Latest / The Bubble Lounge (Highland Park & University Park Texas) / Right Here is Perfect: A Conversation About Priorities, Pivots, and Saying No with Sara Fay Egan

Transcript

Right Here is Perfect: A Conversation About Priorities, Pivots, and Saying No with Sara Fay Egan · The Bubble Lounge (Highland Park & University Park Texas)

• 0:07
  Speaker 1: Welcome to the Bubble Lounge.
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: I'm Martha Jackson.
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: Today's guest is someone who truly embodies grace, grit and reinvention Sarah Faye Egan.
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: Sarah is a longtime University Park resident, a mom of two and someone you may know from her incredible career as one of the top luxury wedding planners in the country.
• 0:25
  Speaker 1: But Sarah Faye's story doesn't stop there.
• 0:27
  Speaker 1: She's now the president and CEO of Beale Street Blues Company, a mentor to women navigating life's transitions, and the author of a brand new best-selling book, the Through Line Finding Happiness Through the Curveballs of Life, family and Business.
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: In today's episode, sarah Faye opens up about her personal journey from building an iconic brand in the wedding world to taking bold steps into new leadership roles.
• 0:53
  Speaker 1: She shares what it really means to find clarity, reclaim your identity and embrace change with confidence.
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: Whether you're an entrepreneur, a mom or someone in the midst of a reinvention, I think you're going to walk away feeling inspired, seen and empowered.
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: Let's dive in.
• 1:10
  Speaker 1: Thank you for being here today, sarah Faye.
• 1:13
  Speaker 2: Thank you so much for having me.
• 1:15
  Speaker 2: I'm excited.
• 1:16
  Speaker 1: Well, so this is our first time to meet in person and I was so excited to discover that your niece went to camp with my daughter for many years at Camp Ozark.
• 1:26
  Speaker 2: Yes, I just love that connection.
• 1:27
  Speaker 2: It just perfectly correlates back to the through line of how everything's connected.
• 1:32
  Speaker 2: I know I love it.
• 1:33
  Speaker 1: It's almost like we live in a little bubble or something, right?
• 1:36
  Speaker 1: Yes, well, I was so excited to find out more about you and I was looking at your website.
• 1:42
  Speaker 1: You have done so much.
• 1:43
  Speaker 1: I'm so impressed with everything you've done.
• 1:45
  Speaker 1: Can you just start with introducing yourselves and kind of giving us a background of everything you've done?
• 1:51
  Speaker 2: Sure, well, I'm Sarah Faye Egan.
• 1:53
  Speaker 2: I'm originally from Memphis, tennessee, went to Ole Miss and have moved to Dallas right after college and have been here ever since and just live in UP and have my head with my husband, merrick, and my daughter Grace, who's 13, at Holland Park Middle School, and my son Walker, who's in fourth grade, who's 10.
• 2:14
  Speaker 2: And I've always been in event planning wedding planning ever since I moved to Dallas for over 20 years and have worked for companies, started my own event planning company, sold it and started another event planning company, so I've had a lot of experiences that way.
• 2:34
  Speaker 2: And also three years ago, took over our family's restaurant group so lots of pivots and curveballs and decided a year ago to write a book about all of it.
• 2:46
  Speaker 1: Well, I would imagine you have a lot of content.
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: I did some event planning back in the day at Citigroup and I just know that events, you know they can be so wonderful and so much fun to work on, but then there's always some behind the scenes things that happens that each one of them is kind of has their own unique challenges, right.
• 3:02
  Speaker 2: Definitely, and people always told me you should write a book and I thought, well, I don't want to change my name and move to Mexico and I don't want to really write a tell-all.
• 3:12
  Speaker 2: I want to put something out there that's a positive, something that's positive for younger girls or just to give advice, more like a mentor book for people to hear.
• 3:21
  Speaker 2: So I loved that.
• 3:23
  Speaker 1: Well, I love the title, the Through Line Finding Happiness Through the Curveballs of Life, Family and Business, and this is something I'm just dying to hear more about, because I talked to so many women out there that are trying to balance it all and they have their own unique struggles and I certainly can relate as well.
• 3:41
  Speaker 1: So tell me more about the book and why you decided to write it.
• 3:44
  Speaker 1: Can relate as well.
• 3:44
  Speaker 2: So tell me more about the book and why you decided to write it.
• 3:46
  Speaker 2: Sure, well, I know people talk a lot about balance and work-life balance and you know, really, especially out of college and first starting, I always knew that I wanted a career, I wanted to do something special.
• 3:57
  Speaker 2: I didn't know exactly what that was or what it looked like, and then I knew I wanted a family and I didn't really know how to do both or how that worked together.
• 4:07
  Speaker 2: So I feel like, through all of my experiences and where I am now which I never thought I would be where I am I felt like I learned so many lessons along the way and so I wanted to share those with others and part of the book's like a workbook, so to ask yourself questions and really teach lessons.
• 4:23
  Speaker 2: So it's almost like a mentorship through a book.
• 4:26
  Speaker 1: Oh my gosh, it sounds wonderful.
• 4:28
  Speaker 1: I can't wait to read it, and thank you so much for bringing me a copy.
• 4:30
  Speaker 1: Yes, so was there ever a moment that you felt kind of a breaking point, or maybe even a breakthrough through all the curveballs you've?
• 4:38
  Speaker 2: been thrown.
• 4:38
  Speaker 2: Sure.
• 4:39
  Speaker 2: Definitely.
• 4:40
  Speaker 2: I felt like you know, with weddings and events there were multiple curveballs.
• 4:46
  Speaker 2: I was basically always trying to navigate, you know rain plans and things that were hit my way that I didn't necessarily know how to handle, but had to figure out a plan quickly.
• 4:58
  Speaker 2: But really it wasn't until my daughter was sick and in the ICU and we spent 40 nights in the hospital and I had been planning a wedding for two and a half years, because it was COVID in Jamaica and the bride lived in Australia at the time and we had vendors in India black printing linens and so I would wake up and have conference calls in the middle of the night.
• 5:19
  Speaker 2: We were all in different time zones and for two and a half years, blood, sweat and tears poured everything into every detail of this wedding, and there's nothing that would have stopped me from getting on the plane the next morning, except when your daughter's in the hospital and there's so many unknowns.
• 5:34
  Speaker 2: And so that moment really changed my life about what's important and I had to pivot and I had to do that.
• 5:44
  Speaker 2: So how did you?
• 5:46
  Speaker 1: how did you pivot?
• 5:46
  Speaker 1: How did you solve this problem?
• 5:48
  Speaker 1: I mean, that is quite the predicament.
• 5:50
  Speaker 2: Well, it's really not about, I think, where my whole life I was a planner and I knew my whole life was so planned out so far in advance.
• 5:58
  Speaker 2: I would know what I was doing two years from now, and I did that for a business, and also I was in the business of making everything perfect and the details.
• 6:05
  Speaker 2: And then suddenly I wasn't in control.
• 6:08
  Speaker 2: I wasn't in control of my own life and I didn't know not only what I was doing the next week or the next day, I just really had to learn to live in the present and live hour by hour, minute by minute.
• 6:21
  Speaker 2: And it really just changed the way that I lived and I realized that maybe I had never really been present before and been so focused on the future and goal setting and things that maybe at the end of the day it really didn't fill my cup.
• 6:35
  Speaker 2: And so, even though we were in such a hard time and in the hospital and with really bad things going on, I really learned how to find happiness in the small moments and connecting with the people that I was running into and just really made me feel so fortunate with my life.
• 6:52
  Speaker 2: So it gave me a different perspective.
• 6:54
  Speaker 1: Right, right.
• 6:54
  Speaker 1: I think that's so important because there are so many women out there that are that type A personality and that they've got everything planned out and they definitely feel in control or everything.
• 7:05
  Speaker 1: But, like you said, a curveball can come your way, like what you went through, and you just have to completely pivot.
• 7:11
  Speaker 1: You don't have a choice, right.
• 7:13
  Speaker 2: You don't have a choice, and it was just a mindset change that I think I needed.
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• 8:11
  Speaker 1: That's sasurgeonscom.
• 8:14
  Speaker 1: Well, so so many of us are just going and blowing all the time and balancing so many different things.
• 8:20
  Speaker 1: Do you have any advice to those out there that are experiencing uncertainty or maybe even burnout?
• 8:27
  Speaker 2: Sure, I think that you know, really, one day at a time, that the pivot that I just talked about and just really thinking about that, one thing that that really helped me, and the burnout is, one day I looked up and thought, you know, I really never dreamed about being a wedding planner, but I love it so much and I just really had to take the time to stop and think and journal about it.
• 8:49
  Speaker 2: So, I think, going to those quiet spaces, cutting out the noise and just really writing down.
• 8:54
  Speaker 2: That's why I've added some workbook questions into the book and what I realized myself was, you know, I never dreamed about being the wedding planner, but what I loved about it was I love the people and I loved connecting with the people and taking their dreams and bringing it to life.
• 9:12
  Speaker 2: And so I knew, as long as I was still in hospitality or entertaining or creating these spaces where, whether it's just your family or your friends, can connect in these moments and enjoy them, that that's what would make me happy.
• 9:27
  Speaker 1: I think that's awesome.
• 9:28
  Speaker 1: Well, I've been to your Instagram.
• 9:29
  Speaker 1: It's absolutely beautiful and I love looking at it.
• 9:32
  Speaker 1: Sometimes, when I need to be reminded of why I'm doing what I'm doing, I go back and look at old videos and nothing warms my heart more than like interviews with the students and the athletes and things like that.
• 9:43
  Speaker 1: It just kind of re-energizes me and reminds me.
• 9:46
  Speaker 1: Well, so you have said that you want to encourage women to reconnect with who they truly are, and we literally just recorded a podcast about empty nesters and we talked about that very thing is, when you're an empty nester, you kind of finally have time to reconnect with some of the hobbies and your interests that you kind of lost track of.
• 10:08
  Speaker 1: How do you encourage women that maybe aren't at that point yet to reconnect?
• 10:13
  Speaker 1: How?
• 10:14
  Speaker 2: do you encourage women that maybe aren't at that point yet to reconnect?
• 10:17
  Speaker 2: Well, something that I've really learned is it's all about the season of life you're in and really enjoying that moment.
• 10:19
  Speaker 2: Something that I write in the book when I sign people's books is right here is perfect and you can do it all, but you can't do it all at once, and so, and being able to pivot and know that if you've made a decision and you don't feel good in your gut that something just doesn't sit right with you with with that decision, then you're in control of your life.
• 10:43
  Speaker 2: You don't have to do it anymore.
• 10:44
  Speaker 2: You can change, you can pivot.
• 10:45
  Speaker 2: It doesn't have to make sense to other people.
• 10:47
  Speaker 2: I think when people heard that I was stopping planning weddings, they just couldn't believe it, and you know.
• 10:58
  Speaker 2: But there was.
• 10:59
  Speaker 2: There was something you know deep within me I wanted to spend more time with my kids.
• 11:01
  Speaker 2: I didn't want to miss this season that I'm in, you know, raising my children, and I could always go back to it or pivot later.
• 11:05
  Speaker 2: So I feel like, no matter what season you're in, if you think you've decided to stay at home with your kids and maybe you want to do something else now that you're an empty nester, but you don't even know what that was.
• 11:17
  Speaker 2: One thing that I've found that's really helped me too is just making sure you're surrounding yourself with the right people and the people that you go have coffee with and you feel energized and you might, you know, dream up a dream right there that you didn't even know you had, but it's something that just excites you.
• 11:33
  Speaker 2: So those, the people that you're surrounding yourself with, and making sure that it's positive influences on your life is so important too, so it's never too late.
• 11:42
  Speaker 1: I love that.
• 11:43
  Speaker 1: I couldn't agree more.
• 11:44
  Speaker 1: I've really been trying to become intentional about spending time with friends that really make me happy and are positive influences, and I've been having that discussion with a lot of other friends, just like I had this big realization not too long ago when I spent some time with a friend.
• 12:00
  Speaker 1: I didn't feel like I had time that day to do it, but I just left feeling so much happier.
• 12:04
  Speaker 1: So I've really been encouraging everyone to do that as well.
• 12:08
  Speaker 2: Well, and I think too, scheduling that for me because I am such a planner I talk about this I'll have to.
• 12:14
  Speaker 2: You know, at the beginning of the week, looking at my week it sounds crazy, but if I don't schedule in those moments of quietness or walking with a friend or thinking about who do I really want to see with this week that I can have coffee with or a walk with and making time for that?
• 12:31
  Speaker 2: Because if I don't schedule it and set it aside, then I just end up on the hamster wheel of running in circles and I look up and think what did I do today?
• 12:39
  Speaker 2: So it really is important.
• 12:41
  Speaker 2: I do that with a lot of things I'll write down you know who are three couples that I haven't seen in a while, that I would love to have dinner with this month, or just something that you know you can really think through and plan out, because the moments are short.
• 12:56
  Speaker 1: The days go by so quickly, don't they?
• 12:58
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• 13:03
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• 13:16
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• 13:51
  Speaker 1: Well, you have also talked about how you like to mentor young women, which I absolutely love.
• 13:57
  Speaker 1: I mean, I just loved reading that about you.
• 13:59
  Speaker 1: Why is that so important to you?
• 14:02
  Speaker 2: Well, I just feel like you know, I really didn't have that when I was younger and I knew that I wanted to do something big.
• 14:11
  Speaker 2: I didn't know what it was, I thought I wanted to be in broadcast journalism and you know, just really being able to tie all these experiences together and to understand, I think there's so much pressure on kids today and especially, you know, having the perfect resume, having the perfect internship.
• 14:27
  Speaker 2: I had what I thought was the perfect internship at CNN, which I wrote about in the book, which sounded so great on paper, but in reality I had to wear pantyhose and be there at 5am and sit in a closet, so it really wasn't as clear as it sounded.
• 14:42
  Speaker 2: And so I think people are intimidated by by reaching out.
• 14:46
  Speaker 2: And again, it's just all about the people and the connections and use your connections, because that can just get you one step in front of somebody else.
• 14:55
  Speaker 2: And I didn't have experience when I started in event planning.
• 14:59
  Speaker 2: Well, I thought I did.
• 15:00
  Speaker 2: I was the social chairman of my sorority and had booked bands.
• 15:04
  Speaker 2: But coming here to Dallas, I thought I had experience, but not Dallas experience, and that was okay because I just dove in.
• 15:11
  Speaker 2: And so if you have the attitude and just kind of get out of your head and just dive in and do it and don't overthink it.
• 15:18
  Speaker 2: I think that not overthinking and doing has helped me get to where I am.
• 15:25
  Speaker 1: Well, what are some of the mind shifts that you've encouraged women to make?
• 15:30
  Speaker 2: Sure, well, I think just that of just doing the work and being willing to do anything.
• 15:35
  Speaker 2: I think a lot of times people think, okay, I need to start at the top, or just, you know, have a certain job, or I don't feel like I've, you know, succeeded.
• 15:48
  Speaker 2: And really, even if you end up being the president or CEO of the company, the people that are most successful and can really connect with everyone on their teams are the ones that have done all the jobs and started at the bottom and looked, um, looked around and just, really, you know, starting out an event planning, um, there were days where I, you know, loaded the truck with all the materials and vases and flowers.
• 16:12
  Speaker 2: There were days that I drove the truck because someone didn't show up.
• 16:16
  Speaker 2: There's days that you went and tore down the party at midnight, which is, you know, all of my friends were at the bar or doing something way more fun, but just putting in the work and the time and and that just really creates this level of respect for the rest of your team, that they see you when there's, you know, something spills and you pick up the broom and you're doing that and you don't think that any job's beneath you.
• 16:38
  Speaker 2: It really helps you see things from others' perspectives, but it gains this trust for you, for the whole team.
• 16:46
  Speaker 2: So I think, just that attitude if you've got an attitude and you're willing to do anything and be a sponge, you really can do anything.
• 16:53
  Speaker 2: I think that's really good advice.
• 16:55
  Speaker 1: It's a very labor-intensive job doing event planning and so many behind-the-scenes things that no one knows about, and I love that.
• 17:04
  Speaker 1: You did all that, stayed up late, breaking things down and carried all the stuff to the car.
• 17:08
  Speaker 1: That's a lot of work.
• 17:09
  Speaker 1: Well, you're raising a family here in University Park.
• 17:13
  Speaker 1: How has living in the bubble shaped your values and choices?
• 17:19
  Speaker 2: Sure.
• 17:19
  Speaker 2: Well, we love the bubble, being from Memphis and my husband's from New Orleans, and we both went to private school, and so the idea of this you know, public school system and walking to school and it was just foreign to us.
• 17:35
  Speaker 2: And when we first moved here we were in Greenway Crest and we intentionally made the decision, based on our values, to move to UP, really because just looking around and saying we're so fortunate to live in an area where you can walk to school, your kids can walk to the park and play on the YMCA teams, and you know, I think that there's a misconception about Dallas that in a lot of ways and people will say you live in such a big city and I can't imagine living in such a big city, but really it feels like a small town and the plus about it is when it is a bigger city and there is a bigger school, you can find your people, you know.
• 18:17
  Speaker 2: So no matter what your goals are or strengths or likes are, you can find your people to surround you with.
• 18:25
  Speaker 2: So there's really something for everybody which I think is nice and it just feels like a small town, being able to walk around Steiner Plaza and know everybody's name, whether it's the bank or the grocery store, it's fun.
• 18:38
  Speaker 1: That's what I love too.
• 18:39
  Speaker 1: It's really it's fun.
• 18:40
  Speaker 1: I mean, not a day goes by that you go out and about and you don't run into somebody that you know about.
• 18:44
  Speaker 1: And I always say we live in this small little town in the middle of one of the biggest cities in the United States and it very much is like a small town.
• 18:53
  Speaker 1: I love it.
• 18:54
  Speaker 1: I do too.
• 18:54
  Speaker 1: Watching your mom care tirelessly for your dad can be both heartwarming and heartbreaking.
• 19:01
  Speaker 1: You see the love, but you also see the exhaustion, and too often they're the last ones to ask for help.
• 19:07
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• 19:13
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• 19:19
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• 19:23
  Speaker 3: It's a delicate balance.
• 19:24
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• 19:31
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• 19:42
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• 19:47
  Speaker 1: But even the most devoted spouse needs help, and getting that help doesn't mean they're failing.
• 19:52
  Speaker 1: It means they're taking care of themselves too.
• 19:54
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• 19:59
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• 20:05
  Speaker 1: That's 214-649-9922.
• 20:09
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• 20:13
  Speaker 1: So going back to your book, the Through Line Finding Happiness Through the Curveballs of Life, family and Business, again, you talk a lot about mindset shifts.
• 20:25
  Speaker 1: Can you elaborate just a little bit more on that?
• 20:28
  Speaker 2: Sure, there's three mindset shifts that I feel like that I really highlight in the book, one being the power of the pivot and just that mindset that if something happens and one of the analogies that I use in the book was I actually had a wedding that was hit by a tornado oh, my.
• 20:49
  Speaker 2: And where we had to really pivot, where we had been setting up this tent for two weeks and it was perfect the tables, the chairs, everything was set up weeks and it was perfect.
• 21:01
  Speaker 2: The tables, the chairs, everything was set up, and the Thursday night before the wedding, it was hit with a tornado and scissored in half the steel and so we had to completely take it down.
• 21:10
  Speaker 2: And so I, you know, really could have frozen, could have moved the whole ceremony or moved the whole reception indoors, which would not have been the bride's dream, and we had to pivot in the moment and that's also the great thing about being surrounded by wonderful people and vendors Our teams came in and took it all down in 24 hours and put it all back up and then, right before the guests arrived, we finished.
• 21:37
  Speaker 2: So it was really great.
• 21:39
  Speaker 2: So, whether it's something huge like a tornado or just something in your life that, like we talked about, it's just a mindset that I think people get so in their head and overthink things that just if you just do it and just you know, really try to smile through it, surround yourself with the right people, and you're going to make mistakes, and that's just how you learn.
• 22:01
  Speaker 1: Oh my gosh, You're making me so excited to read your book because I feel like you were speaking like directly to me.
• 22:06
  Speaker 1: All the things you're talking about are things I'm struggling with right now overthinking and getting the right people involved and being able to delegate and just let other people kind of take some things on.
• 22:17
  Speaker 1: I love all this.
• 22:19
  Speaker 2: Good.
• 22:20
  Speaker 2: I think it's a struggle for so many of us, especially moms.
• 22:23
  Speaker 1: Yes, yes, there's so much, we're always juggling.
• 22:33
  Speaker 2: Well, so what does living a beautiful life mean to you now, compared to like 10 years ago?
• 22:35
  Speaker 2: Well, 10 years ago, my idea of a beautiful life would have been planning, you know, the most elaborate wedding in Italy, mexico, bahamas, and I was always on a plane and it was so exciting and I traveled to so many fabulous places, you know, and it was just all about making the client happy whether it was making me happy or my family happy, but making them happy, you know, getting all the perfect Instagram shots and how you know it looked out there so everybody could see it.
• 23:04
  Speaker 2: And you know, the ultimate goal 10 years ago was always to get it published in a magazine.
• 23:08
  Speaker 2: So if it was published in a magazine, that meant you know you made it.
• 23:13
  Speaker 2: And now I would say it's completely different.
• 23:16
  Speaker 2: I feel like my idea of a beautiful life, while I still love all the beautiful things, I love all the beautiful details, I love design, I love entertaining, to me more it looks like surrounding, you know, in my home, with my family, with my husband, my two kids and then my friends, and so I feel like, while it's all the same concepts and it's all the same idea, it's just if I'm surrounded by those people that I love, then right here is perfect, like I write in the book.
• 23:49
  Speaker 2: So I love that.
• 23:52
  Speaker 1: I think I hear so many people talk about their seasons of life and you've mentioned that a couple of times too that just you know, 10 years ago you were just starting to have kids and your kids were very young at that time and you know what you were doing then.
• 24:07
  Speaker 1: I could only imagine how hard that was juggling all the details of these beautiful weddings and getting on a plane and going all over the world.
• 24:14
  Speaker 1: How hard that was.
• 24:15
  Speaker 1: And then you had a different season in life where you had just kind of a realization that it was time for you to shift and do some different things that make sense with what your life was now becoming.
• 24:29
  Speaker 2: Yes, and I'm constantly having to reset and have a little meeting with myself as one of my friends and even with the book.
• 24:36
  Speaker 2: You know, writing the book was so exciting and you know these great opportunities have come to travel and to do book signings.
• 24:44
  Speaker 2: But I'm constantly having to reset and learn again to say no, because I think that you know I go through these seasons of saying yes and then my calendar's too full again and then I'm missing you know things with my kids and then I'll learn to say no again and just it's a juggling act of just getting to what's best for you and right now, being in the season of middle school with my kids, it's like I don't want to look back and miss a moment of that.
• 25:14
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 25:14
  Speaker 2: So activities are really kicking in now.
• 25:16
  Speaker 2: Yes, activities are really kicking in now.
• 25:18
  Speaker 2: Yes, and I've really never regretted a no.
• 25:20
  Speaker 2: You know, when you're asked to do a charity event or something that you know is going to take a lot of time, which is a very nice ask and it's very nice of them to ask you, but once you say no and you can take that deep sigh and there's always time for that later.
• 25:33
  Speaker 2: There's another season later for that.
• 25:41
  Speaker 1: So I wanted to give a personal thank you to our good friend and show sponsor, kathy Elwall State Farm Agency.
• 25:43
  Speaker 1: We have known Kathy for more than 15 years and there is no person we trust more when it comes to insurance than Kathy Elwall.
• 25:49
  Speaker 1: Kathy is always available to help you find the right insurance for your family needs, whether it's covering your home, auto or providing a life insurance policy tailored to the unique needs of families in Highland Park.
• 26:00
  Speaker 1: My family trusts Kathy with our insurance and we hope you will too.
• 26:04
  Speaker 1: Please visit kathylwallcom to learn more and let her know that Martha from the Bubble Lounge sent you.
• 26:10
  Speaker 1: Okay, I want to talk a lot more about that learning how to say no because I was literally thinking about this yesterday.
• 26:16
  Speaker 1: I don't think I know how to say no, so I would love to hear your advice, even like some coaching tips, of how to make this happen.
• 26:23
  Speaker 2: Well, I learned it the hard way by saying too many yeses, and I think that that's what happens when you, you know, say too many yeses, and a lot of it is because they're exciting things you want to say yes to and there are opportunities, and you get excited.
• 26:35
  Speaker 2: And normally you're saying it yes a year in advance when maybe your calendar isn't as full, and then they all hit at the same time, like May or December or May-cember, and then you really are just not doing able to do anything for yourself or your family and you're filling your calendar with those those unnecessary things.
• 26:56
  Speaker 2: So I feel like surrounding yourself with the right people.
• 27:01
  Speaker 2: For me, it's my sister, grace, who honestly, I'll say things out loud to her and she'll say, really, and I think some of my close friends that'll double check me.
• 27:13
  Speaker 2: You need people like that, that aren't yes people all the time to you, that can really double check you and call you out when you say things out loud.
• 27:22
  Speaker 2: I think that helps to say it out loud to a friend and then hear their feedback and it really helps you to say, ok, well, I was excited about that, but maybe it's not the season or maybe that's not what I need to be spending my time on, especially for this community.
• 27:38
  Speaker 2: Spending my time on especially for this community, I realized again the hard way you know there's so many wonderful things to volunteer with with school and I chaired the UP school auction.
• 27:51
  Speaker 2: Two years.
• 27:52
  Speaker 2: That's a lot.
• 27:53
  Speaker 2: Two years is a lot more than you know most people do.
• 27:57
  Speaker 2: One year, but I learned, as I would be spending my hours during the day after working with all of my clients and then spending all these volunteer hours to make this event special, which I loved and enjoyed, and got to work with great moms, but then my daughter would come home at the end of the day and just need my attention and I'd still be working on that, or she'd say, so-and-so's mom worked the cafeteria today and they're always at school and they do all this for the school and I think, well, I did all this and so that actually changed my mindset on volunteering with the school that I only do things now that I get credit with my kids for oh okay, you need that face time, right, face time, so I can't do as much behind the scenes time, so lunch duty, they can see my face but really things that help you, that help your family and just, or what you should focus time on.
• 28:51
  Speaker 1: Okay.
• 28:51
  Speaker 1: Well, I need a grace in my life because I need to start saying it out loud.
• 28:55
  Speaker 1: I need somebody to kind of check me and say you know what Think about?
• 29:00
  Speaker 1: You know October?
• 29:00
  Speaker 1: You're not thinking in terms of October right now.
• 29:01
  Speaker 1: It sounds good and fun, but October gets just as full as all the other months.
• 29:05
  Speaker 1: So, just kind of taking that step back and really evaluating what you're saying yes, I like that advice.
• 29:11
  Speaker 1: Ok, so I've started doing this new thing where we kind of do these lightning round questions with my guests, just as something different and something fun.
• 29:18
  Speaker 1: So what is your?
• 29:23
  Speaker 2: go-to pick-me-up when life feels overwhelming Iced tea and then ranch water in that order.
• 29:33
  Speaker 1: That's funny.
• 29:33
  Speaker 1: Do you have a special place that you like iced tea?
• 29:34
  Speaker 1: Because a lot of people are like, oh no, you can't just get it anywhere.
• 29:36
  Speaker 2: This place mixes it just right, has the right.
• 29:37
  Speaker 2: Ice 100% JD's Chippery oh yes.
• 29:39
  Speaker 2: Ice 100% JD's Chippery oh yes, yes, 100% agree.
• 29:41
  Speaker 2: I say iced tea with a little bit of lemonade.
• 29:44
  Speaker 2: You can't just say I'm a farmer, you have to say iced tea with a little bit of lemonade, and the large cup will last me most of the day, and so I really like that.
• 29:54
  Speaker 1: And they have the best ice at JD's right.
• 29:56
  Speaker 1: They do.
• 29:56
  Speaker 1: I mean it's perfect.
• 29:57
  Speaker 2: And you know you can get an account there, which is also a pro tip that I've learned this year is that you actually just pre buy a gift card and they have it behind the register, so you walk in.
• 30:08
  Speaker 2: You can kind of skip the line and just tell them your name and grab your iced tea and run off the door.
• 30:12
  Speaker 1: Okay, don't they need an app?
• 30:14
  Speaker 1: They are like really popping off right now and they've got the food truck.
• 30:17
  Speaker 1: They opened a second location.
• 30:19
  Speaker 1: I love it.
• 30:20
  Speaker 1: I'm sure they'll do an app soon, right they should.
• 30:22
  Speaker 1: So what is a quote or mantra that's carried you through hard times?
• 30:28
  Speaker 2: One day at a time, one hour at a time, one moment at a time.
• 30:31
  Speaker 2: I like that.
• 30:32
  Speaker 1: That's really good Something we all need to think about.
• 30:41
  Speaker 2: What is a local Dallas spot that you sneak away to for inspiration or to get some calm?
• 30:44
  Speaker 2: You know, really Merrick and I's favorite date night and it has been for years is going to Bishop Arts because it really feels like a date night, even though we love our little bubble we live in.
• 30:53
  Speaker 2: Sometimes you can't really get a date in because you see so many friends that you know and you're talking to everybody, which is also so fun.
• 30:57
  Speaker 2: But when you want to sneak away for some calm, we love going over there to Lucia or just walking around.
• 31:02
  Speaker 2: That's great if we're in town and if we really need to reset.
• 31:08
  Speaker 2: We love Long Cove so much because we can just go there.
• 31:12
  Speaker 2: There's something about.
• 31:14
  Speaker 2: You know, they call the drive up to Long Cove the Dallas detox and it's seven minutes till you see the first house and just the grass and the wildflowers and the longhorns and the deer and the water.
• 31:24
  Speaker 2: It's just truly.
• 31:25
  Speaker 2: Even one night for us is the biggest reset.
• 31:27
  Speaker 1: It's so beautiful out there, isn't it?
• 31:29
  Speaker 1: And it's just an hour away from Dallas.
• 31:31
  Speaker 1: Yes, you love it.
• 31:32
  Speaker 1: What is the best advice you've received from another woman?
• 31:37
  Speaker 2: So really, this was a few years ago when I was trying to decide my father had passed away and was trying to decide whether I should run our family business or sell our family business and one of my dear friends, jacqueline, who runs her family business, gave me the best advice, just saying you know, you can't recreate this.
• 31:58
  Speaker 2: There is something so special about family legacy and passing down to your children that this is forever and this is something that you can create for generations.
• 32:10
  Speaker 2: And for me it was something about tying in that history and teaching my kids about it in the future.
• 32:16
  Speaker 2: And it doesn't have to be a family business.
• 32:17
  Speaker 2: It could be a home, preserving a home, it could be letters, it could be just really anything that you're passing down, it could be a philosophy.
• 32:27
  Speaker 2: But this legacy, you know, and the idea of family legacy is really so much bigger and so much more important than just what you're doing day to day, and that really stuck with me.
• 32:40
  Speaker 1: I love that.
• 32:41
  Speaker 1: I love that Well, so you've done so many amazing things.
• 32:44
  Speaker 1: I've loved getting to know you.
• 32:45
  Speaker 1: What is next?
• 32:47
  Speaker 2: Well, I'm really loving this.
• 32:49
  Speaker 2: I'm really loving talking to wonderful people like you, being on podcasts and you know, again, I had to check myself recently where I was traveling too much and I love being here in Dallas and making my family a priority.
• 33:02
  Speaker 2: So I love doing podcasts and I do have some notes down for a second book, but we'll see.
• 33:10
  Speaker 1: Well, you're still relishing in the one that you just wrote and I understand it's an Amazon bestseller.
• 33:16
  Speaker 1: That's so awesome.
• 33:17
  Speaker 2: That was so exciting, and I just finished the audio book and so I'm really excited about that.
• 33:23
  Speaker 1: So that will be out for summer so that people can listen on the beach or on their vacation or on their walks yeah, perfect timing I mean because everyone is always looking for a summer beach read at this time of year and it sounds like it's perfect.
• 33:36
  Speaker 1: It sounds like we're all going to learn a little something and get some inspiration along the way.
• 33:41
  Speaker 2: Yes, I decided.
• 33:42
  Speaker 2: Several people reached out to me about the audio book and I don't know why I didn't decide to do it at first and now have done it and wanted to do it in my own voice.
• 33:53
  Speaker 2: So that is so great that you did that.
• 33:55
  Speaker 1: I would imagine that takes quite a while to record a whole book.
• 33:59
  Speaker 2: Yes, it was fun.
• 34:00
  Speaker 2: Well, where can listeners buy the book?
• 34:02
  Speaker 2: So here in Dallas it's at InnerBang Awesome.
• 34:05
  Speaker 2: And if you're not in Dallas it's on Amazon.
• 34:08
  Speaker 2: Or if you just want it to come straight to your doorstep, it's on Amazon.
• 34:14
  Speaker 1: Awesome.
• 34:14
  Speaker 1: Well, are there any events or local things where women can connect with you personally?
• 34:19
  Speaker 2: Yes, I have a few coming up here in the area and we always post that on my Instagram, so at Sarah Faye Egan or at Sarah Faye Egan events and on the website SarahFayeEgancom.
• 34:32
  Speaker 1: Perfect, and, as always, I will include a link to her Instagram and her website so you don't have to remember everything.
• 34:38
  Speaker 1: Well, Sarah Faye, this has been so fun talking with you.
• 34:42
  Speaker 1: I am so pumped up about reading the book, and I wish you all the best.
• 34:47
  Speaker 2: Thank you so much.
• 34:48
  Speaker 2: This was so special that's been another episode of the Bubble Lounge.
• 34:52
  Speaker 1: I'm Martha Jackson and I'll see you next time.