What if the secret to 17 years of success is in staying nimble, and widening the table instead of protecting your seat?

Join me as I sit down with Meghan Phillips, founder of Honey and one of the most respected leaders I know.

Over nearly two decades, Meghan has built a thriving creative business while launching initiatives shaping how our region thinks about food and impact. Our conversation explores what it means to lead with humanity first, build cultures people actually want to be part of, and navigate the tension between ambition and contentment.

You'll Learn:

⭐ Why continuity in storytelling matters (and how it built Honey)

⭐ How to hold ambition and contentment at the same time

⭐ What it takes to build a team that stays for 10+ years

⭐ Why mentoring others became her greatest joy

⭐ The power of "widening the table" instead of protecting your seat

Key Insights:

Human-First Leadership: Creating work cultures where people can show up as their whole selves isn't just good ethics - it's good business.

The Infinity Symbol Strategy: True impact comes from connecting visual design with marketing storytelling - making something beautiful AND telling people how to use it.

Living in the Tension: Ambition and contentment don't have to be opposing forces - both can coexist without constantly swiveling between extremes.

From Self to Others: The shift from thinking about your own career to investing in others' careers is where true fulfillment lives.

Connection as Legacy: Real legacy isn't about big monuments - it's about fostering human connection, breaking bread, and remembering what it means to be human.

Timestamps:

[00:00:00] - Introduction

[00:02:00] - How Kristin and Meghan met over a decade ago

[00:04:00] - Meghan's reputation as a human-first leader

[00:05:00] - Starting Honey while pregnant (17-18 years ago)

[00:06:00] - The missing continuity in storytelling and why Honey started

[00:07:00] - The power of Sacramento's food and beverage community

[00:48:00] - Living in the tension between ambition and contentment

[00:49:00] - Both things can be true: perfection isn't required

[00:50:00] - What younger Meghan would find surprising: loving mentorship

[00:51:00] - Team longevity: 10-11 years with key team members

[00:53:00] - Building a legacy through human connection

Resources and Links:

• Find host Kirstin Belden on LinkedIn or at BeldenStrategies.com
• Sign up for Kristin's newsletter at BeldenStrategies.com/newsletter
• Connect with Meghan Phillips and her businesses
  • Meghan on LinkedIn
  • Honey Agency
  • Food Frontier
  • Simple Summers
• Rancho Cordova Community Food Hub
• Center for Land-Based Learning
• Soil Born Farms
• Oobli
• Visit Sacramento
• Terra Madre

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a review! And if you're interested in more stories and tools for women leaders, sign up for my newsletter at Beldenstrategies.com/newsletter.