Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Meghan O’Malley. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Meghan, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What did your parents do right and how has that impacted you in your life and career?

“Show up like it’s opening night.”

Boston, MA in the 1990s, I’m 12 years old, the epitome of glamour in my crushed velvet, midnight-green babydoll dress and a new leather choker. My parents took me and two of my five siblings to see Phantom of the Opera downtown. We sat somewhere that felt, to me, very close. Close enough that I was completely pulled into the magic of it all (that chandelier!), and also aware of how much work it took to make this magic on stage.

I remember sitting there, listening to Christine sing, thinking, “How do they do this every single night? Sometimes twice a day? What if they’re tired? What if they have a headache or want to see their friends or had a bad day?” I leaned over and asked my dad some version of that.

He didn’t look away from the stage when he answered me, “It doesn’t matter how they feel,” he said. “This is their job. Their sacred responsibility. Someone in this audience tonight saved up for this, maybe for a long, long time, maybe all of their money. This may be the only time they’ll ever see a Broadway show. And that person deserves a performance like it’s opening night. Every time.”

I didn’t have words for it then, but those words landed. That moment is seared in my mind. That no matter how many times you do something, for the person experiencing it, it might be their first time. Their only time. And you owe it to them to show up like it matters. Because it does.

That’s stayed with me. Not just in how I meet each client as a divorce coach and lawyer-mediator, but in how I’m choosing to build the work itself.

As an entrepreneur, I carry a second responsibility, not just to be present within the system, but to imagine something better. I’ve seen too many people come through divorce feeling gutted, not only by their loss, but by the process itself. They’re overwhelmed, unseen, and worn down by a machine ill-equipped to handle something so vast.
So I ask myself constantly: How can I do this differently? How can I create a path that is more human, more intentional, more healing? How do I build something that doesn’t just check legal boxes, but meets people at the emotional and logistical heart of this transition?

What my parents did right was never about one big lesson, but about a hundred small ones like this. Moments where they showed me, not told me, what it looks like to really be present. To take your role in someone else’s story seriously. And now, that means showing up for the person in front of me and showing up to change the stage itself. To rebuild the experience so that no one walks through it feeling like they’re just another case file.

Because for them, this is the show. This is the one they’ll remember. And my sacred responsibility is show up like it’s opening night, because for the person sitting across from me, it probably is.

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.

Divorce sucks. So I’m here to make it suck less.

Hi! I’m Meghan, a divorce coach, lawyer-mediator, and entrepreneur on a mission to completely change how women move through divorce and how the system around them supports (or doesn’t support) that process.

For most of my life, I’ve been drawn to the moments people usually try to avoid – the messy, scary, complicated seasons where everything is changing and the way forward isn’t clear. I love people. I love their stories. I love helping them make sense of big, hard things and feel strong and grounded again in the process.

But how I got here? That’s a winding road.

I’m a double-barred lawyer who said, “nah not for me.” And decided to cook in people’s homes. I worked as a private chef, eventually building own company and selling it during the pandemic. I loved those years of food and people, and yet knew… I wanted more. I pursued other passions – yoga teacher certification, nutrition, coaching, MBTI, mediation, domestic violence advocacy, and mind-heart-somatic modalities. I’ve always been a little obsessed with what makes people tick, what helps them grow, and how we can navigate change with intention and humanity.

Somewhere in the middle of all that, I also spent two years as a corporate trainer for Edible Arrangements. For 98 out of 104 weeks, I traveled. Every. Single. Week. I flew with just a few magazines (electronics? What electronics?), and I’d always feel this little thrill of curiosity when I boarded: Who am I going to sit next to? Who will I meet or talk to or learn something from? Yes, I know this sounds downright horrifying to some, but I loved it. Luckily, I also have pretty high EQ and a solid “read the room” radar, so I could tell when my seatmate wanted absolutely nothing to do with me. Fair. But most of the time, people opened up. Those chats, sometimes brief, more often long and winding, reminded me how much people want to feel seen, and how often all it takes is someone willing to really listen.

I’m also the oldest of six kids (five women + a bomb sister-in-law), and my sisters are my heart. Growing up in a loud, close, chaotic, loving family taught me everything about empathy, boundaries, and resilience. My love for women runs deep. I think we’re powerful and brilliant and capable of remaking the world. And frankly, we need to. Because so many systems, especially around family and divorce, were built without women in mind. And we’re still expected to navigate them as if that’s not the case.

So now, I do two things –

As a divorce coach and lawyer-mediator, I work with women who are navigating divorce, whether they’re still deciding, just beginning, or already in the thick of it. I help them understand their options, make grounded decisions, communicate with confidence, and move forward without shame. I leverage my legal and mind-body expertise to offer a mix of insight and emotional support, because divorce isn’t just a legal event, it’s a life event.

As a founder and entrepreneur, I’m building a new way to do divorce. One that centers the human experience. One where women feel seen, held, and supported in their power. I’m working to shift a system that can feel cold and transactional into one that is thoughtful, compassionate, and built with real lives in mind.

I believe that my magic is the dynamic mix I bring – legal expertise, deep coaching experience, a serious love of people, and a whole lot of entrepreneurial grit. I tell clients, “I speak lawyer and human.” I’m not just here to guide people through the system. I’m here to change it.

What I’m most proud of is that I’ve finally woven all the parts of me, the law, the kitchen, the yoga mat, the airport conversations, the coaching, the sisterhood, into something real. Something that feels like purpose. And more importantly, something that helps women take back their power, reclaim their story, and build a future they’re excited about.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

That success has to look a certain way. Tidy, linear, and impressive on LinkedIn.

I spent most of my life feeling a little out of step with everyone else. I was that high-achieving girl in the advanced classes (the ones you’re seeing a lot of memes about right now!) On paper, great. But under the surface, I felt like I was constantly fighting myself. Why couldn’t I study for hours like everyone else seemed to? Why would I start a project and then somehow end up sitting on the floor of my closet reading a book? Why did I struggle with depression for much of my adulthood? Why did the thought of working at a law firm make me feel like I was going to spontaneously combust from despair?

For years, my inner monologue was brutal. I’d look around at my classmates (and I’ve had a lot of classmates) and watch them climb clean, linear ladders into impressive titles and senior leadership roles. Back at home, in my mind, I felt like I was zigzagging between law, coaching, yoga, entrepreneurship, food, back to law, wondering why I couldn’t be like them.

It wasn’t until my early 40s that I was diagnosed with ADHD, and with this diagnosis came a powerful game-changer – self-compassion. I now had language and context for things I’d struggled with my entire life. The finger-rubbing while writing papers, the inability to sit still and focus the way others seemed to, the deep loathing of structure and rote tasks, all of it started to make sense.

Even more powerfully, I confronted my shame. My harsh, inner voice, lacking the self-compassion I center my divorce work on. I began to see how much of that self-criticism came not from who I was, but from trying to force myself into a mold that was never made for me.

The lesson I’m unlearning is that success doesn’t have to follow someone else’s script. That the goal isn’t to look good on paper. The goal is to feel whole and aligned and alive in my life. That staying true to myself, especially when it doesn’t look how people expect, is the most important thing. And also, let’s be real, the damn hardest thing.

My inner critic is still there and never plans on leaving, but I have the language, tools, and self-compassion to soothe her more quickly. I’m learning to define success in ways that matter to me – building a business with meaning, helping real people, being a safe place for others who are navigating their own nonlinear paths. And finally giving myself permission to belong exactly as I am, brain quirks and all.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

Authenticity, eagerness, openness. A willingness to be “uncool” and to show up as I am, weirdness, quirks, and all. To admit when I don’t know something, to care deeply and visibly. And above all, acting generously in spirit and in action.

We’re living in a world that’s truly speeding up by the minute. The pressure to deliver faster results, in shorter timeframes, with smaller investments, is everywhere. This ethos may work in some industries, though I remain skeptical. I’ve found that in the work I do of supporting people through deeply personal transitions like divorce, lasting impact comes from something slower and more human – connection.

Deep, genuine connection is the foundation of my reputation. Real connection builds trust and creates safety. It lets people know I mean what I say and will act by my words and values. And I know that over time, that trust and connection ripple outward. The more rooted I am, the more my work becomes recognizable. Not because I’m shouting, but because people feel me.

I’ve also had to learn that I’m not for everyone, and everyone isn’t for me! That lesson alone has been freeing. When I stop trying to appeal to everyone and start investing in the relationships that truly align, everything blooms.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.divorcebrave.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/divorce_brave/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/meghan-o-malley-0466446a/

Image Credits

Lena Jackson