No to Normal

If you want to make money by creating content but you don’t love the idea of pitching products to your followers or you have a small audience, then UGC is your ticket to money and time freedom!

Unlike influencer marketing, UGC (user generated content) is a way for people to get paid to create authentic content for brands to post on social media, and the brands in turn are able to build more trust and engagement with their followers. Win-win!

Oh, and did I mention that UGC even applies in the travel niche and can lead to things like free hotel & Airbnb stays, and paid trips with tourism boards??

I’ve spent the past 3 months learning about UGC and how to incorporate it into my own life. I’m so excited to have my coach, Maddy Garrett, on the show today to share why UGC is such an awesome way to earn money, how to get started with it, and how to tackle the limiting beliefs you have surrounding your own success and potential.

Follow today’s guest on Instagram. (https://www.instagram.com/maddyoutdoors.coach/?hl=en)

Follow No To Normal on Instagram. Instagram (@notonormalpod)

In this month’s minisode, I’m covering stories about people finding purpose and happiness later in life, and what we can learn from people with more lived experience than ourselves.Today’s stories include:

• A restaurant kitchen run by a rotating cast of grandmothers from around the world
• Long-time best friends who built a tiny home community to live near eachother
• Advice from 14 people who have lived for more than 100 years on how to live a happy and healthy life

If you have a story you want me to cover, DM me on Instagram (Instagram (@notonormalpod) ) or email me: [email protected]Links from today’s episode:

• https://www.today.com/food/restaurants/grandmothers-restaurant-enoteca-maria-staten-island-rcna73999
• https://mypositiveoutlooks.com/best-friends-build-tiny-town-to-grow-old-together/#google_vignette
• https://www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/2024/02/02/100-year-old-advice-life-centenarians/

If you grew up watching Gilmore Girls, or if you tune in to Hallmark movies around Christmas time, you’re very familiar with the romanticized jobs like “innkeeper” or “bookshop owner.” And maybe you’ve even seen those jobs and thought “man, I wish I could spend my days like that!”

Well, in today’s episode I’m talking with Caroline Cardamone, known as Inn Keeper Caroline on social meda, about what it’s really like to be a 25-year old innkeeper in a tourist town, how the job differs from the fictional portrayals, and why she thinks so many people online have connected to her day in the life of an innkeeper videos.

If you’ve ever dreamed of quitting your stressful job in exchange for a calm life working in a beautiful b&b, then today’s conversation is for you.

Follow today’s guest on Instagram. (https://www.instagram.com/innkeepercaroline)

Stay up to date with No To Normal on Instagram. (Instagram (@notonormalpod))

Before I started this podcast, before I moved to Lake Tahoe, before I did Instagram coaching, I got the crazy idea in my head to buy a mini school bus and convert into a mobile gift shop.

In today’s episode I’m answering the biggest questions about running a mobile shop including how I converted the bus, where I parked the bus, where I found inventory, and the biggest lessons I learned from having this little business.

If you dream of getting into retail but you don’t want to make the big investment of renting a brick-and-mortar location, then a mobile business might just be the perfect solution for you!

Follow along with the show, or ask me questions about today’s episode at: Instagram (@notonormalpod)

Today, we’re talking about one of my very favorite topics…. School busses!

Specifically, we’re talking about converting school busses into mobile retail shops. This is something I have a little experience with, but today is not about me, it’s about Sara Bartlett, owner of Canyon Couture. Not only did Sara convert a school bus into a super cute boutique, but she actually lived on the bus for a period of time, and makes a lot of the inventory herself by up-cycling vintage and thrifted items!

In today’s episode, we talk about how Sara renovated the bus by herself, what it’s like to drive your home to work every day, and how to prevent burnout when you start relying on your passion project to bring you income.

Follow Canyon Couture on Instagram. Instagram (@canyoncouture) )

Follow No To Normal on Instagram. Instagram (@notonormalpod)‌

This week I’m trying out a brand new idea for the show by sharing my favorite headlines about “not so normal” stories that I haven’t been able to cover in my full guest episodes! Today’s stories include:

• A women’s sports bar that brought in $1M in 8 months
• The reason that January is actually an awful time to start new goals
• And the delightful UK-based series that highlights people living in houseboats full-time

If you have a story you want me to cover, DM me on Instagram (Instagram (@notonormalpod) ) or email me: [email protected]

Imagine going through your entire life knowing exactly what you want to do when you grow up and spending all of your time actively working toward that goal, just to have it taken from you with almost no-notice. And then imagine it’s all happening right before the world basically shuts down from a global pandemic. How would you handle that? And how would you go about finding a new purpose?

That’s what happened to Lauren Bean, founder of Unfinished Apparel. In this episode, Lauren shares how some really tough times led her to turn her little embroidery hobby into a mission-driven clothing brand that aims to improve the experience of psychiatric treatment by providing comfortable and dignified clothing for patients. Lauren shares the downsides of traditional paper scrubs, the amazing impact of clothing on the healing process, how she’s destigmatizing mental health on social media, and how she found the courage to solve a problem that was bigger than she initially understood.

Follow the Unfinished Apparel on Instagram. (Instagram (@unfinished.apparel) ) Stay up to date with No To Normal on Instagram. (Instagram (@notonormalpod))

What if you could stay in a beautiful beach house for an entire month without paying a dime? I know it sounds too good to be true, but today’s guests, Bella & Simmy, have cracked the code on how to do just that.

Bella and Simmy are two best friends who were able to live in beautiful homes across California for 2 months, thanks to the magic of Trusted House Sitters. In this episode, they’re explaining exactly how to travel for free while doing pet and house sitting, how to set up your profile to stand out, and how to make the most of your experience.

Whether you travel full time and want a way to do it on the cheap, or you’re looking to add a little bit of adventure to your weekend routine, you’ll walk away from this episode with a brand new goal.

Follow the Duality Podcast on Instagram. (Instagram (@dualitypod))

Stay up to date with No To Normal on Instagram. (Instagram (@notonormalpod))

After growing up in Christian fundamentalism, Amelia Protiva and her husband left the church and created brand new lives for themselves. From moving to the west coast to the midwest and back again, working in the start-up world, traveling with van life, and starting a family, they have learned to pivot time and time again.

In this episode, Amelia gives an honest look inside these decisions, how she has adjusted to losing people who can’t accept her new life, and why lifelong learning is so essential.

Follow today’s guest, Amelia Protiva, on Instagram. (Instagram (@ameliaprotiva) )

Stay up to date with No To Normal on Instagram. (Instagram (@notonormalpod))

Wake up. Drink coffee. Draw. Go to the beach. Draw some more. Take the pup on a hike. Repeat. This is the routine that Kinsey Hotchkiss has been able to adopt while owning her own graphic design business. After studying Chinese in college and traveling around the world, she found her niche a little later on designing minimalist, adventure-lifestyle illustrations for musical artists, surf brands, and other rad clients.

And one of those clients last year was No To Normal! In this episode, we’re talking about the new branding Kinsey designed for this show, how she deals with imposter syndrome in the creative space, what it’s like to paint murals in front of festival-goers, and why you should quit your job and buy a one way ticket.

Follow today’s guest, Kinsey Hotchkiss, on Instagram. (Instagram (@kinsey.h.designs)
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Stay up to date with No To Normal on Instagram. (Instagram (@notonormalpod)
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