No to Normal

(deep exhale) Whew, 2023 is quickly coming to a close! This year felt particularly challenging for me in a lot of ways, but looking back now I can see it as a year of growth and change. That’s why I thought it’d be fun to talk about the 3 biggest lessons I learned this year, both from launching the podcast and just from life in general, with a solo episode! This will be my last episode of 2023. We...

Laura Haver has always been good at incorporating play into her life: first as a tennis player, then as a coach, and now as a mom and play advocate. In today’s episode, she talks about leaving her successful (but stressful) career in marketing, training as a pro athlete after having kids, and how she helps women lead more playful, vibrant, and fulfilling lives. You can find links from today’s epis...

You wouldn’t know this just by looking at it, but Jessica McGhee’s beautiful, handmade jewelry is actually made out of trash that she gathers herself! In this amazing conversation, Jessica shares her love of sustainability, art, and mental health (and talks about how those three things are actually all connected!). She also shares how she has overcome some of life’s toughest challenges while still...

If you love the idea of solo travel but don’t want the stress of planning everything by yourself, or maybe you don’t feel safe going alone, then you’re going to love today’s episode. Laura Ericson perfectly curates culturally immersive group trips with solo travelers like you (and me!) in mind. In this conversation, Laura shakes up the idea of the stereotypical group trips that you’ve probably see...

If you think about summers from your childhood, maybe you picture yourself riding your bike down the road with your friends. Or maybe you remember eating ice sandwiches by the pool while the ice cream melted down the side of your hand. Katherine O’Brien took both of those nostalgic summer staples and founded Cream Cruiser, a successful “ice cream from a bike” business. Now, after spreading joy wit...

Growing up Mormon, it’s safe to say that Maddie Largey probably didn’t expect to grow up and start an alcohol company. However, a personal experience in college led her to identify a huge problem with the way college students consume alcohol. Now, just a couple of years after graduating from Stanford, Maddie is the co-founder of Jinx Drinx, a boozy punch in a pouch that promotes a work hard, play...

If you’re anything like me, you love scrolling through Instagram or Pinterest looking at all of the cool, adventurous people out there doing “van life.” You drool at the beautiful views, you imagine what your van layout would look like, and you dream about having the freedom to make up travel plans as you go along. Today’s guest, Karley Wiedenhofer, has one of those van life accounts that I person...

Sure, you’ve binge-watched every episode of Parks and Rec, but have you ever thought about what goes into planning a city? How does a town go from a place that people live, to a place that people LOVE? Today, I’m talking with Peter Kageyama, author of For the Love of Cities: The Love Affair Between People and Their Places, about the people who have improved their cities in fun, creative, and surpr...

Murals, and corgis, and pink jeeps, oh my! In this episode, I’m recapping the two month solo road-trip I took from Missouri to California last year. I’m sharing it all, from how I saved up for the trip and made extra money along the way driving for DoorDash, what it’s like to live in a stranger’s home for a month, and some of my favorite, can’t-miss stops through California. Between Carla’s episod...

Carla Loury is no stranger to adventure, but her 2 month solo road trip across the US took things to a new level! In this episode, Carla shares how she took a 15k mile road trip without ever spending a dime on hotels, and how she stayed safe as a women traveling alone. She also shares some of her favorite gear and resources that helped her along the way, so you can start planning a trip of your ow...

Imagine it: the sun is warm on your face. Your toes are in the sand. You can see the tide coming in a few feet away from you, and you're moving your arms above your head to upbeat music playing through your headphones. You’re not self-conscious; you’re not thinking about your to-do list. You just feel happy, and, most importantly, free. That is precisely what you can experience when you show up fo...

We’ve all heard of the tortured artist, sulking and waiting for inspiration to strike. And we’re familiar with the starving artist too, sacrificing everything for their art, even if it means barely being able to pay the bills. But do these stereotypes actually hold any truth? In today’s episode, I’m lucky enough to talk to one of my good friends, Hannah Bunch, about her journey as an artist, how s...

Although Connie Lau loved teaching 9th grade, challenges posed by distance learning during the pandemic helped her realize it was time to chase another dream of hers, becoming a park ranger! After applying for multiple positions, Connie landed a job at Yosemite National Park, trading her indoor classroom for a beautiful, natural one. In today’s episode, Connie shares the behind the scenes of what...

What if you could be a kid again, just for a weekend? What if you could trade in work stress and responsibility for kayaking, craft classes and bonfires? Good news: you can at Camp Rahh, Seattle’s all-inclusive summer camp for adults! In today’s episode, I talk with Andrea Pons about how Camp Rahh’s founder pursued the idea for starting the camp even when crowdfunding wasn’t successful, how the ca...

When you picture a laundromat, I’m sure the first words that pop into your mind aren’t “warm, inviting, cozy, or relaxing,” but it’s exactly those words that Erin and her husband, John, kept in mind while renovating a rundown laundromat in their new home of Charleston. In this conversation, Erin shares how she and her husband took inspiration from their own travels to create a one-of-a-kind laundr...

When you hire Modern Rebel Co, you’re not getting just a regular wedding planning company. Instead, you’re getting a custom, one-of-a-kind “love party” tailored to YOUR specific love story, priorities, and personalities. In today’s episode, Ainsley Blattel shares what it was like to be one of the first non-binary wedding planners, how we can make the wedding niche more inclusive, what wedding trad...

Long story short, the past decade has been a sometimes-fun, sometimes-stressful series of weird jobs, business ideas, and big moves as I attempted to answer that ever-consuming question: what do I want to do with my life? Today, I’m sharing who I am, how I finally fulfilled my dream of moving to California, and why I decided to start No to Normal. If you loved today’s episode, come hang out with m...

Welcome to the podcast that gives you permission to say no. No to boring. No to putting off your dreams. No to a job you hate. No to old habits that no longer serve you. No to imposter syndrome. No to normal. I’m your host, Danielle Renee, and I’ve spent the past 10 years trying new jobs, starting my own businesses, and moving across the country all in an attempt to build a life that doesn’t give...