Podcast
The Sage Sorority
Hosted by Shantel Rousseau · EN
💡 Wisdom. Sisterhood. Real Talk.
Welcome to The Sage Sorority—the ultimate podcast for modern women navigating life, career, and relationships with confidence, humour, and a little bit of chaos. Hosted from London, this show is your weekly dose of unfiltered big sister advice, blending deep conversations with fun, relatable insights on self-worth, success, dating, and personal growth.
✨ What You’ll Get in Every Episode:
✔️ Raw, real conversations about life as a woman in your 30s & 40s
✔️ Empowering advice on career, money, relationships & self-care
✔️ Expert guests & inspiring women sharing their unfiltered truths
✔️ A mix of deep wisdom & playful banter—because life’s too short for boring podcasts
If you’re figuring out who you are, what you want, and how to live a life that feels as good as it looks, you’re in the right place. Join us for honest discussions on personal growth, female friendships, modern love, and leveling up in every aspect of life.
📍 New episodes every Thursday
🎙 Follow & subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen.
💌 Connect with us: @thesagesorority
41episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
episode 022 - a slow and sexy summer: how to slow down without losing the season (revisit)
2w ago00:27:35Tap to summarizeThis episode makes the case for a slow summer as an actual strategy. Shantel talks through where the collective pressure comes from and why it starts as early as March in London, why summer burnout is so common by the time September hits, and what it looks like to use the season for emotional integration instead of output. There are practical rituals in here too. Morning sun with no phone and no agenda, grounding, a weekly no-content day if you work online, one-to-one catch-ups where you actually listen, slow dinners you can taste. And the reframe that reset how she plans her own summers: farmers don't plant new crops in July, they tend what's already growing.If softness has ever felt like something you have to earn, this one is for you."Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you." Anne LamottOne question before you go. Is this summer something you're living, or something you're getting through? DM the word SLOW to @thesagesorority on Instagram with your answer. I read every one.Thinking about coaching? You're running the year at a pace you didn't choose, and the plan is to sort it out in September. September is not going to be quieter. What actually happens is you reach October having spent another six months reacting, with the same decision still sitting there and less of the year left to do anything with it. Book here: https://squ.re/45jq3ueHave a question? Send in an anonymous one for Q&A: https://tellonym.me/thesagesorority💘 INSTAGRAM// https://www.instagram.com/thesagesorority/ TIKTOK// https://www.tiktok.com/@thesagesorority YOUTUBE// https://www.youtube.com/@TheSageSororitysubscribe + leave a (cheeky) rating 💘 spotify: https://spoti.fi/4iVPAhn apple: https://bit.ly/41ZNwO2💘 Catch up with Shantel! Instagram// https://www.instagram.com/shantelrousseau/ TikTok// https://www.tiktok.com/@shantelrousseau YouTube// https://www.youtube.com/@shantelrousseauonline ShopMy// https://shopmy.us/shantelrousseau LTK// https://www.shopltk.com/explore/shantelrousseau 💘
Transcribe →episode 032 - how to be more interesting, pt.1 (revisit)
3w ago00:41:38Tap to summarizeBeing interesting has quietly become a numbers game. Who's busiest, who's loudest, who's posting. Shantel makes the case for the older skill. Curiosity, attention, and an interior life you actually tend to. This one is about how to be more interesting without becoming a full time content machine about it.We get into breaking your algorithmic bubble and why your feed has been narrowing your taste without asking. Micro adventures and the small weekly switches that put texture back into a life that runs on autopilot. Who you are underneath the roles, the job title, the partner, the parent, the reliable one. And the art of asking better questions, because most conversations stall out at the second exchange and nobody ever teaches you how to move past it.The quiet thread running through all of it is that a rich interior life is not decoration. It's the thing people are responding to when they say someone has soft power. It builds slowly and it shows.What you'll learnA better definition of interesting, built on curiosity and quiet confidence rather than volumeHow to feed your mind on purpose, with diverse inputs you actually retainMicro adventures and how to build them into a normal weekWhy being fully present in a room changes how people receive youIdentity beyond labels, and a quick audit to find your axis againHow to ask better questions in dating, friendship and at workList of core values: https://jamesclear.com/core-valuesYour turn. Pick one micro adventure this week. Something small, something you'd normally talk yourself out of. Then DM me the word TEXTURE on @thesagesorority and tell me what you did. I read every one.If you got to the end of this and realised you couldn't answer who you are outside your job and the people who need things from you, that's the actual work, and it doesn't resolve on its own. It costs you in the rooms you don't enter and the conversations you keep having on the surface. Coaching details are below.Keywords: how to be more interesting, how to be an interesting woman, curiosity and confidence, micro adventures, break the algorithm, soft power, conversation skills, ask better questions, identity beyond roles, London lifestyle podcast, women's personal growth podcast--want to book a girl chat session? all the info is here - https://squ.re/45jq3ue want to partner w/The Sage Sorority Podcast? let’s chat - thesagesorority@gmail.com have a question? send in an (anonymous) one for Q&A - https://tellonym.me/thesagesorority 💘 SUBSTACK// https://open.substack.com/pub/thesagesorority INSTAGRAM// https://www.instagram.com/thesagesorority/TIKTOK// https://www.tiktok.com/@thesagesororityYOUTUBE// https://www.youtube.com/@TheSageSorority subscribe to The Sage Sorority Podcast + leave a (cheeky) 5* rating 💘apple: https://bit.ly/41ZNwO2spotify: https://spoti.fi/4iVPAhnyoutube: http://bit.ly/45ei8wO 💘catch up with, our founder + host, Shantel instagram// https://www.instagram.com/shantelrousseau/ tiktok// https://www.tiktok.com/@shantelrousseauSnapchat// https://snapchat.com/t/y4JGTR2O youtube// https://www.youtube.com/@shantelrousseauonline OUTFITS - ShopMy// https://shopmy.us/shantelrousseauOUTFITS - LTK// https://www.shopltk.com/explore/shantelrousseau💘
Transcribe →episode 028 - 5 self-worth lessons, I wish I knew sooner (revisit)
4w ago00:20:30Tap to summarizeBack by very popular demand (!!!) It's July, its 'summer of outside' according to Tinx, so here's five lessons that I genuinely wish someone had handed me earlier — on boundaries, safety, the rooms you're in, knowing when to leave, and what repair actually looks like in the people worth keeping. Quick, honest, and I think more relevant now than when it first came out. If this one hits, send it to someone who needs it.Listen and subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts + YouTube.want to book a girl chat session? all the info is here - https://squ.re/45jq3ue want to partner w/The Sage Sorority Podcast? let’s chat - thesagesorority@gmail.com have a question? send in an (anonymous) one for Q&A - https://tellonym.me/thesagesorority 💘 SUBSTACK// https://open.substack.com/pub/thesagesorority INSTAGRAM// https://www.instagram.com/thesagesorority/TIKTOK// https://www.tiktok.com/@thesagesororityYOUTUBE// https://www.youtube.com/@TheSageSorority subscribe to The Sage Sorority Podcast + leave a (cheeky) 5* rating 💘apple: https://bit.ly/41ZNwO2spotify: https://spoti.fi/4iVPAhnyoutube: http://bit.ly/45ei8wO 💘catch up with, our founder + host, Shantel instagram// https://www.instagram.com/shantelrousseau/ tiktok// https://www.tiktok.com/@shantelrousseauSnapchat// https://snapchat.com/t/y4JGTR2O youtube// https://www.youtube.com/@shantelrousseauonline OUTFITS - ShopMy// https://shopmy.us/shantelrousseauOUTFITS - LTK// https://www.shopltk.com/explore/shantelrousseau💘
Transcribe →episode 017 - when loving him meant losing herself (revisit)
Jul 200:58:01Tap to summarizeA woman on the tube. A TikTok. Words filling the screen about paying for a wedding alone, sleeping on the floor with eczema flaring, going 50/50 with a man who gave her a 30-pound Warren James set as a wedding gift. Then watching him remarry in under two years and give his new wife everything she was told she couldn't have.When my friend called her a red flag, I had a different thought: when a woman is a red flag, her biggest victim is herself. This episode is about that. Self-abandonment in relationships, what it actually looks like, why we don't talk about it with the same urgency we give every other red flag, and what discernment over desperation actually requires of you.Listen + subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.--want to book a girl chat session? all the info is here - https://squ.re/45jq3uewant to partner w/The Sage Sorority Podcast? let’s chat - thesagesorority@gmail.comhave a question? send in an (anonymous) one for Q&A - https://tellonym.me/thesagesorority 💘SUBSTACK// https://open.substack.com/pub/thesagesororityINSTAGRAM// https://www.instagram.com/thesagesorority/TIKTOK// https://www.tiktok.com/@thesagesororityYOUTUBE// https://www.youtube.com/@TheSageSororitysubscribe to The Sage Sorority Podcast + leave a (cheeky) 5* rating 💘apple: https://bit.ly/41ZNwO2spotify: https://spoti.fi/4iVPAhnyoutube: http://bit.ly/45ei8wO 💘catch up with, our founder + host, Shantelinstagram// https://www.instagram.com/shantelrousseau/tiktok// https://www.tiktok.com/@shantelrousseauyoutube// https://www.youtube.com/@shantelrousseauonlineOUTFITS - ShopMy// https://shopmy.us/shantelrousseauOUTFITS - LTK// https://www.shopltk.com/explore/shantelrousseau💘
Transcribe →Episode 003 - First Love, Forever Standards (revisit)
Jun 2500:31:38Tap to summarizeI'm at Cannes Lions this week for the first time (!!!) so we're revisiting one of the most listened-to episodes in TSS history. If you're new here, this is a great place to start. And if you've been around since the beginning, I think you'll want to hear this one again.This episode is built around what I call the Relationship Blueprint Theory: the idea that your earliest romantic experiences, more than almost anything else, quietly shape what you expect, what you tolerate, and what feels like love well into your adult life. There are also some genuinely useful frameworks in here for figuring out what you've internalized, where your standards actually come from, and how to start rewriting the blueprint on your own terms.If you've ever said "why do I keep ending up here," this one's for you.Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube. Subscribe so you never miss an episode!--want to book a girl chat session? all the info is here - https://squ.re/45jq3uewant to partner w/The Sage Sorority Podcast? let’s chat - thesagesorority@gmail.comhave a question? send in an (anonymous) one for Q&A - https://tellonym.me/thesagesorority 💘SUBSTACK// https://open.substack.com/pub/thesagesororityINSTAGRAM// https://www.instagram.com/thesagesorority/TIKTOK// https://www.tiktok.com/@thesagesororityYOUTUBE// https://www.youtube.com/@TheSageSororitysubscribe to The Sage Sorority Podcast + leave a (cheeky) 5* rating 💘apple: https://bit.ly/41ZNwO2spotify: https://spoti.fi/4iVPAhnyoutube: http://bit.ly/45ei8wO💘catch up with, our founder + host, Shantelinstagram// https://www.instagram.com/shantelrousseau/tiktok// https://www.tiktok.com/@shantelrousseausnapchat// https://snapchat.com/t/y4JGTR2Oyoutube// https://www.youtube.com/@shantelrousseauonlineOUTFITS - ShopMy// https://shopmy.us/shantelrousseauOUTFITS - LTK// https://www.shopltk.com/explore/shantelrousseau💘
Transcribe →episode 067 - 8 observations every woman in her 30s needs to hear
Jun 1900:20:23Tap to summarize8 observations I've been carrying around in my notes app, and honestly, talking about with anyone who will listen. Things I'm watching in real time... in the world, in the women around me, in myself. Luck. Money. Longing. Comparison. Ambition. Meritocracy. Spirituality. Clarity. All of it on the table today.If even one of these lands for you, DM me the number. I read every single one.Books mentioned: Success and Luck by Robert Frank. Happy Money by Elizabeth Dunn and Michael Norton. Act Like a Leader, Think Like a Leader by Herminia Ibarra.Episode referenced: episode 060 — emma grede, start with yourself and the disclaimer economywant to book a girl chat session? all the info is here - https://squ.re/45jq3ue want to partner w/The Sage Sorority Podcast? let’s chat - thesagesorority@gmail.com have a question? send in an (anonymous) one for Q&A - https://tellonym.me/thesagesorority 💘 SUBSTACK// https://open.substack.com/pub/thesagesorority INSTAGRAM// https://www.instagram.com/thesagesorority/TIKTOK// https://www.tiktok.com/@thesagesororityYOUTUBE// https://www.youtube.com/@TheSageSorority subscribe to The Sage Sorority Podcast + leave a (cheeky) 5* rating 💘apple: https://bit.ly/41ZNwO2spotify: https://spoti.fi/4iVPAhnyoutube: http://bit.ly/45ei8wO THE SAGE SORORITY PODCAST - https://feeds.captivate.fm/thesagesorority/ 💘catch up with, our founder + host, Shantel instagram// https://www.instagram.com/shantelrousseau/ tiktok// https://www.tiktok.com/@shantelrousseauSnapchat// https://snapchat.com/t/fb8LTRCm youtube// https://www.youtube.com/@shantelrousseauonline OUTFITS - ShopMy// https://shopmy.us/shantelrousseauOUTFITS - LTK// https://www.shopltk.com/explore/shantelrousseau💘
Transcribe →episode 066 - what a weekend alone with kids, really taught me about motherhood
Jun 1200:42:52Tap to summarizeI had my niece (5) and nephew (almost 3) for a full weekend. School runs, cooking, activities, baths, the lot. And by Sunday evening, I had more clarity about myself than I'd had in a while.This episode isn't a hot take on motherhood. It's not a debate about whether you should or shouldn't want children. It's an honest account of what happens when you pay close attention to how you feel — not what you think you should feel — in the middle of an experience that's very far from your normal life.We get into the relentlessness of early parenting that's genuinely hard to understand from the outside. The part nobody warns you about around autonomy and what losing it, even briefly, actually does to you. The social script around this conversation and why it keeps so many women from being honest. And what two US studies — from the University of New Hampshire and Michigan State — actually say about childless women and the threat of regret.There's no clean answer at the end of this one. That's kind of the point.UNH study (the 5.7 million figure): https://www.unh.edu/unhtoday/news/release/2025/09/15/study-shows-number-childless-women-us-continues-riseMSU study (the regret finding): https://msutoday.msu.edu/news/2023/04/childfree-study-confirmed-april2023--want to book a girl chat session? all the info is here - https://squ.re/45jq3uewant to partner w/The Sage Sorority Podcast? let’s chat - thesagesorority@gmail.comhave a question? send in an (anonymous) one for Q&A - https://tellonym.me/thesagesorority 💘 SUBSTACK// https://open.substack.com/pub/thesagesorority INSTAGRAM// https://www.instagram.com/thesagesorority/TIKTOK// https://www.tiktok.com/@thesagesororityYOUTUBE// https://www.youtube.com/@TheSageSorority subscribe to The Sage Sorority Podcast + leave a (cheeky) 5* rating 💘apple: https://bit.ly/41ZNwO2spotify: https://spoti.fi/4iVPAhnyoutube: http://bit.ly/45ei8wO 💘catch up with, our founder + host, Shantel instagram// https://www.instagram.com/shantelrousseau/ tiktok// https://www.tiktok.com/@shantelrousseauSnapchat// https://snapchat.com/t/fb8LTRCm youtube// https://www.youtube.com/@shantelrousseauonline OUTFITS - ShopMy// https://shopmy.us/shantelrousseauOUTFITS - LTK// https://www.shopltk.com/explore/shantelrousseau💘
Transcribe →episode 065 - ask a sage vol. 4: networking, career emptiness and a dating spiral
Jun 400:37:32Tap to summarizeAsk a Sage is back. Three questions, three honest answers.We cover why networking feels gross and how to fix it, what to do when you've achieved everything you wanted and still feel empty (and yes, I mention Stefanie Sword-Williams' Career Comedown — read it), and the "fine but I feel nothing" dating pattern that more of you are experiencing than you'd think.I also open up about where I'm at with the pod right now — the slow build, the burnout, the inputs not matching the outputs. If you're building something and it's taking longer than you planned for, this one's for you too.Anonymous question link in the show notes. Send yours through.--want to book a girl chat session? all the info is here - https://squ.re/45jq3uewant to partner w/The Sage Sorority Podcast? let’s chat - thesagesorority@gmail.comhave a question? send in an (anonymous) one for Q&A - https://tellonym.me/thesagesorority💘SUBSTACK// https://open.substack.com/pub/thesagesororityINSTAGRAM// https://www.instagram.com/thesagesorority/TIKTOK// https://www.tiktok.com/@thesagesororityYOUTUBE// https://www.youtube.com/@TheSageSororitysubscribe to The Sage Sorority Podcast + leave a (cheeky) 5* rating 💘apple: https://bit.ly/41ZNwO2spotify: https://spoti.fi/4iVPAhnyoutube: http://bit.ly/45ei8wOTHE SAGE SORORITY PODCAST - https://feeds.captivate.fm/thesagesorority/💘catch up with, our founder + host, Shantelinstagram// https://www.instagram.com/shantelrousseau/tiktok// https://www.tiktok.com/@shantelrousseauSnapchat// https://snapchat.com/t/fb8LTRCmyoutube// https://www.youtube.com/@shantelrousseauonlineOUTFITS - ShopMy// https://shopmy.us/shantelrousseauOUTFITS - LTK// https://www.shopltk.com/explore/shantelrousseau💘
Transcribe →episode 064 - relationships aren't graded solely by outcome
May 2100:19:40Tap to summarizeThere's a question that comes up every time someone mentions an ex at dinner: "Where is he now?" And what that question is really doing is asking you to justify whether the relationship was worth having based on how it ended. If there's no ring, no forever, no clean resolution then the whole thing gets filed under wasted time.This episode is a direct challenge to that framing. Shantel breaks down why measuring a relationship by its outcome is not just unhelpful, it actively strips you of your own power. A relationship that ended is not evidence of failure. Presence, growth, vulnerability, and the version of yourself you became inside that chapter (!!!) none of that disappears because someone left.This one covers the narrative most women inherit without questioning, what it actually means to take sovereignty over your own relationship history, the difference between accountability and self-blame, and why grieving a relationship is not the same as admitting you wasted time.If you've ever described a past relationship as a waste, or felt embarrassed about how long you stayed, or quietly wondered whether your past counts, this episode is for you.--want to book a girl chat session? all the info is here - https://squ.re/45jq3ue want to partner w/The Sage Sorority Podcast? let’s chat - thesagesorority@gmail.com have a question? send in an (anonymous) one for Q&A - https://tellonym.me/thesagesorority 💘 SUBSTACK// https://open.substack.com/pub/thesagesorority INSTAGRAM// https://www.instagram.com/thesagesorority/TIKTOK// https://www.tiktok.com/@thesagesororityYOUTUBE// https://www.youtube.com/@TheSageSorority subscribe to The Sage Sorority Podcast + leave a (cheeky) 5* rating 💘apple: https://bit.ly/41ZNwO2spotify: https://spoti.fi/4iVPAhnyoutube: http://bit.ly/45ei8wO THE SAGE SORORITY PODCAST - https://feeds.captivate.fm/thesagesorority/ 💘catch up with, our founder + host, Shantel instagram// https://www.instagram.com/shantelrousseau/ tiktok// https://www.tiktok.com/@shantelrousseauSnapchat// https://snapchat.com/t/fb8LTRCm youtube// https://www.youtube.com/@shantelrousseauonline OUTFITS - ShopMy// https://shopmy.us/shantelrousseauOUTFITS - LTK// https://www.shopltk.com/explore/shantelrousseau💘
Transcribe →episode 063 - misbehave with integrity
May 1400:24:50Tap to summarizeIn this episode of The Sage Sorority, Shantel explores what it means for women to “misbehave with integrity,” inspired by Clarissa Pinkola Estés’ The Late Bloomer.This episode is about good girl conditioning, people-pleasing, self-trust, over-functioning, emotional labour, and the quiet resentment that builds when women keep choosing propriety over honesty.Shantel unpacks the difference between being proper and being ethical, why women often delay decisions they’ve already made, and why acting without cruelty, manipulation, or deliberate harm may be the permission you’ve been waiting for.Topics include: Good girl conditioning, People-pleasing and resentmentSelf-trust and decision-making, Emotional labour in relationshipsOver-functioning in friendships, family, work, and datingWhy “I should” keeps women stuck, Becoming less likeable but more honestReferenced in this episode:The Late Bloomer by Clarissa Pinkola EstésWomen Who Run With the Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola EstésEpisode 012: Big Energy, No ApologyEpisode 027: The Rules Are Made UpEpisode 038: The Rebrand EraIf this episode resonated, share it with a friend and subscribe to The Sage Sorority on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube.--want to book a girl chat session? all the info is here - https://squ.re/45jq3uewant to partner w/The Sage Sorority Podcast? let’s chat - thesagesorority@gmail.comhave a question? send in an (anonymous) one for Q&A - https://tellonym.me/thesagesorority💘SUBSTACK// https://open.substack.com/pub/thesagesororityINSTAGRAM// https://www.instagram.com/thesagesorority/TIKTOK// https://www.tiktok.com/@thesagesororityYOUTUBE// https://www.youtube.com/@TheSageSororitysubscribe to The Sage Sorority Podcast + leave a (cheeky) 5* rating 💘apple: https://bit.ly/41ZNwO2spotify: https://spoti.fi/4iVPAhnyoutube: http://bit.ly/45ei8wO
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