I'm installing a ceiling fan on the first floor living room. How do I run the cable through the ceiling?

Essentially I need to run the cable from the ceiling to a nearby wall. I can run it across the ceiling because the ceiling joist go in the direction of the cable that I'm running. However. Once i get to the end of the ceiling I'm going to encounter the wall top plate. Is there an easy way around this? I don't want to do a swag kit or something exposed. I don't want to cut the drywall up too much? I was told you can cut a notch between where the ceiling and wall meet to drill a hole into the top plate and run the cable to the wall. Essentially the wall is where the swtich will be.