meier Website | Substack

Megan discusses the importance of decluttering our life, its impact on mental health and productivity and 5 ways in which we can get started. Decluttering your life is an easy, practical way to open up space for good things to come into your life. Megan shares strategies for decluttering physical spaces, electronics, calendars, relationships, and your mind. She also provides actionable insights to help you enhance your well-being and productivity by creating space for positive change through decluttering. She covers the following key points: 1. Declutter a Physical Space: Decluttering spaces like closets, cars, desks, and pantries, can be broken up in bite-sized tasks and will affect the way you feel. 2. Declutter Electronics: Tips include organizing phone apps, deleting unnecessary files, and managing email subscriptions. 3. Declutter Your Calendar: Evaluate commitments and redistribute tasks to prevent burnout. 4. Declutter Relationships: Assess and adjust relationships for mental well-being. 5. Declutter Your Mind: Strategies include scheduling appointments, journaling, practicing mindfulness, and limiting screen time. Get in touch with Megan if there is a specific mindset and self-care topic you'd like her to cover. Website | Instagram

In episode 501, Amanda Polick teaches us how to embrace rejection so that it becomes a catalyst for personal growth and resilience. Amanda Polick is a cookbook and food memoir coach. Her work has been featured by Cooking Light, Time, Southern Living, and Food & Wine. She's a proud member of Cherry Bombe, Les Dames d'Escoffier International, and the International Association of Culinary Professionals. Amanda lives in Nashville, Tennessee now, but a piece of her will be in California forever. In this episode, you'll learn about handling rejection gracefully by staying true to your purpose and the value of embracing feedback, and supporting fellow creators amidst challenges and uncertainties. - Remember Your Identity: When you get rejected, remember your identity and purpose to help you maintain self-assurance and direction. - Embrace Rejection as Growth: Rejection is a catalyst for learning and personal development, essential for building resilience and determination. - Boldness and Authenticity: Uniqueness attracts attention and fosters connection so make bold choices and embrace authenticity. - Support Others: It's important to support fellow creators, whether through feedback, reviews, or messages of encouragement, fostering a sense of community. - Resilience through Feedback: Discern between constructive criticism and tactless feedback, but either way be open to critique while maintaining confidence in one's abilities. - Find Your Niche: Discover your unique voice and space within a competitive landscape, while staying true to yourself. - Acknowledge the Reality of Rejection: Rejection is inevitable in creative pursuits; perceive it as a stepping stone rather than a setback. - Cultivate Persistence: In order to succeed and find unexpected opportunities and growth, you need to be persistent and have self-belief in the face of uncertainty. Connect with Amanda Polick Website | Instagram

In episode 500, Megan chats to 3 SEO experts: Ty Kilgore, Samantha Blake and Steve Wiideman, about what SEO strategies will help food bloggers grow most in 2024. Ty Kilgore has been geeking out on SEO and Digital Marketing for over 14 years. He founded Everything Digital Marketing in order to share his passion and to clearly instruct, guide, and help influencers overcome the frustrations related to SEO and Digital Marketing. Samantha Blake began a web design and SEO business after food blogging didn't go as planned. While she still enjoys cooking and baking as a hobby, she learned she truly had a love for web design and SEO pieces when it comes to business. Sam particularly loves designing and developing websites and coming up with SEO strategies for food bloggers - it's the best of both worlds! Steve Wiideman is the Orange County, California based strategic planning specialist, founder of The Wiideman Consulting Group, and renowned as "SEO Steve" for the extraordinary breakthroughs he helped achieve for Fortune 500 companies and local small startups alike. In this episode, you'll learn what you need to do in 2024 to rank on Google and grow your blog, including which SEO strategies are outdated, how to get ahead of competitors and how to use AI to improve your SEO. - Unique Perspective is Key: It's important to offer a unique perspective in content creation to stand out in search results. With AI becoming more integrated into search engines, bloggers must focus on providing content that goes beyond generic answers and offers a distinct viewpoint. - Strategic Optimization: Analyze existing content and strategically optimize it for better SEO performance. Find a balance between creating new content and optimizing existing posts. - Don't Obsess Over Technical SEO: While technical SEO is important, bloggers should focus on creating high-quality content and trust in the main technical aspects provided by their hosting, theme, and plugins. - Adaptability in Food Blogging: You have to be flexible and responsive to changes in the food blogging realm. - Create High-Quality Content: Focus on providing comprehensive and valuable content to users. This includes detailed instructions, variations, and supplementary resources such as videos to cater to diverse preferences and enhance user experience. - Backlinks and Shareable Content: Create shareable content and acquire backlinks to improve visibility and engagement. - Use AI Tools Carefully: AI tools can enhance your content but be aware of the pitfalls of using it in a way that generates generic or inaccurate content. - Regularly Monitor Competitors' Activities: Stay informed about competitors' strategies and content gaps by frequently scanning their XML sitemaps to identify areas for improvement and new content opportunities. - Identify Primary Competitors Based on Business Goals: Determine key competitors aligned with your business objectives, focusing on top search results in Google for relevant topics to benchmark against and monitor their strategies. - Diversify Marketing Efforts Across Platforms: Expand marketing efforts beyond Google by prioritizing video content creation and distribution across various platforms such as TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts, enhancing brand visibility and engagement. Connect with Ty Kilgore Website Connect with Samantha Blake Website Connect with Steve Wiideman Website

In this episode, Megan outlines 5 steps to help us craft a morning routine that fosters energy, productivity, and overall well-being. Whether you spend 10 minutes on a morning routine or 3 hours, these rituals can enhance our consistency in business endeavors and our personal lives. Megan explains the multitude of benefits of morning routines, including increased productivity, improved mood, mental and physical health, and the cultivation of gratitude and inspiration. She covers the following key points: - Design Your Dream Morning Routine: Envision an ideal morning routine without time constraints, considering activities that ignite energy and align with personal goals. - Develop a Baseline Morning Routine: Determine the time available for your morning routine and prioritize activities accordingly. Even short routines can yield significant benefits. - Prepare in Advance: Visualize the morning routine before bedtime to set intentions and align the mind with upcoming activities. Use strategies like going to bed earlier, removing distractions like phones, and finding an accountability partner to keep you on track. - Set It in Motion: Initiate your morning routine without delay; you'll be surprised at how empowering it feels to take action. Start immediately rather than procrastinating for the "perfect" moment. - Refine and Repeat: Do your routine consistently but remain flexible and adapt it when necessary, this will make it sustainable in the long run. Get in touch with Megan if there is a specific mindset and self-care topic you'd like her to cover. Website | Instagram

In episode 498, Megan chats to Brittany Roche about mindset shifts and practical strategies for successful brand collaboration while staying true to ourselves. Brittany Roche founded Plant Power Couple with her partner Terrence in 2015, eager to share their innovative take on vegan cooking with other plant-curious people. Brittany started working with brands in 2020. She had just made it into MediaVine when the pandemic hit and she saw her RPMs drop drastically. She had been learning about working with brands for 3 years prior to this, but when she knew she had to diversify her income, she decided to really go for it! Now, she's formed genuine relationships with dozens of brands and has created a system that ensures a consistent stream of brand work that feels natural. In this episode, you'll learn about the importance of building genuine relationships with brands, strategies for resilience in the face of rejection, and effective follow-up techniques to maximize collaboration opportunities. - Build Genuine Relationships: It is important to establish authentic connections with brands to create meaningful collaborations. - Resilience in the Face of Rejection: Maintain a positive mindset and separate your self-worth from the outcome of pitches; you'll need perseverance. - Effective Follow-up Strategies: Pitch with a timeline in mind and implement follow-up sequences to maintain engagement with brands. - Setting Deadlines and Themes: Set deadlines and create themed series to structure pitches and provide a clear framework for collaboration opportunities. - Recognize the Emotional Toll: Don't underestimate the emotional challenges of pitching - continue self-care practices and self-compassion throughout the process. - Apply Mindset Shifts Beyond Pitching: The mindset shifts discussed can be applied not only in pitching to brands but also in various aspects of entrepreneurship and personal growth. - Celebrating Progress and Resilience: Celebrate small victories and recognize the courage and resilience required to pursue entrepreneurial endeavours. Connect with Brittany Roche Website | Instagram

In episode 497, Lexi Harrison teaches us the latest strategy to grow on Instagram and TikTok and how to generate a lot of audience engagement. Lexi and Beth are the mother-daughter duo behind Crowded Kitchen, a (mostly) vegetarian food blog. In addition to creating recipes, photography and videography for Crowded Kitchen's social media and website, Lexi and Beth also create freelance content for many food and beverage brands. In this episode, you'll learn about how to increase your social media following and improve your engagement using hooks, voiceovers and captions. - Post a Series to Build an Audience: Posting a series of related content on Instagram Reels encourages people to follow your account for more. - Leverage Facebook for content distribution: Leverage your content via Facebook, especially now that there is the ability to post reels. - Casual Setup and Filming: Avoid overstylizing your shots and use an iPhone for filming. - Longer Form Content for TikTok: TikTok strategy includes using longer videos to qualify for the creator fund (i.e. monetization). - Variable Posting Frequency: The frequency with which you post can vary without it necessarily affecting your views (e.g. daily, weekly, bi-weekly etc.). - Caption This: Detailed captions on Instagram Reels are emphasized for audience engagement. - Your Voice = Engagement: Voiceovers are crucial for engagement, especially on TikTok. - Showing Your Face: Showing one's face is not necessary for content success; Lexi suggests you focus instead on compelling hooks. - Practice, Practice, Practice: Experiment with different hooks to capture audience attention and drive engagement. Connect with Lexi Harrison Website | Instagram

In this episode, Megan explores the transformative power of visualization, focusing on five steps to help you manifest your dreams. Megan explains why visualization is essential in accelerating personal and professional goals. Visualizing your dreams involves more than just imagining; it entails embodying the emotions and sensations associated with achieving your desires and requires clarity, belief, and inspired action in the process. Megan covers the following key points: 1. Know What You Want: Clearly define your goals, whether they involve material possessions, experiences, or personal growth. Be open to flexibility in the details while maintaining clarity on your desires. 2. Understand Why You Want It: Dig deep into the reasons behind your aspirations. Your true motivations often extend beyond surface-level desires and connect to deeper values and emotions. 3. Believe It Is Yours: Embrace a mindset of unwavering belief that your dreams are within reach. Visualize them as if they are already manifesting in your life, amplifying the emotions of gratitude and fulfillment. 4. Release and Trust: Surrender control over the "how" and trust in the universe, God, or your higher power to orchestrate the details. Let go of doubt and have faith that your intentions will materialize in due time. 5. Take Inspired Action: Remain open to signs and inspirations that guide you towards your goals. Act upon these insights with confidence and determination, knowing that each step brings you closer to realizing your dreams. Get in touch with Megan if there is a specific mindset and self-care topic you'd like her to cover. Website | Instagram

In episode 495, Megan chats to Ashley Covelli about how to host successful virtual or in-person cooking classes, including technical setup, engagement strategies, and pricing considerations. Ashley Covelli is the food photographer, recipe developer, and culinary instructor behind Big Flavors from a Tiny Kitchen and the co-founder of Passing the Plate. She loves helping busy people find time to cook delicious meals while reducing the amount of stress, money, and waste involved in the process. She believes in the restorative and joyful practice of sharing meals in the community, preserving the recipes of our ancestors, and cooking as a way of creating memories with loved ones. Ashley's legitimately tiny kitchen is located in Ossining, New York, where she lives with her husband, son, and a feisty rescue cat. Her professional background is in graphic design and fine art, and she brings that aesthetic to her culinary creations. In this episode, you'll learn about how to generate additional income through cooking classes and finer details like creating a welcoming environment, managing class logistics, and striking a balance between preparation and execution. - Diversify Revenue Streams: Consider various income sources like sponsored posts, affiliates, and teaching classes to sustain your business. - Protect Your Energy Levels: Avoid overcommitting to classes or projects to maintain balance and prevent burnout. - Factor in Prep Work: Acknowledge the extensive preparation involved in virtual classes, including recipe testing, setup, teaching, and cleanup. - Test Your Gear: Prioritize tech checks and microphone charging to ensure smooth virtual class experiences. - Encourage Audience Interaction: Create a welcoming environment by inviting questions and feedback during classes. - Be Prepared for Tech Glitches: Stay calm and adaptable in case of technical issues during live sessions. - Use Instagram Stories: Use platforms like Instagram Stories to practice and improve comfort with video content. - Engage Authentically: Embrace imperfection and genuine interactions to connect with your audience effectively. Connect with Ashley Covelli Website | Instagram

In episode 494, Ella Gilbert talks about how to create extra income streams for your business through freelancing while still maintaining time for your blog. Ella is a food blogger focused on cozy and approachable recipes for the modern baker and home cook. Ella is also a food photographer and writer for other food bloggers. In this episode, you'll learn about the viability of having a career in freelancing, how to build your personal brand, develop strong relationships and manage your time. - Freelancing as a Viable Career: Freelancing offers a viable career path, providing opportunities for individuals to showcase their skills and expertise in a flexible and independent manner. - Personal Branding: Building a strong personal brand is crucial in freelancing, enabling freelancers like Ella to differentiate themselves and attract clients based on their unique skills, experience, and reputation. - Client Relationship Management: Clear communication, transparency, and professionalism foster long-term client partnerships. - Continuous Skill Development: Freelancers need to prioritize continuous skill development to stay relevant in the ever-evolving market, by consistently upgrading skills and knowledge. - Time Management and Discipline: Managing time effectively and maintaining discipline are essential for freelancers to balance multiple projects, meet deadlines, and maintain a sustainable work-life balance. - Value Proposition: Ella stresses the importance of articulating a clear value proposition to potential clients, demonstrating how freelancers can communicate the benefits of their services and expertise to meet client needs effectively. - Financial Management: Freelancers need to prioritize financial management, including budgeting, invoicing, and tax considerations, to ensure financial stability and sustainability in their freelance careers. - Work-Life Balance: Maintaining a healthy work-life balance is essential for freelancers' well-being and productivity - set boundaries and allocate time for personal pursuits and relaxation. - Adaptability and Resilience: Freelancers must be adaptable and resilient in the face of challenges and uncertainties, demonstrating the ability to navigate setbacks, learn from failures, and persevere in pursuing their career goals. Connect with Alpine Ella Website | Instagram

In this episode, Megan explores the 5 steps to release business grudges and why it's important for our blogging career and mental health. It is important to address business grudges, because they can evolve into significant mental burdens affecting various aspects of our lives. From negative comments and unsolicited advice to challenges with platforms like Facebook, Megan unveils the common grudges that plague the food blogging community. She covers the following key points: 1. Defined and Acknowledge the Grudge: Identify the business grudge occupying the most mental space and write down specific details. 2. Write Out Your Grudge Story: Delve into your grudges, answering why you hold them and exploring the emotions associated with these grievances. 3. Analyze Your Grudge Story: Take a step back, analyzing the grudge story with a big picture lens. By distancing yourself from the emotions, you can identify patterns and underlying issues. 4. Rewrite Your Grudge Story: Reframe the narrative with a collaborative and empathetic tone. By taking responsibility for our attitudes, we can shift the perspective and find positive aspects even in challenging situations. 5. Release Your Grudge and Forgive: The final step involves a powerful declaration of release and forgiveness. Get in touch with Megan if there is a specific mindset and self-care topic you'd like her to cover.

In episode 492, Megan chats to Murielle Banackissa about how to create inspirational food photography and tell a story using lighting, props, food and textures. Murielle Banackissa is a food photographer, food stylist, YouTuber, and soon-to-be cookbook author based in Montreal, Canada. Outside of spending hours developing new recipes and shooting them in her home studio, Murielle loves getting lost in good books, designing her bullet journal spreads, sipping on warm beverages, and going on long walks. She draws a lot of inspiration from the colors and textures found in nature. From water droplets to the sun shining through the leaves early in the morning and the orange glow of summer nights, Murielle loves paying attention to the magic surrounding her as a way to feel more grounded and present. In this episode, you'll learn how to improve your food photography, from setting mood and learning from others to practical advice such as which lenses are best depending on where you are in your own food blogging journey. - Intentional Photography - Tell a story by focusing on details, intention, and purpose, bringing elements like family history and special moments into visuals. - Create Atmosphere - Consider the story and mood behind a recipe. - Moody Photography - Moody photography evoke comfort and warmth. Achieve this style using black foam boards to control natural light and creating a cozy atmosphere. - Learning from Others - Look at the work of other photographers for inspiration. Analyze behind-the-scenes content and experiment with different techniques. - Creative Seasons - Accept the non-linear nature of the creative journey. - Favorite Lens - Use a 50mm F1.8 lens, particularly for those starting in food photography. This lens allows for a low F-stop, enabling a beautiful blurry background and focus on the main subject. - Macro Shots Capture Close-Up Details - It also highlight textures, decadence, and intricate elements of the food. - Observing Light - It's important to observe and understand natural light. Recognizing how different lighting conditions affect food can help develop a unique style and improve photography skills. Connect with Murielle Banackissa Website | Instagram

In episode 491, Jacqueline Debono teaches us how to grow an engaged audience of email subscribers by sending authentic newsletters. Jacqueline is a Brit living in Verona Italy for 20 years, happily married to a wonderful Sicilian. Jacqueline has a love of Italian food, particularly pasta and so 7 years ago she started her blog about Italian pasta, including only authentic Italian recipes for all kinds of pasta (dried, fresh, homemade). Her original goal was to feature as many types of pasta as she could (with recipes). So far Jacqueline has about 400 recipes for 80 types of pasta! Many more to go! Jacqueline got accepted to MediaVine in 2019 (with 25k sessions) now at 190-200k sessions a month. She can say it's a pretty successful niche blog. But then everybody loves pasta, right? In this episode, you'll learn how to grow your newsletter subscription base using personal anecdotes, insights into your own life and evergreen content, as well as finding out how often to send out emails to your subscribers. - Apply A Growth Strategy: How to approach growing your email subscribers, including the use of the MediaVine subscribe widget, social media, and regular newsletters. - Add a Personal Touch: Adding personal elements about your own life into your newsletter, like failures or anecdotes, can lead to increased engagement and a healthy circle of followers. - How to Monetize Newsletters: Strategies include the creation of paid-for eBooks and addition of affiliate links. - Build Relationships With Your Subscribers: Newsletters offer the opportunity to build real relationships with subscribers, even leading to in-person meetings. - Use Social Media Influence: Using success on other platforms such as Facebook is a great way to encourage newsletter sign-ups. - Content Reusability: Reusing content, especially recipes, is a unique advantage for food bloggers with evergreen content. - Build Subscriber Loyalty: Email subscribers tend to be the most loyal followers, engaging through comments and emails, providing a dedicated audience. - A Blogger's Passion Is Important: Appealing to the passion or interests of the target audience, Jacqueline focused on Italy and Italian food as an example. Connect with Jacqueline Debono Website | Instagram

In this episode, Megan shares quick ways to boost your mood and feel good instantly. When we're going through a tough time, we ironically resist positive activities. Find out how to overcome this barrier with a set of easy ways to feel good instantly and create your own personalized list of activities that bring you joy. Megan covers the following key points: 1. Breathe: Explore the power of intentional breathing, giving you instant relief and rejuvenation. 2. Express Gratitude for Another Human: Express gratitude, focusing on specific individuals who bring joy and support. Take immediate action to convey appreciation. 3. Hydrate: Use quick hydration as a simple yet effective way to improve mood and energy levels. 4. Quick Workout Burst: Do a brief one to five-minute workout to instantly boost energy and improve mood. 5. Get Out in Nature: Spend just a few minutes outdoors, connecting with the environment and experiencing the instant mood-lifting effects. Get in touch with Megan if there is a specific mindset and self-care topic you'd like her to cover. Website | Instagram

In episode 489, Megan chats to Shannon Peel about how we can craft our business brand story in a unique and engaging way to resonate with the right people at the right time. Shannon Peel has over 30 years experience in marketing, sales, advertising, and storytelling. Due to her insatiable curiosity and desire to learn new things, Shannon has a unique skill set enabling her to see how all the pieces of a brand story come together to guide an audience from brand awareness to brand advocacy. She recently published her interactive, multimedia digital book called BrandAPeel: Brand Storytelling in the Digital Age filled with videos, podcast episodes, and downloadable workbooks to help small businesses define their brands and create content to tell their stories. In this episode, you'll learn about various aspects of effective business brand storytelling, including finding your core values, determining your voice, mapping out a digital footprint, and so much more. - Define Your Core Values: Identify five core values that truly reflect who you are and go beyond surface-level definitions. - Brand Storytelling Do's and Don'ts: Brand storytelling involves narrating your journey, experiences, and values and telling your audience's story in a way that invites them to connect with your brand. - Communicate Your Challenges: When sharing vulnerable stories, it's essential to shift from a victim mindset to a hero mindset. - Maintain a Consistent Brand Voice: It is key to building trust and meeting audience expectations. - Map Your Digital Footprint: Understand where your audience hangs out online and create a strategy to meet them there. Conduct a brand audit or involve trusted peers to evaluate your online presence and ensure a cohesive journey from discovery to engagement. - Organize Your Content: Consider creating an index or an interactive digital book that guides your audience from one piece of content to the next. - Create Year-long E-Newsletters to Sustain Engagement: Develop a series of e-newsletters linked to your digital book, offering readers a continuous stream of content. - Brand Guides for Consistent Messaging: Establish a brand guide detailing voice, fonts, colors, mission, and vision statements. Connect with Shannon peel Website | Instagram

In episode 488, Erin Harding guides us through the essential steps for food bloggers looking to leverage Pinterest ads successfully. Erin is the Director of Pinterest Ads Management at Simple Pin Media. For 8 years she has been bringing the power of Pinterest to brands and businesses, large and small. While she started out developing & managing organic strategies, she is now managing hundreds of thousands of dollars in ad spend for brands on Pinterest. In this episode, you'll learn about the requirements you need in order to advertise on Pinterest, whether it is right for you and three key points to create successful ad campaigns on Pinterest. - Prepare Your Offer: Ensure your product or lead magnet is ready for advertising, and consider its circulation and success on other platforms. - Understand the Pinterest Mindset: Recognize that Pinterest is a visual search platform, not social media. Meet users at every stage of their journey, from inspiration to decision-making. - Run Ads For A Period of Time: Pinterest ads are not an overnight solution. Plan to run ads for a minimum of 8-12 weeks. - Budget wisely: Plan for 8 to 12 weeks of consistent advertising with a budget ranging from $20 to $100 per campaign per day, depending on your goals and the nature of your offer. - Advertising is an Investment: Know what your budget is before you start. Whether you hire an agency or run ads on your own, set a budget that is comfortable and stick to it. - Outsource Pinterest Advertising: Can you run Pinterest ads on your own and what are the advantages of hiring an agency? Connect with Erin Harding Website | Instagram

In today's Mindset & Self-care episode, Megan shares how five of her favorite books changed her life, delving into topics such as thinking yourself to wealth, habits that shape success, the importance of gratitude and living in the present. Books have the potential to reshape your mindset and enhance your self-care practices. Megan emphasizes this through anecdotes from her own life, touching on the contents of each book and how it can change your life. - Thinking Yourself to Wealth and Happiness: Explore the timeless wisdom of "Think and Grow Rich" by Napoleon Hill, a classic that unravels the secrets of building wealth and attracting positive influences into your life. - Habits That Shape Success:"Atomic Habits" by James Clear, a book that simplifies the process of developing good habits and how small changes can lead to significant improvements in your life. - Living in the Present Moment: "The Power of Now" by Eckhart Tolle is a transformative guide that emphasizes the importance of living in the present moment and escaping the trap of constant thinking about the past and future. - Letting Go: The Pathway of Surrender by David R. Hawkins: How can you find release from life's challenges and the emotional baggage we carry? This book prompts self-reflection on resentments and the freedom that comes with letting go. - Mindset Shift with "The Gap and the Gain": During the hardest time in your life, you can adopt a life-changing mindset. Instead of focusing on the negative, shift from a gap to a gain perspective to appreciates incremental progress, leading to increased gratitude, accomplishment, and motivation across various life areas. Get in touch with Megan if there is a specific mindset and self-care topic you'd like her to cover. Website | Instagram

In episode 486, Megan chats to Janessa Heck about 10 ways to manage health issues and diet restrictions while food blogging. As an avid cook, baker and food blog reader, Janessa long dreamed of starting her own food blog and finally took the plunge in December 2020. Janessa focuses on easy, healthier recipes made mostly with whole food ingredients as well as oat flour baking. After a year of plugging away at it as a hobby, she decided she wanted to treat it as a business and started to learn about SEO in January of 2022. The Nessy Kitchen grew from less than 1000 visitors in February 2022 to over 100 000 monthly visitors 18 months later. Janessa lives in Alberta, Canada and in her free time you can find her enjoying yoga, reading or in the Rocky Mountains skiing in the winter and paddleboarding or hiking in the summer. In this episode, you'll learn how you can carry on blogging throughout health obstacles including selecting a group of trusted taste testers, exploring non-recipe content and selecting recipes that align with new dietary recommendations. - Trusted Taste Testers: During times of reduced appetite or illness, having a group of trusted taste testers can help ensure the quality of recipes even if the blogger cannot taste them personally. - Consistency with Adjusted Frequency: Bloggers can maintain consistency by adjusting the posting frequency. - Non-Recipe Content: Explore non-recipe content to provide valuable information to the audience without the need for recipe testing and tasting. - Update Old Recipes: Revise and update old recipes, leveraging existing content and photos. - Publish Previously Tested Recipes: Share recipes that have been previously tested, even if not initially pursued, as a way to maintain consistency and offer unexpected surprises. - Consider Dietary Changes: Explore recipes aligned with any dietary changes the blogger may be experiencing. - Outsourcing: If feasible, consider outsourcing tasks like photography during times of reduced well-being to lighten the workload and maintain blog activity. - Avoid Comparisons: Refrain from comparing one's blog progress to others, as each blogger's journey is unique. - It's Okay to Take Time Off: Recognize that it's acceptable to take breaks when needed to prioritize well-being and avoid burnout. - Make Peace with Pivoting Plans: Be flexible with goals and plans, acknowledging that unexpected changes may lead to new and positive outcomes. Connect with Janessa Heck Website | Instagram

In episode 485, Hanelore Dumitrache teaches us how to use AI to improve our workflows and how to write prompts to get personalized blog posts. Hanelore is a London-based architect turned recipe developer and food blogger. In 2020, she won the international Netflix show 'Crazy Delicious', which opened new doors into blogging as a career. Since 2022, you will find Hanelore focusing entirely on growing her blog SugarYums.com, where she shares delicious Asian desserts, drinks, and street food. A tech geek at heart, she is fully immersed in all things AI and is constantly on the lookout for new tools that can streamline her work. In this episode, you'll learn how to incorporate AI into your workflow, speeding up blog post writing using tools, like ChatGPT, and teaching AI how to mimic your writing style. - AI tools like ChatGPT can PREDICT and replicate patterns in HUMAN SPEECH. - AI can TAKE PRESSURE OFF when it comes to the most time-consuming tasks. - How can you PERSONALIZE what AI writes? - Apply the concept of CIDI (context, instruction, details, input). - Train AI to MIMIC your WRITING STYLE by giving it example texts. - Does Google PENALIZE AI-generated content? - Maintain your personal VOICE and BRAND. - If you use AI to write content, DISCLOSE this on your blog. Connect with Hanelore Dumitrache Website | Instagram

In episode 484, Megan teaches us why our energy is a precious resource and five effective ways to safeguard it. In this episode, you'll learn the significance of understanding that our energy isn't limitless. We explore five practical ways to protect and replenish our energy, essential for maintaining overall well-being and thriving in our personal and professional lives. Megan covers the following key points: - Analyze Historical Data: Reflect on past experiences to identify patterns and triggers affecting your energy. Learn from the past to make informed decisions for the future. - Evaluate Your People: Recognize relationships that may drain your energy. You can manage interactions to preserve your emotional well-being. - Manage Inputs and Outputs: Discover strategies to control the information you consume and how you respond to it. Establish boundaries to prevent energy depletion from external sources. - Make a Plan: Plan your year, month and week ahead of time to reduce stress and efficiently use your energy. Implementing simple planning routines can transform your week and enhance productivity. - Fill Your Tank: Acknowledge activities or moments that replenish your energy. Make a list of what brings you joy and vitality so that you can recharge your energy when needed. Get in touch with Megan if there is a specific mindset and self-care topic you'd like her to cover. Website | Instagram

In episode 483, Megan chats to Nosheen Babar about finding our purpose, knowing exactly why we create content and who the content is for. As a first-generation immigrant from Pakistan, Nosheen is a self-trained home cook turned recipe developer, food photographer, and content creator. Nosheen started her blog 3 years ago to create a reference tool for people interested in exploring authentic Pakistani cooking. She is using her 30+ years of cooking experience to create recipes that are accessible, foolproof, and adaptable for her audience. Her goal is to take you on a culinary journey through Pakistan and showcase its cuisine along with its rich history and cultural influences. In this episode, you'll learn why having a clear purpose can be a game-changer for your blog, even if it takes time to grow, and how to use your WHY to guide you in the right direction and set achievable goals. - WHY did you start your blog and WHAT do you hope to achieve? - A WRITTEN PURPOSE combined with a CONTENT AUDIT will help you hone down on your content strategy. - How does your why influence your BUSINESS STRATEGY? - How to PRIORITIZE to set definitive and achievable goals for your brand. - Purpose will help you stay FOCUSED and not get distracted. - If your blog aligns with your why, it's easier to STAY CONSISTENT. - Identify the NEEDS of your AUDIENCE through analytics. - Don't be afraid to GROW SLOWLY but with clarity. Connect with Nosheen Babar Website | Instagram

In episode 482, Rae Aflatooni teaches us her best tips on how to get through hard times and why she focuses on success and learning instead of failure. Rae Aflatooni, the voice behind Raepublic, has an MS in Nutrition and Functional Medicine. She enjoys creating content with the aim to assist people who have experienced trauma to live a more holistic, well-balanced life. Through nutrition, plant-based eating, sustainable living, mindfulness, and movement. In this episode, you'll learn how to keep going with your blogging business when you feel like you're failing, other tangible things you can do to grow your business and how to make sure your mindset and self-care is on the right track. - Be okay with changes when life happens - sometimes you have to take a BREAK. - Should you start a new social media account if you're STRUGGLING TO GROW an old account? - Use online resources to REGAIN FOCUS. - Learn how SEO tools like RankIQ can really improve your site traffic. - ITEMIZE, PRIORITIZE, and EVALUATE what you can outsource to a software solution or to another person/company. - START your day with GRATITUDE, using the mindset that you get to do what you do. - There isn't success or failure, just SUCCESS and LEARNING. - Set a TIMER for TASKS and stick to it - for example don't check emails 20 times per day. - Whether it takes them 10 years or 1 year to monetize, listen and learn from other bloggers. Connect with Rae Aflatooni Website | Instagram

In episode 481, Megan shares 5 phrases we can use to take back control and reprogram our subconscious so that we can fulfil our aspirations. Subconscious beliefs and behaviour often control the trajectory of our lives and businesses. In this episode, you'll learn why 'unconscious programming' stunt the potential of our businesses, how to identify the triggers of misguided beliefs and how a simple, repeated phrase can change what we think and do. Megan explores these topics: - How can you get RID OF FEAR? (e.g. fear of failure, fear of the unknown, comparison…) - Invite more GOOD THINGS into your life by acknowledging your gratitude. - Why is it detrimental to ignore the SMALL DETAILS in your life that need ATTENTION? - How can you reprogram your subconscious to ATTRACT MORE MONEY into your life? - REPEAT "I live a life of EASE" or fill in the quality or asset you most want for your life. Get in touch with Megan if there is a specific mindset and self-care topic you'd like her to cover. Website | Instagram

In episode 480, Liz Wilcox teaches us simple, yet effective email marketing strategies, including how we can streamline the writing process and make our emails relatable. The Fresh Princess of Email Marketing, Liz Wilcox is an Email Strategist and Keynote Speaker. She shows small businesses how to build online relationships, package up their "magic" and turn it into emails that people want to read and, most importantly, purchase from. Liz is best known for her 3500+ users membership, 20 Minute Newsletter technique, and the Email Staircase framework she's taught to tens of thousands of creatives, freelancers, ecommerce shop owners, and small businesses across the globe. In this episode, you'll learn the different components of a welcome series, simple ways to structure newsletters and how to reframe the way you think about email. - Email marketing is a MONEYMAKING activity. - You're converting FOLLOWERS into FRIENDS into customers. - Use a well-structured WELCOME SERIES to convert a follower into a friend. - Add an essence of your PERSONALITY and VISION in your welcome sequence. - Share your VALUES, so that your email subscribers know what to expect. - Be RELATABLE in your emails - that means it's okay not to be perfect! - The simplest way to properly warm up a NEW LEAD. - Simplify your emails so that you can STAY CONSISTENT with weekly newsletters. - How to write emails that DON'T suck or SUCK UP TIME. Connect with Liz Wilcox Website | Instagram

In episode 479, Megan chats to Lynn Polito about whether we should still be making Web Stories and how they can help us bulk up our blog traffic. Lynn has been a food blogger for a little over 2.5 years. Her niche is creating recipes using 10 ingredients or less. She also focuses on almost all of the ingredients being pantry staples. In this episode, you'll learn how to create web stories, what animations to use and other logistics to make them go viral and boost your site traffic. - Use web stories to BOOST TRAFFIC to your blog without having to post new content frequently. - It can help your post appear in GOOGLE DISCOVER. - Choose SEASONAL RECIPES for web stories. - What should you put in a web story in terms of SLIDES AND ANIMATIONS? - Post web stories CONSISTENLY and track results. - You can SCHEDULE web stories in advance. - What should you change when DUPLICATING a web story? - The new Google algorithm is not pushing web stories as much, but it's still a good SOURCE OF TRAFFIC and WORTH THE TIME investment. Connect with Lynn Polito Website | Instagram

Welcome to the first ever Mindset and Self-Care episode here on Eat Blog Talk! Every Wednesday, Megan will pop in for a few minutes to talk about key topics concerning mindset and how to look after ourselves as entrepreneurs. In this episode, she shares 5 ways in which we can pull ourselves out of a slump and rediscover our mojo for life and blogging! Knowledge and blogging hacks won't get you very far if you don't have the right mindset and self-care strategies to help prevent burnout and build resilience for when the going gets tough. In episode 478, you'll learn 5 easy strategies that you can do every day to help reinvigorate you and get you back on track towards achieving your blogging goals. - How can you create daily quiet time so that you actually feel calmer (and why is it life-changing)? - Learn how to make small upgrades to your life daily. - Improvements to your life can be fun and easy - go for a haircut, get your nails done, declutter a drawer! - Don't underestimate the power of extending love to someone every day. - Take time to be creative. - Why is gratitude the easiest, quickest way to pull yourself out of a slump?

In episode 477, Andrea Liebross teaches us an easy, 5-step process to think big, do big things and take big leaps in our life and business this year. Andrea Liebross is a business and life coach specializing in working with unapologetically ambitious women entrepreneurs from a variety of industries. A speaker and host of the Time to Level Up podcast, Andrea guides her clients to combine Big Thinking with solid systems that work together to unleash their success and find the freedom of time, money, and energy they crave. She is excited about the release of her book She Thinks Big: The Entrepreneurial Woman's Guide to Moving Past the Messy Middle and into the Extraordinary in the fall. In this episode, you'll learn the method Andrea developed around the acronym TRUST to help you be a bigger thinker and push yourself beyond your comfort zone to get closer to your true potential. - What ACTIONS would the Future You take today to bring you CLOSER to your GOAL? - Analyse your THOUGHT OPTIONS and adjust your thinking. - Give as much airtime to POSITIVE OUTCOMES as you would to negative outcomes. - Do you have a SUPPORT STRUCTURE outside of your family? - Look for support from someone who will ask you the HARD QUESTIONS in a loving way. - TAKE ACTION following valuable advice. - Ask yourself, what is the WORST THING that can happen? Connect with Andrea Liebross Website | Instagram

Are you ready for 2024? In this episode, Megan Porta explains how we can make 2024 our best year ever, including planning strategies, mindset and self-care and how to deal with uncertainty. In this episode, you'll learn Megan's planning strategy, how to make the most of everything Eat Blog Talk has to offer, other helpful resources and why mindset and self-care are essential to remain motivated and healthy as an entrepreneur. - Block off 2-4 hours in your calendar to PLAN THE YEAR ahead. - Create a few simple lists - one for YOUR WINS from 2023 and one for YOUR CHALLENGES. - Based off of your lists, what should you DO MORE of and what should you AVOID in 2024? - Make another list for small improvements or UPGRADES you can make to your life. - Write a letter to your FUTURE SELF of everything you want to ACCOMPLISH this year. - Surround yourself by POSITIVE people who inspire OPTIMISM. - How can you be PROACTIVE about MINDSET and SELF-CARE? - What should your FOCUS be for 2024? - Throughout any uncertainty, keep your USER at the top of your mind. For the full list of resources mentioned in the episode, go to eatblogtalk.com/2024kickoff

In episode 475, Megan chats to Jacqui Wormington about how our community's purpose and core values should form the foundation of our actions. Jacqui started food blogging around 3 years ago as a hobby and got more serious last year. At first, it was to hold herself accountable for being vegan and sharing the food she loves to create with people. Jacqui has always loved online communities. She has enjoyed creating a safe space for people to learn about the vegan lifestyle, while also connecting with like-minded people to share more about each other than just food. In this episode, you'll learn how to identify the values and purpose of your community so that you can choose the right platform, create valuable, relatable content and build personal relationships with your readers. - Select the social media channel that best SUITS your TARGET AUDIENCE and content type. - Regularly share CONTENT that aligns with your community's INTERESTS and VALUES. - How can you PARTICIPATE in conversations within your COMMUNITY to keep them ENGAGED? - BOOST ENGAGEMENT by encouraging your community members to CONTRIBUTE their content. - How can you EMPOWER your community members? - Use FEEDBACK from your community to understand their NEEDS and IMPROVE your content. - Go beyond the screen and BUILD personal RELATIONSHIPS with your community members. - Show that you genuinely CARE about their SUCCESS and WELL-BEING. Connect with Jacqui Wormington Website | Instagram

In episode 474, Kathleen Phillips teaches us 10 unique ways to grow our network and create valuable opportunities for our blogs. Kathleen Phillips is a cookbook author and professional food stylist. She is the creator and digital publisher of her food blog GritsAndGouda.com. Drawing upon years of experience as a test kitchen director (Oxmoor House-former cookbook publisher for Southern Living/Cooking Light/and more), she takes traditional Southern recipes and makes them with a shortcut so you can enjoy them faster. She likes to say she's "Short and Southern, just like her recipes". She incorporates fresh ingredients from her own garden as well as local, seasonal ingredients. Her love for local farmers led to her becoming one of the first Sweet Grown Alabama ambassadors. In this episode, you'll learn different ways to make long-term connections that will help you grow your center of influence and reach your goals quicker. - Networking is most valuable when you have a clear goal in mind. - You cannot predict where the connections you make today might lead you in the future. - Reach out to a big blogger in your niche and ask to meet for coffee. - Comment on other bloggers social media - use their first name in comments to have more impact. - Why should you join your Chamber of Commerce? - Contact the PR person for cooking stages at large home shows and women's shows. - Find unique locations in your area where you can teach cooking classes. - Reach out to local TV stations to be on morning cooking segments. - Contact local print and digital magazines to feature your recipes. Connect with Kathleen Phillips Website | Instagram

In episode 473, Megan chats to Aimee Pruett about the benefits of food blog audits and common mistakes bloggers make when they audit their sites. Aimee is the creator of the Food Banjo blog. She has almost 20 years experience in marketing and over 7 years running a food blog. As part of her marketing job, Aimee performed over 100 website audits throughout her career, so she decided to bring her marketing know-how and food blogging love together to do food blog audits. In this episode, you'll learn how to do a a food blog audit, how it differs from an SEO audit and how it can impact your blog's growth. - Do regular food blog audits to get perspective on your blog's progress. - Blog audits look at branding, promotions, site experience and other elements. - It does not look at SEO in-depth (only a high-level analysis). - Do a professional audit when you hit a wall and you don't know what to do next. - Find out if you're on the right track and uncover opportunities that you may be missing. - How often should you do a blog audit? - Start your self-audit by placing yourself in a user's shoes. - Pay attention to your Google Analytics and any reoccurring trends. - What are the most common site mistakes food bloggers make? - Prioritize the most important improvements you have identified for your site. Connect with Aimee Pruett Website | Instagram

In episode 472, Cliff Ravenscraft teaches us his 10-step formula for how to achieve any goal. Cliff Ravenscraft a Master Business Coach, Mentor & Speaker. His focus is to help you break free from any beliefs and/or behaviors that are holding you back from living the life of your dreams and doing the work you feel most called to do in this world. In this episode, you'll learn why goal-setting is important for food bloggers and how to overcome limiting beliefs that are holding you back from achieving your dreams. - Be very specific about what you want. - Filter all your goals into the top 3 and prioritize them. - Believe that it's possible - otherwise you won't put time and effort into it. - How do you eliminate any doubt around the goal you want to achieve? - You are more likely to achieve your goal if you write it down. - Vision boards are powerful reminders of our goals - get an object that represents your dream. - Tell others about your goal - they might have the missing elements to achieving it. - Create a Massive Action Plan - what's one, two, or three actions I can take within the next 24 hours, 7 days, 30 days etc.? - Evaluate your results, categorize as desired or undesired. - If they are undesired, how can you improve your approach? Connect with Cliff Ravenscraft Website | Instagram

In episode 471, Megan chats to Liz Douglas about her short-form video strategy that helped her grow her Instagram account to over 200k followers. Elizabeth is a food buyer and product developer turned plant-based foodie influencer at Glow Diaries. Elizabeth chose the vegan path in 2019 and it sparked a love of exploratory cooking. She then started an Instagram page not long after but didn't see much growth until she began consistently posting reels in late 2021. Elizabeth's account grew from 12k followers in early 2022 to 202k followers in just over a year, with most growth happening in spurts of 40k followers in one month. Once she started directing traffic to her blog, she qualified for Raptive within a few months thanks to viral reels. She loves to create easy wholesome plant-based recipe ideas, help other content creators and she also hosts her own podcast, Thrive Diaries, which is all about lifestyle, wellness and personal development. In this episode, you'll learn how to use your iPhone to film, the right hook for your video, common mistakes you can easily avoid and clever editing techniques to keep your audience engaged. - Get lucrative brand sponsorships if you have an engaged audience on Instagram. - Instagram can drive traffic to your blog, increasing your page sessions fast. - What are the best-performing food videos on social media? - Food videos on social media are mainly for entertainment. - Film aesthetic videos with an iPhone - finding the balance between realistic but still drool worthy. - Use voiceover and putting yourself on camera to tell your story and build connection with your audience. - Open your video with a lot of action and a hook to keep your audience engaged. - Use intrigue to keep your audience watching. - Make sure that you cut your video in a fast-paced style - you don't have to show every step. - Do you really have to post every day to gain many new followers? Connect with Liz Douglas Website | Instagram

In episode 470, Anja Eckert teaches us how to keep going despite setbacks caused by major changes in the blogging industry or in our personal lives. Anja's been a food and lifestyle blogger since 2018. What first started as a pet project, turned into an almost full-time job after a severe knee injury that prevented her from continuing on as Yoga teacher. In March 2020, Anja was at almost 25k sessions when MediaVine raised their requirement to 50k. It took her another setback and 3 years to finally reach the 50k. Refusing to give up, continually learning and upgrading, and remembering her "why", were the qualities that got her to the goal. In this episode, you'll learn how to persevere through blogging challenges especially by understanding your 'why' and nurturing a strong mindset around it. - Define your 'why' and visualize it. - When you feel like giving up, think of your 'why'. - How to deal with potential setbacks from Google Updates and other changes. - Diversify your income so that you don't rely only on your blog. - Use your email lists, look into sponsorships or create courses within your niche. - Create an additional revenue stream through a digital product catered to your niche. - When things aren't going well, they can only get better. - We tend to dwell on negative experiences and forget positive ones. - Find a supportive community that you can rely on. Connect with Anja Eckert Website | Instagram

In episode 469, Megan chats to Callan Wenner about how she planned and executed a schedule and content calendar so that she could take 4 months off for maternity leave. Callan started her food blog, The Cozy Plum, in spring 2020 with a focus on elevating classic baked goods and savory appetizers and small bites. After quickly honing in on her photography and videography skills, as well as thorough recipe development techniques, she was able to quit her corporate job after a year and a half to pursue The Cozy Plum full-time. In this episode, you'll learn how to stay efficient and organized, creating a month-to-month calendar for the year, outsourcing tasks and using project management software to stay on track. - Define the priorities and goals for the year, and for the months you are taking off. - Create a month-to-month calendar for the year with each week having a general focus. - Create weekly/daily tasks each week from there. - Build in buffers and scheduled time off, but keep to the schedule as closely as possible. - Outsource what you can and create a strong SOP to help keep your hands off. - Be as efficient as possible by combining process shots and video during shoots. - Use project management software to help keep you on track - review your daily to-do every evening/morning. - Have a go-getter attitude - it will be more work than usual up front, but will be worth it once the time comes. - Let go of the need to grind and enjoy that time off. Connect with Callan Wenner Website | Instagram