Ina Coveney
Welcome back to the podcast. Today we have Mia Moran, CEO of PlanSimple and best-selling author of Plan Simple Meals. Mia, so happy to have you here.

Mia Moran
Thank you so much for having me. This is so fun!

Ina Coveney
I know! So before we start, can you please tell everybody what you do and who you help right now?

Mia Moran
Right now, I help women who are usually mothers and entrepreneurs. We used to just talk about balancing those two things, but at this point in history, women are balancing way more things than ever. Often, these same women are thinking about their health because, you know, after kids, we have to do that. Oftentimes, they are also caregiving for a parent or a family member. We live in a crazy time, and there’s a lot of that. Plus, information is coming at us so quickly. So, I feel like the average woman who’s an entrepreneur has so much to balance. I help that woman really show up for her full life at a time when she could easily convince herself to just stay in survival mode. We don’t stay in survival mode; we thrive.

Ina Coveney
But you didn’t start out with Plan Simple. When we met, you had your own graphic design firm. Can you help us understand what was going on in your life back then?

Mia Moran
Yes, absolutely. It’s funny because I feel like I’ve always been on the path of entrepreneurship. That was pretty clear to me early on. After college, I had two jobs. One was an amazing opportunity at a small firm that operated a lot like the one I eventually opened. I got to see a lot quickly, while many of my friends who joined bigger firms didn’t get as much hands-on experience. The second job was during the dot-com boom, right before it burst. I was working for banks and doing things I wasn’t passionate about. It felt very uncreative. Over time, I started taking on side projects because I was a designer, and eventually, I realized I had two full-time jobs. I quit the corporate job and started my own design studio.

Ina Coveney
That’s such a bold move! What was it like having your own firm before you had kids?

Mia Moran
I was in my 20s, before kids and before I was married. But very quickly, I got married, and within two years, I had my first child. So, my kids were basically born while I was running the firm. I set it up in a way that really served me. We had a babysitter who would come to the office, and I could nurse the baby there. It felt like it was going really well. However, after my third child was born, I was exhausted. I realized I had gained a lot of weight during pregnancy, and I hadn’t lost it. One day, I looked at my desk and saw seven Starbucks coffee cups that I had accumulated since the morning. That was my breaking point. I decided it was time to get healthy.

Ina Coveney
So, what did you do after that realization?

Mia Moran
I went to a yoga studio and introduced myself to the teacher there. She explained a path I could take to improve my health. My road to health was kind of like entrepreneurship—it wasn’t easy, but it was simple. I got quick results and felt amazing very quickly. By the end of the second week, I felt like I had 15 years of therapy. I had so much energy and was showing up better at home and at work. I realized that food and wellness content back then wasn’t visually appealing, especially as a designer. Everything looked very “hippie.” I thought, “I should do something about this.” So, I started a magazine, which turned into an expensive hobby. Eventually, I had to make a choice between my design firm and this new direction. I chose the new direction, wrote a book, and went on a book tour.

Ina Coveney
I’m extremely impressed. Through just one aha moment, your entire life changed. You lost about 65 pounds on that journey, right?

Mia Moran
Yes, I did. But it wasn’t just the weight. I was on two medications that I never thought I’d be able to stop taking, but I got off them within a week. I also had seasonal allergies that disappeared. My menstrual cycle became regular. It was a complete health transformation.

Ina Coveney
For many people who struggle with weight, it’s so easy to get stuck in the mindset of “This is just how it is.” What do you think made you stick with it and make real change?

Mia Moran
It was about taking personal responsibility. I realized that nobody else could change this for me. It required me to focus on myself and make changes in my habits. On the day I decided to make a change, I called the babysitter and asked for three extra hours so I could go to a yoga class. That was revolutionary for me because it was a move that focused solely on my own needs. I met the yoga teacher, who suggested changes to my diet, and I traded website design for her nutrition advice.

Ina Coveney
Wow, you started bartering! I love that you figured out how to help each other. But I need everyone to hear this clearly—personal accountability doesn’t mean it was easy for you because you had a babysitter. It means you detached from the situation and took control. What would you say to the woman listening who thinks, “I don’t have a babysitter, so this isn’t possible for me”?

Mia Moran
At that moment, I was going to solve it somehow. If I didn’t have a babysitter, I might have found a gym that offered childcare, or maybe I would have left work early to take a class. When you take personal responsibility and make a choice from the inside, you’re open to possibilities. You see solutions because you’ve made a decision from a calm, centered place, rather than from external pressure or expectations.

Ina Coveney
You’re describing working with your brain to make better decisions, which is brilliant. You didn’t make choices from a place of stress. How did you go about making decisions in advance?

Mia Moran
The key is planning when you’re calm. I made my meal plan for the next day when I was relaxed and focused on my future vision. I spent time every morning connecting to that vision and calming myself down. When I was stressed or triggered, I could remind myself that I had already made a decision when I was in a better state of mind.

Ina Coveney
How did Plan Simple evolve from being focused on meals to helping people create a balanced life overall?

Mia Moran
I realized that while food is foundational, people were struggling with more than just that. It was about how they showed up in their lives, their relationships, spirituality, and work. So, I created the FLOW Planning Method: Food, Lifestyle, OM (spirituality), and Work. It’s about integrating all these aspects to create a balanced life.

Ina Coveney
I love the FLOW concept. What does a balanced day look like for you?

Mia Moran
It varies, but it always includes centering myself, connecting to my vision, and planning my day the night before. I recommit to my boundaries for work and family time. It’s about making choices in advance and sticking to them, while adjusting for unexpected changes like a sick child or a pulled muscle.

Ina Coveney
For those who struggle with creating new habits, what advice do you have?

Mia Moran
Start small and make it doable. For me, sticking to the same meals every day made it easier. Anchor your new habits in time. If you want to exercise, put it in your calendar. Also, don’t try to do it alone. Accountability is key.

Ina Coveney
What’s next for PlanSimple?

Mia Moran
We’re working on a digital version of our planner and adapting our accountability tools for the post-pandemic world. We want to continue being that voice on your shoulder, reminding you of what you really want.

Ina Coveney
What’s the biggest misconception people have about you?

Mia Moran
That I’m naturally organized and love planning. I’m actually a creative, fast-moving person who needs systems to keep things together. Planning isn’t my nature—it’s a tool I use to fulfill my dreams.

Ina Coveney
That’s so refreshing to hear. Finally, if someone listening really connected with this conversation, what should they do in the next 24 hours?

Mia Moran
If you feel like you’ve lost track of what you want, spend 30 minutes asking yourself, “What do I want?” If you already know what you want but feel overwhelmed, write down how you want tomorrow to feel and plan three actions to make that happen.

Ina Coveney
Thank you so much for doing this, Mia. Where can people find you and learn more about PlanSimple?

Mia Moran
The best place is plansimple.com. We have a free course on planning your day. You can also follow us on Instagram at plansimple.co, and check out the Plan Simple podcast.

Ina Coveney
We’ll put all the links in the show notes. Thank you so much for being here, Mia.

Mia Moran
Thank you for having me. This was wonderful and so fun to be in person.

Ina Coveney
Thank you all for listening. Please remember to subscribe to the Super Humans podcast, and I’ll see you on the next one.