We recently connected with Megan Peterson and have shared our conversation below.
Megan, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What’s the best or worst investment you’ve made?
The best investment I have made is investing in myself and my family. I know that sounds cheesy but bare with me.
My first business was a small one chair salon and a retirement residence. I opened the month after I graduated from beauty school at 22yo. I was extremely successful but a year in I choose to close my salon to eliminate “stress” in hopes of curing my infertility struggle. That turned into 6 years of infertility, 2 years of foster care, saying goodbye to 2 foster children after 2 years of care and dashed hopes of adoption, 2 surprise miracle children and 10 years in all of being out of the workforce. My husband and I managed his welding business during that time and we moved up the “American dream” ladder to include selling our home to purchase a forclosure and fixing it up to our liking and building our nest egg.
When the covid shut down hit on March 15th of 2020, we had our “white picket fence”, our 3yo daughter and one on the way due March 17th. Covid stole everything from us. First came the confusion of where to give birth. They had to inform us that I might not be able to birth at the “out of hospital” water-birth center we had planned because of the shut down. I had to track down a rationed covid test, unsuccessfully. I had the worry of my support system not being allowed in the delivery room and the scare of testing positive and having my baby taken away right away “for his safety”. Then came the traumatic birth that did not go as planned and the hindered ability to “bond” with my baby to triggered years of postpartum mental health struggles. We were considered “unessential” so my husband could not work. My support system couldn’t visit because of the quarantine guidelines with a new baby. We were utterly alone and slowly watching everything we had worked so hard for slip away. We couldn’t afford our health insurance anymore and the government aid that was being given out for small businesses was gone before we could even finish filling out the applications. Due to our “income level” from the previous years taxes we were denied aid from WIC for grocery help. With no income and our savings dwindling fast we had to consider contacting the bank about possibly missing a mortgage payment. My mental health was deteriorating, I had an irrational fear of being alone with my children, along with many other symptoms. My marriage was in jeopardy. My son was showing signs of delay and needing to be evaluated for a variety of possibilities. We had to do something and fast.
We had to do something different. Due to my mental health I could not work but desperately needed to get out of the house. My husband struggled to work because of the ‘shut down’, the need for him to help at home with the kids and the mental toll it took on him to miss out on the kids development in these crucial early years. As entrepreneurs we brainstormed how we can restart our lives so we could both care for our children while also both working our business.
We decided to go a very unconventional route but it is the best decision we ever made. We sold our home at the hight of the market summer 2022. We paid off all our debts and invested in the Adaptive Play Center I dreamed up and are currently operating. We purchased the largest RV we could find and found the perfect location to park it just out of town.
We get to meet people from all over the world who travel through the beautiful, clean and quiet park we live in. We get to go on bike rides, hikes and walks to see the wildlife that include a heard of albino deer that inhabit the park property. We get to visit with the horses that are a part of a therapeutic riding program the park property offers, We get to pick berries and watch the sunsets. We are debt free and enjoying a minimalistic lifestyle. My husband and I trade off days physically working in the shop. So everyday is a vacation from the duties of the day before. We are healing and making memories.
Our current investment is a small (beta) location designed to validate the concept for our rural area while we refine the systems and processes and search for a large enough building to expand our center into. I could go on for days about our adaptive play center that provides inclusive space for children and adults of all abilities to LEAP (Learn, Explore and Adapt through Play) but the point is not the type of business we invested in. The point is that we did the unconventional and formulated a lifestyle that works for us and designed our business investment around serving our personal needs.
We have learned that “the American dream” and social ladder that we didn’t realize we were serving isn’t all its made out to be. We had it all, we lost it all and we now have a life and business that serves us and the lifestyle we value, while also leaving a minimal impact on the environment and an expanded impact on the legacy we will leave our children.
The are happy. We are full. We are complete and we are having fun!
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
Mendo LEAP is an adaptive play center. We provide the equipment, tools and opportunity for children, caregivers, social workers and therapists to reach their developmental goals and objectives. We acquire, house and maintain unique equipment that specialists and families might not otherwise have access to. We contract with state and local agencies to provide for the families of children with neurodiverse abilities to enrich their developmental experience. We are also themed after our beautiful county. Located in beautiful northern California we are known for our glass beach on the coast, our sky scraping native redwood trees and much more in between. We create unique interactive play exhibits that are engaging, developmentally encouraging, educational and environmentally friendly. We aid in the tourist economy and enrich the lives of the families in our community.
I have learned the value in play and community. I see the difference that value has made on our relationship with our children and their development. I desire for all to experience the life giving gift of play. As a child development major in college and a heart for the under-appreciated I had always enjoyed my time serving children. When covid happened all the businesses in my rural community that served children closed. I watched in despair as families suffered and the value of community went lower on the priority list.
We believe that all children (and adults) deserve to learn, explore, adapt and play in their own unique way. We believe that instead of the various agencies and entities that serve children acquiring, housing and maintaining the specialty equipment needed, why not bring it all together and share the resources. This frees up their funding to go back into reaching their goals and objectives and enhances the services provided in the community by working side by side instead of in our own separate locations.
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
I attribute the administrative success of my business to my perfectionism and the invaluable help of The Play Cafe Academy. During covid I took the courses provided and developed my business plan while also networking with other indoor play centers from throughout the country! Instead of starting from scratch I was able to glean from the wisdom the Play Cafe Academy founder Michele Caruana so abundantly provided and the countless other members of the Play Makers Society I still converse with on a regular basis.
The Profit First books by Mike Michalowicz were extremely helpful in structuring our financial modal and membership system the has hugely attributed to our financial success.
The podcast The Funding University with Seth Block, CPA has been so helpful in getting quick answers to funding questions and choices. And Michele Caruana’s podcast The Profitable Play Podcast has been great because it is specific to the type of business we have. The Bright Method Podcast is great for time management and organizational success.
The free resources that the Empowered 2 Profit website and youtube videos offer have been so practical in how I manage our booking.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
As a woman on this entrepreneurial journey I have experienced living in a mans world. I have had to figure out how to navigate getting what I need even when ignored, dismissed and laughed at by men in authority of whom I needed to get to whatever the next stage was in my business development. Even now that we are established people say things like, “talk it over with your husband and get back to me” or “you own this….with your husband,” as if I couldn’t possibly do this on my own. it is demeaning and frustrating. I even had to have my husband go in and speak with a county rep to get the permission we needed for something because I was being over charged, ignored and put-off. As a waitress in my past life I have learned how to use the ignorance and sexism that is unfortunately still rampant in the world to my advantage. I am learning to speak my truth and not take no for an answer. I have countless stories of being looked down upon but the common denominator is my joy and success is not dependent on a man, it is dependent on me and how I choose to navigate to get to where I want to be.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.mendoleap.com
- Instagram: @mendoleap
- Facebook: facebook.com/mendoleap
- Yelp: https://yelp.to/3gNECJEdjo
Image Credits
Caitlin Faith Photography