It’s getting real on the podcast today. 

Join host Nicole Holleman as she gives an inside look at the rapid, overwhelming, overnight success of her side project turned full-time gig.

She explains the origin story of the new podcast, her theories on why it took off, and the impacts on her routine, workload, mental health and Imperfect Success Podcast. 

It's a vulnerable look at the sacrifices, uncertainties, and adjustments needed to manage exponential growth.

5 Key Takeaways:

1. Nicole traces the creation of her podcast, Fantasy Fangirls, which has grown to a 100+k person community in 80 days.

2. She discusses factors she believes fueled the viral success, from leveraging existing skills to luck with algorithms.

3. Nicole explains how her highly structured 30-hour workweeks vanished, replaced by 12-14 hour days riding the rollercoaster of rapid scale.

4. She describes the uncertainty ahead and difficulty letting go of Imperfect Success' consistent release schedule to focus where needed (at least for the holiday season).

5. Nicole shares how she's adjusting amidst overwhelm - protecting personal time, saying no more, addressing wavering mental health.

Episodes to Listen to this Holiday Season

Holiday Themed Episodes: 

• 172: 4 Ways to Make Resting Easier During the Holidays

New Years: 

• 182: 11 Powerful Questions to ask yourself

• 174: 5 Powerful Questions that will set you up for the new year

Mindset/Habits:

• 202: Fear of Failure vs. Fear of Success 

• 198: The 8 Biggest lies High Achievers tell themselves

• 170: 5 Reasons Your Affirmations are NOT working 

• 165: How to Rest without Guilt

Resources/Strategies: 

• 200: Habit Hacks: Mastering the fundamentals of Habits

• 193: 3 Ways to Quickly Cure your procrastination for good

• 168: My Favorite Personal Growth Books 

MORE FROM NICOLE:

Take the FREE “What Type of Perfectionist Are You?” quiz and learn how to overcome the negatives of your perfectionist type! 

Get Over the Overwhelm: Your Mini-Course to End Overwhelm for Good

Schedule your FREE 30-minute Discovery Call

Connect with Nicole on Instagram

In today's episode, Nicole interviews Amy Traugh, a former healthcare worker turned mompreneur and self-proclaimed "chaos coordinator". 

Amy shares her unexpected pivot from physical therapy to entrepreneurship, which was sparked by the challenges of suddenly homeschooling her young children during the pandemic. 

She reveals the messy action and mindset shifts that helped her embrace imperfection and grow a business while managing a household and homeschooling. 

Amy provides tactical tips for moms looking to balance family and entrepreneurship through intentional time management. 

5 Key Takeaways:

1. Being forced to leave your job and suddenly homeschool kids is scary, but you can get through it by just taking "the next best step forward".

2. Look at how you're spending time each day and seek small pockets where you can work smarter, like outsourcing chores.

3. Manage your family like a business - create a family mission statement, assign roles and responsibilities.

4. Asking for help doesn't mean failure - you can't do it all alone. Outsource what you can.

5. Celebrate small wins - you don't have to be perfect, just consistent and disciplined in moving towards your "why".

Follow Amy: 

IG @amytraugh 

Podcast - Motivated mompreneur 

Amy’s Gift: Free Guide: Market Your Business... Without Spending a Dime https://www.subscribepage.com/marketingyourbusinessguide  

MORE FROM NICOLE:

Take the FREE “What Type of Perfectionist Are You?” quiz and learn how to overcome the negatives of your perfectionist type! 

Get Over the Overwhelm: Your Mini-Course to End Overwhelm for Good

Schedule your FREE 30-minute Discovery Call

Connect with Nicole on Instagram

__

This podcast is produced and edited by the WONDERFUL Ariel Villafane! 

She’s accepting clients and you can contact her here.

Black Friday is HERE!!!! 

Click on the link below to see the whole list of Black Friday offerings ranging from $7 mini course - $397 private coaching intensives! 

https://www.lifecoachbaker.com/blackfriday2023  

It's the most wonderful time of the year, but also one of the most stressful for perfectionists! In fact, we get, on average, a 40% increase of anxiety during the holidays and we’re diving into what are some ways you can ease that perfectionism during the holiday season. 

In this episode, we discuss tactics for managing perfectionism and reducing anxiety during the holiday season. From dealing with family dynamics to avoiding burnout from parties and hosting, Nicole provides sanity-saving tips to stay present and joyful. Instead of getting overwhelmed by expectations and guilt, learn how letting go of control can lead to a holiday season that feels magical, not manic.

5 Key Takeaways:

1. Release unrealistic expectations of a "perfect" holiday season. Accept that things will go wrong and don't try to control every moment.

2. Reframe guilt over saying no into gratitude for choosing yourself and growing. Set those new meanings beforehand.

3. Delegate hosting duties and resist people-pleasing. You can't be everywhere at once.

4. If you fall back into old family dynamics, consciously rewrite those patterns by catching negative thoughts.

5. The key is presence. Stay focused on each moment instead of past problems or future to-dos.

Tune in to hear more techniques for minimizing holiday stress and spending the season present and joyful, not anxious and overwhelmed. It's possible for even the most tightly-wound perfectionist to enjoy the holidays!

MORE FROM NICOLE:

Take the FREE “What Type of Perfectionist Are You?” quiz and learn how to overcome the negatives of your perfectionist type! 

Get Over the Overwhelm: Your Mini-Course to End Overwhelm for Good

Schedule your FREE 30-minute Discovery Call

Connect with Nicole on Instagram

__

This podcast is produced and edited by the WONDERFUL Ariel Villafane! 

She’s accepting clients and you can contact her here.

In this episode, Nicole interviews YouTube expert Gillian Perkins! 

You'll learn insider tips and growth hacking strategies to build your audience fast and turn your channel into a business. With over 700K subscribers herself, Gillian reveals the secrets to optimizing your content for the YouTube algorithm while avoiding mistakes beginners make.

5 Key YouTube Growth Takeaways:

• Create high-quality videos consistently to rapidly improve production skills. Forget perfection - consistent practice is key.

• Leverage launching a new channel to get your first 100 subscribers quickly. This gives the algorithm initial viewership data to recommend your videos.

• Optimize content for your audience's needs and desires, not just to please the algorithm. Build trust and rapport with viewers.

• Have at least 50 video topic ideas prepared before launching a channel to choose the best and know you have enough planned content.

• Prioritize YouTube ad revenue as your main monetization focus over distracting tools like Super Chats. Focus on high-impact income strategies.

Tune in to hear Gillian's best tips for launching a profitable YouTube channel quickly, avoiding common beginner mistakes, and growth hacking your way to YouTube success fast.

More From Gillian: 

Website 

Youtube 

Work Less Earn More Podcast 

MORE FROM NICOLE:

Take the FREE “What Type of Perfectionist Are You?” quiz and learn how to overcome the negatives of your perfectionist type! 

Get Over the Overwhelm: Your Mini-Course to End Overwhelm for Good

Schedule your FREE 30-minute Discovery Call

Connect with Nicole on Instagram

__

This podcast is produced and edited by the WONDERFUL Ariel Villafane! 

She’s accepting clients and you can contact her here.

Welcome to Imperfect Success, the podcast for success-driven perfectionists. Today we are diving into the 3-step process for breaking down big goals. 

Do you tend to bite off more goals than you can chew? 

Do you feel overwhelmed when trying to make progress on multiple big goals at once?

In this practical episode, Nicole shares her proven step-by-step goal setting method to help you break down big goals into manageable micro-steps. 

Learn how to create an inspiring “Everest” vision, break it down into milestone goals, and ultimately take tiny imperfect actions that will lead you to success.

5 Key Takeaways:

• Start by defining your long-term “Everest” goal - the big vision you're working towards in 3-12 months. Make it specific!

• Break your Everest goal down into short, 1-2 week “milestone” goals. Keep them small and focused.

• For each milestone, define 3 “one-sitting” tasks you can complete in 60-90 minutes. Tiny imperfect steps forward!

• Stuck on your milestone tasks? Reach out to people 3-5 steps ahead and ask for their insights.

• Focus on 1-2 key goals at a time. Don't spread yourself too thin trying to achieve everything at once.

By setting well-defined micro-goals and taking tiny imperfect actions, you can make consistent progress on even the biggest goals without getting overwhelmed. Tune in to gain an actionable game plan for tackling your most ambitious goals!

MORE FROM NICOLE:

Take the FREE “What Type of Perfectionist Are You?” quiz and learn how to overcome the negatives of your perfectionist type! 

Get Over the Overwhelm: Your Mini-Course to End Overwhelm for Good

Schedule your FREE 30-minute Discovery Call

Connect with Nicole on Instagram

__

This podcast is produced and edited by the WONDERFUL Ariel Villafane! 

She’s accepting clients and you can contact her here.

Welcome to the Imperfect Success Podcast! Today we are sitting down with multimedia coach and creative advisor Barbara Abel about one of the darkest sides of perfectionism - how the quest for the should-be often leads to frustration, burnout, and a lack of joy and fulfillment. 

We all have an inner critic that likes to "should" on us. The voice that says we should be working harder, achieving more, and living up to unrealistic standards of perfection.  Barbara shares her wisdom and experience in breaking free from the trap of unrealistic expectations plus how to stand out amongst the crowd!!

5 Key Takeaways:

• The "shoulds" we impose on ourselves are often a manifestation of perfectionism and lead to guilt, shame, and a feeling that we're never quite good enough.

• Catch yourself when you fall into "should" thinking and reframe statements from "I should..." to "I want..." or "I choose..."

• Perfectionism can masquerade as hard work and commitment but takes you away from being present, enjoying the process, and expressing your unique self.

• High achievers still need grace, balance, and the freedom to be imperfect humans. Systems that demand 100% all the time drive you towards burnout.

• There's no need to reinvent the wheel - you can make an impact using your existing talents creatively vs. adhering to a rigid standard of what success "should" look like.

Tune in to hear Barbara's incredible story, how she learned to break free from the tyranny of "should," and actionable strategies you can use to escape the trap of perfectionism. 

More From Barbara: 

• Podcast - Ready and Camera Abel

• Website 

MORE FROM NICOLE:

Take the FREE “What Type of Perfectionist Are You?” quiz and learn how to overcome the negatives of your perfectionist type! 

Get Over the Overwhelm: Your Mini-Course to End Overwhelm for Good

Schedule your FREE 30-minute Discovery Call

Connect with Nicole on Instagram

__

This podcast is produced and edited by the WONDERFUL Ariel Villafane! 

She’s accepting clients and you can contact her here.

On this week's episode of the podcast, Coach for Perfectionists, Nicole Holleman, spoke with Casey Davidson, a recovering perfectionish, sober coach and host of the Hello Someday podcast.

On this episode Casey not only got incredibly vulnerable about her own journey to sobriety and why so many high achievers turn to alcohol to cope, but also droped some MAJORLY helpful resources for fellow sober curious women. 

Episode Highlights:

• Casey explains why alcohol abuse is so prevalent among perfectionists, people pleasers and high achievers. She digs into the shame, societal expectations, and desire to numb out that drives many accomplished women to drink.

• We have an honest conversation about the problematic glorification of wine/mommy culture on social media, and why self-care shouldn't mean self-medication.

• Casey talks about her own rock bottom moment and what finally motivated her to get sober for good. She shares the raw, imperfect realities about early sobriety.

• We discuss actionable tips and resources for anyone looking to change their relationship with alcohol, including therapy, recovery books, meditation and more. Casey also provides info on her free 30-day sober challenge.

This powerful interview is a must-listen for any high achiever struggling to gain control over drinking. Casey's story will inspire you to show up authentically, get the help you need, and live a life fueled by self-care rather than stress.

More From Casey: 

• Free 30-Day Sober Guide: Get The Free 30-Day Sober Guide To Quitting Drinking https://hellosomedaycoaching.com/30-day-sober-guide/

• Hello Someday Podcast for Sober Curious Women

• Reading List for The Sober Curious

• NYT Article

• Casey’s Website

• Follow Casey on Instagram @Caseymdavidson 

MORE FROM NICOLE:

Take the FREE “What Type of Perfectionist Are You?” quiz and learn how to overcome the negatives of your perfectionist type! 

Get Over the Overwhelm: Your Mini-Course to End Overwhelm for Good

Schedule your FREE 30-minute Discovery Call

Connect with Nicole on Instagram

__

This podcast is produced and edited by the WONDERFUL Ariel Villafane! 

She’s accepting clients and you can contact her here.

On Imperfect Success, host Nicole sits down with coach, entrepreneur and mom to be J.Go. 

J.Go shares her incredible wisdom on cultivating unconditional self-love and releasing the need for external validation. 

You’ll discover how to break free from basing your self-worth on arbitrary numbers and fully accept yourself as you are right now - something we ALL need a little more of! 

5 Key Takeaways:

• The danger of linking your value to ever-changing numbers like your weight or bank account balance. Self-worth shouldn't fluctuate!

• Being "unapologetically you" - owning everything that makes you unique without dimming your light for others

• Visualizing your "highest self" to tap into your most confident mindset in any situation

• Getting clear on your deepest motivations so you can set intentional goals that fuel you

• Removing filters and being emotionally naked builds connection and acceptance of yourself

More from J.Go

Website: https://www.jgofitlife.com/links

Hot Girl Healing Guide + 8-week Challenge: https://www.jgofitlife.com/hot-girl-healing

Confidently Uncomfortable Podcast: https://jgofitlife.libsyn.com/

Instagram: @JGoFitLife: https://www.instagram.com/jgofitlife/

TikTok: @JGoFitLife : tiktok.com/@xojgo

MORE FROM NICOLE:

Take the FREE “What Type of Perfectionist Are You?” quiz and learn how to overcome the negatives of your perfectionist type! 

Get Over the Overwhelm: Your Mini-Course to End Overwhelm for Good

Schedule your FREE 30-minute Discovery Call

Connect with Nicole on Instagram

__

This podcast is produced and edited by the WONDERFUL Ariel Villafane! 

She’s accepting clients and you can contact her here.