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On this week's Thursday Thoughts, Polly and I are talking about how the amount of good things in your life depends on your ability to notice them.

With so much fear and negativity in the news right now, it’s easy for your attention to be pulled towards what feels heavy and overwhelming. That’s why being intentional about where you place your focus matters more than ever.

This conversation is a gentle reminder that you can train your brain to look for more of what’s uplifting and good. It’s not about ignoring reality — it’s about strengthening your capacity to see the positive alongside it.

We hope you find something that resonates in here.

Love,
Polly & Lucy x
Support the show
Buy my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book


Join my membership community for single women, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo


Download my FREE PDF 'Top 10 Comebacks for the Most
Annoying Questions Single Women Get Asked'
Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/comebacks


Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson


Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share


Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/


Email me: [email protected]
And thank you so much for listening!

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My guest this week is Poorna Bell, an award-winning author, journalist, public speaker and former executive editor at the Huff Post. Her sixth book, (and fourth non-fiction book) She Wanted More, came out just last month, and shines a much-needed spotlight on the lives of women in their 40s, 50s, 60s and beyond, challenging the stagnation narratives that society tries to force upon us. The book explores various themes including the distinction between motherhood and otherhood, diving into the reality that women can be childfree and still live lives of purpose and meaning. 
Our conversation includes: the tragic loss of Poorna's husband Rob; how society still sees marriage as the superior path; her thoughts on the viral Vogue article, 'Is Having A Boyfriend Embarrassing Now?'; Poorna's current outlook on dating; decentering men, i.e. removing them as the focal point in our lives; the impossible standards placed on women when it comes to ageing; and Poorna's new book, She Wanted more. 
05:28 Poorna’s Story: Losing Her Husband & Rethinking the 'Life Script'
09:25 10 Years On: Grief, Healing, and Finding Joy & Peace Again
16:06 From Wife to Widow to Single: Status, Stigma, and Solo Travel
22:23 Dating Pressure
25:25 Viral Vogue article ‘Is Having A Boyfriend Embarrassing Now?’ + Why Women’s Lives Get Harder with Men
34:20 Why She Wrote ‘She Wanted More’: Aging, Reinvention, and Rejecting the Decline Narrative
38:13 Older Women Athletes & Rewriting the ‘Frailty’ Narrative
40:07 Aging as Liberation: Social Media Role Models in Their 60s
43:17 Letting Go of the Male Gaze
47:53 Desire, Menopause & the Many Realities of Midlife Sex
49:49 Heidi Clements, HRT, Money & Why Friendship Matters More Than Romance
52:54 Decentering Men: Putting Yourself Back at the Center
55:50 Are We Escaping the Patriarchy? Measuring Progress (and What’s Missing)
59:50 Dating Burnout, Quitting Drinking & Dipping a Toe Back Into Dating
01:05:12 Online Dating Reality Check: Hybrid Dating, Expectations & Efficiency
01:08:46 Final Words of Advice
Buy Poorna's book, She Wanted More: https://www.amazon.co.uk/She-Wanted-More-space-dream/dp/1785122835
Follow Poorna on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/poornabell/?hl=en
Follow Poorna on TikTok:  https://www.tiktok.com/@poornabell
Support the show
Buy my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book


Join my membership community for single women, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo


Download my FREE PDF 'Top 10 Comebacks for the Most
Annoying Questions Single Women Get Asked'
Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/comebacks


Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson


Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share


Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/


Email me: [email protected]
And thank you so much for listening!

Send a text
On today's minisode, I'm talking about the backlash to my social media content which — like the podcast — celebrates and advocates for single, childfree life — especially comments from coupled people telling me to stop 'going on about' being single. 
My message has always been that singlehood is not better than marriage and children, but also that it is not worse, and it deserves equal validity. There is no question that society continues to stigmatise single women in a multitude of ways, not least through the intrusive questions implying we are lonely, incomplete, or left behind, while married people are not similarly interrogated about things such as regret, divorce, or lost independence. By naming the benefits of single life, and necessarily pointing out the trade-offs of marriage and parenthood, my aim is to correct the long-standing cultural imbalance, reduce shame, and help younger women see multiple legitimate routes to a meaningful life.
Support the show
Buy my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book


Join my membership community for single women, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo


Download my FREE PDF 'Top 10 Comebacks for the Most
Annoying Questions Single Women Get Asked'
Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/comebacks


Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson


Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share


Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/


Email me: [email protected]
And thank you so much for listening!

Send a text
On this week's Thursday Thoughts, Polly and I talk about all manner of things including where we’re at with our goals and habits, the importance of staying present in the moment, and how crucial awareness is if we want to make any kind of change in our life.

We hope you’ll find something useful in here!

Love,
Polly & Lucy x
Support the show
Buy my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book


Join my membership community for single women, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo


Download my FREE PDF 'Top 10 Comebacks for the Most
Annoying Questions Single Women Get Asked'
Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/comebacks


Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson


Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share


Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/


Email me: [email protected]
And thank you so much for listening!

Send a text
It’s a very special episode today because my guest is someone I really do love, even though I’ve only known him for a matter of weeks. His name is Einar Thorsteinsson, and he was the wonderful, wonderful guide on my recent trip to Iceland in January. 
This trip was a first for me, not only because I’d never been to Iceland before, but also because I was hosting the trip - having partnered with Explore Worldwide for a Thrive Solo trip for single women. There were 13 of us from the UK, the Netherlands, and the US, and we had a truly fabulous and really quite special 5 days, not least because we had Einar as our most brilliant, brilliant guide. 
To put it in context, Einar is a 67 year old, very happily married man with five adult children, and he was given us lot as his group - but I like to think that he loved us as much as we loved him!
In this conversation, Einar talks about how and why he became a tour guide for Explore in his retirement years, he talks all about Iceland and why he loves it, and he describes the trip that we did in the south of the country which included waterfalls, beaches, and the Northern Lights. Einar also dishes the dirt on what it was like to be in charge of an unruly group of single women! I bloody love this man, and I know you will too.
02:15 Special Guest: Einar Thorsteinsson
04:58 Einar's Background and Career
07:48 The Iceland Trip Experience
13:03 Exploring Iceland's Natural Wonders
24:58 Group Dynamics and Reflections
31:09 The Magic of the Northern Lights
33:47 Magical Night Under the Northern Lights
35:25 Managing Expectations for the Northern Lights
38:11 Exploring Iceland's Natural Wonders
40:59 The Wild Beauty of Iceland's Black Beach
44:11 Final Day Adventures and Reflections
45:22 Looking Forward to Future Iceland Adventures
57:39 Conclusion and Farewell
Support the show
Buy my book, SHINY HAPPY SINGLES (UK) / THRIVE SOLO (US & Canada) at: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/book


Join my membership community for single women, Thrive Solo: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/thrivesolo


Download my FREE PDF 'Top 10 Comebacks for the Most
Annoying Questions Single Women Get Asked'
Go to: https://www.lucymeggeson.com/comebacks


Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivesolowithlucymeggeson


Join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1870817913309222/?ref=share


Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thrivesolowithlucymeggeson/


Email me: [email protected]
And thank you so much for listening!