Kicking Imposter Syndrome in the Nards

The "Kicking Imposter Syndrome in the Nards" Edition

August 16, 2022

Gooooooood moooooooorning!

I've been thinking about imposter syndrome—I mean, just as much as I did when I wrote the world's most irreverent book ever on it 🤣—because recently I was asked how I got over the whole change-a-roo scares *waves hands* from The Middle Finger Project to now The Vivette.

And, I've got to be honest: sometimes when I'm writing here about global etiquette and cross-cultural manners I think to myself, "haha, says the trailer park girl." But, interests are developed in response to our experiences, so actually, my backstory is a wonderful complement: who better to learn from than someone who has carefully studied human behavior in an effort to be undetectable as a cute but ignorant little monster for thirty-some years? (Someday I'll start the redneck etiquette school.)

The best thing you have is your story. It's what gives you depth, makes you fascinating, and adds layers of useful perspective. Anyone can speak on a topic, but it's your story that makes us want to hear it from you.

So when pivoting into something new, it's helpful not to think of yourself as a fish-out-of-the-water turnip, but rather as a researcher and writer who's investigating what's interesting, pairing that with a lifetime of your own experience and ideas, and then putting all the pieces together in a thoughtful way that makes us better for having read it.

That, my friend, is called being a creator.

And you don't get the title from being a spectator.

Ash Ambirge

P.S. I really do want to do redneck etiquette school. I see no better goal than helping people who were once in my position, chase big opportunities without feeling held back by a lack of knowledge, how-to, or fear of fitting in. HERE'S HOW YOU ENTER THE DAMN ROOM, BABY. LET'S GO.

P.P.S. Want to share this with someone who needs to hear it? You can view the email here.

P.P.P.S. If you buy something through our links, The Viv may earn a commission. Thank you!

Today's Mini Nomad Stories

• Brazil to open South America's first "digital nomad village," adding $30M to the economy by the end of the year 🇧🇷
  
• Meanwhile, the founder of WeWork is starting a home rental company, called Flow, to compete with Airbnb because "remote work is pushing up demand for short-term rentals in new markets"
  
• But, worth noting...women helped shape the short-term rental industry from its earliest days 😉
  
• FYI: you can buy a small Scottish island and lighthouse for less than the cost of the average American home 👀 (I literally just tried to convince C that we should do this. ⬆️ Can you imagine how great this would be to rent out as a wedding venue?!)
  
• Ukraine launched a "Brave Cities" tourism campaign, encouraging you to visit Ukraine right now and tour the damage and witness history
  
• Brave is a terrific understatement: recently got word my Ukrainian publisher, Vivat, is still publishing my the foreign edition of my book this September—even though they are literally editing from shelters with helmets on. 🥺 I couldn't even process.
  
• This great-grandmother purchased her first digital camera at the age of 62—and now she's making a new career for herself as a wildlife photographer of Finnish bears 🐻 (See? It's never too late to pivot.)
  
• Uber made a 2022 Yearbook—and it features their coolest drivers from around the world 🌎
  
• A Times journalist spent 3 months capturing a portrait of Budapest
  
• And, um, travel-inspired perfume!!!! Say no more.
  

Droolworthy Nomad Stay of the Day 🤤

The Dundonald—excellent if you're headed to Edinburgh, Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 and want to stay in a nearby medieval village frequently used for filming and yell "aye!" over a pint...or eight before retiring to your stylish little cottage.

Oh. My. God. First of all, any place that involves teeny tiny Smeg honesty bars full of snacks and organic wines SHOULD BE VERY, VERY SCARED THAT WE WILL MOVE IN AND NEVER LEAVE. Add in a Samsung Frame TV—you know, the one that looks like a painting when you're not watching it???—daily delivery of a hearty, family-style breakfast with preserves, fresh eggs, salmon and Scottish cheeses, and all set in an 1850 coach house with cobblestone outside? Yes, please. To top it off, there's also an option with a full kitchen, if you'd like to settle in for a week or two and make some quiche (or something that people know how to cook make???), get some work done, and try on a brand-new life in Scotland. Isn't that the fun of it, really? Wondering what your life might be like here? It happens to be one of my favorite hobbies—and this one's definitely on my list.

If you book yourself into The Dundonald, send me an email and let me know! Our box: hotelshampoo@thevivette.com and I will shower you with hundreds of digital pieces of red velvet cake.

30-Second Skill: How to Handle a Person Who's a Dreaded Double Dipper

Picture it: you rent a killer Airbnb to host a writing retreat, and one night, one of your participants gets a little too cheeky with the cheese fondue. OHHHH, they're going to town on this babe! They're biting into their bread, and then double dipping back into the dish as if this were The Hunger Games: Salty Carbs Edition, and you are HORRIFIED on behalf of your other participants, but have no idea what to say or how to handle.

Here's a fun tip for social situations like these.

First, say this aloud as you grab the bowl:

“Let me see if I can freshen up this plate." ✨

Then, of course, replace the contents. If you think that's enough to tame the beast, bravo. But, if you're worried you'll have to contend with Round Two, then ask the offending party if they can give you a hand in the kitchen. Once there, say this:

"Delicious, right?! It's been taking all of my discipline not to place both hands into the bowl and scoop it directly into my mouth. I'm trying to be extra careful to remind myself not to double dip—will you join me in this mission?! I don't want to make it unappetizing for the other guests."

For me, making myself seem like I'm on the verge of lacking manners is worth it in order to preserve the dignity of my guest and make sure I don't make them feel badly—especially because they might not have even been aware they were doing it. But this is an elegant way to draw attention to the problem without causing embarrassment or making it awkward.

That said, if they've got a sense of humor, you could also go with a more straightforward approach:

"GIRL, YOU ARE KILLIN' ME. As much as I want to dunk my entire fist into the fondue, you can't actually do it. No more double dipping, or I'm revoking your cheese license!"

See? It pays to be a creative writer.

JUST LOOK AT THE WIDE VARIETY OF APPLICATIONS.

Nomad Business Idea to Steal

You know what's trending right now?

Foraging.

As in, "let's go forage some mushrooms in the woods, Barb!"

While you may think this has absolutely nothing to do with your photography / writing / coaching business, actually, tracking trends can be *super* helpful when it comes to content creation.

For example, now that I know this delightful bit of information, I might write a post titled, "Hey Digital Nomads—Here Are the Best Places to Forage Around the World."

If you're a health coach, you might write a post about the best ways to cook foraged mushrooms for max nutrition.

If you're a photographer, you might create content around the best way to photograph and document the things you forage in the woods.

If you're an illustrator, you might draw some of the coolest plants ever foraged.

The goal is to piggyback off of a relevant topic that's getting a lot of traction online, and position yourself ~SMACK~ right into the conversation.

You can do TikToks. You can do Reels. You can do YouTube. You can do on-site editorial content.

Your goal is to insert yourself into the conversation so you can (a) Create a timely thread to your work; (b) Be relevant; (c) Get found in searches; (d) Have endless ideas for content.

It's marketing, but made fun.

(Can't wait 'til tampons are trending.)

Ask Viv: How Do I Stand Out Online? I'm Like An Ant Swimming Around in a 40-Gallon Margarita Glass!

First of all, margaritas are delicious. Congratulations.

Secondly, however, I want to plop down some advice I gave to a friend, recently, who asked the same thing:

The way to fight back is not try to beat them at their own game, but create your own.

For (a wild) example, Emirate Airlines just did something unheard of: they're investing billions of dollars into a seriously elevated passenger experience: from offering unlimited Persian caviar, to cookin' up vegan options like pan-roasted king oysters mushrooms (SO MANY MUSHROOMS IN THIS NEWSLETTER), to offering Dom Perignon champagne (Emirates is the only airline with an exclusive agreement to offer the luxury brand on-board), to partnering with one of the most famed hospitality schools in the world, Ecole Hôtelière de Lausanne...these guys are creating a league of their own—which is the best marketing strategy ever.

Now, am I saying you need to serve your clients a $400 bottle of champagne? Yes, yes I am saying that. Sign me up.

No, of course I'm not saying that. (Mostly.)

But what I am saying is that if you're struggling to stand out from the crowd, maybe it's because you're trying to be a part of the crowd. Creators often do this because they figure there's a "right" way and a "wrong" way, and they don't want to give themselves away as amateurs so they mimic what everyone else is doing: from packages to pricing to messaging to websites and beyond.

Naturally, this is the fastest way to become invisible.

Have some guts! Get creative! Have the courage to literally make a league of your own. Because then, no one can compete with you. You've rendered everyone else a member of the generic masses, while you've created your very own category.

And creating your own category is the key to it ALL.

Vivette Business: This Business Coach Earns $842,000 a Year from Her Ultra-Cool Apartment Mexico—And She Doesn't Even Have an Email List Or Use Ads 🤯

This is a must-read—especially if you have email list shame!

This past week, I sat down with Erica Reitman for one of THE most fun and insightful conversations I've ever had about how she went from being an interior designer in L.A. to scrapping her entire business, moving to Mexico, and becoming a business coach who earns $842,000 a year...all without an email list.

(Which, if you know, you know: this is damn-near unheard of.)

I LOVE ERICA AND THINK SHE'S SO SMART.

My goal: find out how her entire business works from top to bottom and how she makes all that dough using unconventional strategies—and then write a report on it to help you steal her best ideas.

Here's why I wanted to do a deep dive on Erica's business:

1. She charges $25,000 per person for a 3-month engagement and doesn’t bat a single eyelash. It’s 3 months, $25K. And she sells it.
   
2. There’s a $10,000 upgrade if you want to Voxer with her 1:1 throughout the engagement—an interesting reflection for those who have traditionally included this for free—for a grand total of $35K for 3 months.
   
3. Out of the 5 clients she signed this month, 3 of them opted for the upgraded option. (And you better believe I grilled her on how she’s converting so well.)
   
4. AND—this is the most wild part of this entire profile—she built her entire business on Instagram. Consider me tarred, feathered, and humbled. (I’ve historically dissed on Instagram so hard for its pathetic ROI, but Erica’s strategies are LEGIT.)
   
5. SHE’S NEVER PLACED A SINGLE AD.
   
6. She’s not interested in scaling her business.
   
7. She says fuck more than me.
   
8. Oh, and did I mention she also Airbnbs out her home back in L.A. and grosses $7k – $8K a month…while managing in all from abroad?! That’s not even included in the $842K she did last year.

Erica Reitman is on fire 🔥🔥🔥—and now, you can steal her business playbook.

I went through her entire business model with her, step-by-step, including where she finds her clients and how she sells her services for such gloriously wonderful price points—and this woman is FULL of surprising strategies I've never seen done before. (Like using your "close friends list" on Instagram as a way to market yourself the easy way. It's genius.)

This is a gold mine for anyone who sells their services to clients—and especially if you hate writing (but have felt like you needed to in order to run an online business); if you don't have a newsletter or yours is still teeny tiny; if you want to charge WAY more money (but how to get the gonads?!); if you want to do a 180 and change up your career (but think you're too old); if you want to travel and work from anywhere; and, of course, if you want to get Erica's entire playbook for how her entire business works.

Go behind-the-scenes of this $842,000 business and learn how it's done. ⬇️ (Exclusively for subscribers of Vivette Business.)

P.S. Did You Know?

"To table something" means two entirely different things in British English 🇬🇧 and American English 🇺🇸. In America, "to table a discussion" means to set it aside and put it off until another time, i.e. "Let's table that conversation for later." In Britain, however, it means the exact opposite: to bring forward a subject to discuss right now. For example: "I want to table that idea with you as soon as you're ready."

Did you just leave your body?

I KNOW.