October 15, 2024 • 44 mins
In this inspiring episode of Our Life Beyond, we welcome Joellyn Travis, a former public school educator turned social media influencer and affiliate marketer. After 26 years in education, Joellyn took a bold leap, leaving the structured world of schools to build a thriving online business, Leave It on the Porch. She shares her personal journey, from scrolling for deals late at night to managing a growing online community of 88,000 members.
Join us as Joellyn reflects on the challenges of changing careers in midlife, the realities of entrepreneurship, and the lessons learned along the way. Whether you’re contemplating a career shift or curious about the world of digital creation, this episode is packed with insights on finding fulfillment, embracing uncertainty, and building a future that aligns with your passions.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
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(00:00):
Well, hello, hello, hello.
(00:09):
Welcome to our Life Beyond the podcast where we explore how to navigate and hopefully thrive
through some of life's biggest transitions.
I'm your co-host, Scott Dibben, and I've teamed up with my great friend and mentor,
Connie King, to share some stories, strategies, and insights that helped us adapt to the ever-changing
seasons of our life.
(00:30):
Whether your life transition is divorce, death of a loved one, switching careers, moving
to a new city, or just trying to figure out what the hell is next, we're with you every
step of the way.
But always remember, we're not therapists, just fellow travelers with a knack for finding
humor in the chaos and maybe some untraditional method of overcoming what life dishes out
(00:51):
to us.
Hopefully you'll have fun embarking on this journey.
So now, let's get started.
This episode of Our Life Beyond is proudly sponsored by Habit Coffee Company.
Located right off Highway 60 in Rogersville, Habit Coffee is more than just your average
coffee shop.
(01:12):
They serve up delicious, scratch-made breakfast and lunch options daily.
And they even specialize in catering local events.
With their state-inspected kitchen and a passion for quality, every visit to Habit Coffee is
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Now that the construction is complete, getting to Habit Coffee is easier than ever.
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(01:37):
your coffee order.
Thank you to Habit Coffee for being a proud sponsor of Our Life Beyond.
Make Habit Coffee your new habit today.
Hello, Connie.
Hello, Scott.
How are you?
I'm doing well.
How are you, Connie?
I'm good.
I'm actually excited because I know we've had some requests on things people want to
(01:58):
hear about.
Yes.
And we have made it happen.
So do you want to kind of talk about what we are going to hit on today?
Sure.
So we had a request come out actually by more than one person that wanted to see if we could
do a podcast on midlife transitioning into a new career.
(02:19):
It surprised me because I didn't know that there would be that many people interested
in that, but it does make sense in the job market today and just the way jobs are today.
Yes.
I hear that all the time also.
So today we kick off a special two-part series focused on navigating career transitions later
in life, just what our listeners asked for.
(02:41):
In our first episode, I am thrilled to welcome Joellyn Travis, a remarkable guest who spent
26 years as an educator before taking the bold leap into the world of digital marketing.
Joellyn is the founder of LeaveItonthePorch, a dynamic online shopping site focused
on giving consumers deep discounts on thousands of products from popular brands, all curated
(03:04):
in one place to help shoppers find the best deals.
Join us as Joellyn shares her inspiring story, the challenges she's faced, the lessons she's
learned, whether you're contemplating a career change or just curious about the journey,
this episode is packed with insights to motivate and guide you.
So let's dive in.
Hello, Joellyn.
How are you?
(03:25):
Hi, I'm great.
How are you, Scott?
I'm doing well.
Thank you.
It's really good to meet you.
I did a little research just going out and looking at your website and wow, I mean, it
looks great.
I am so impressed with where you're at.
Thank you.
You said something in the introduction that made me think like I'm in my 50s and isn't
it interesting how our generation is kind of stuck in that mode of choose a career and
(03:50):
stick with that until you're old and tired and hate your job?
Yes.
That's exactly.
I think we're discovering that a lot more.
And Joellyn, you and I have known each other for a long time.
I did not say this because I say it with every one of our guests, but I'm so excited to have
(04:11):
you on and I'm so excited to learn what you've done and how you've transitioned.
I think our listeners are going to be completely in awe of how you've changed actually the
landscape of shopping.
If you want to know the truth online shopping.
So why don't you tell us a little bit about how this change came to be?
(04:32):
Tell us about your career in education and how that transitioned to online marketing.
Okay.
Hopefully you won't hear my dogs growling in the background.
They're my work companions every day.
They get a voice too on here.
So as you said before, I was an educator for 26 years.
(04:53):
So I spent 14 years in the classroom in the same school district and loved my job.
Honestly, I got my master's degree in leadership for the ability to become a principal, obviously
to be able to affect more lives, lead teachers.
I was just a natural leader in the positions that I held within the building.
(05:16):
So I got my first principal job, went back to Lebanon actually where we grew up to be
an assistant there for a couple of years.
And then actually finished out my career as a principal for 12 years in Springfield public
schools.
So I loved my job.
I loved the kids.
I loved the staff, loved the parents and the relationships.
(05:41):
I just, I found myself not loving having bosses and not just one, but lots of bosses, lots
of levels of leadership and lots of levels of people to answer to and wanted an opportunity
to be independent.
So that was probably what pushed me in the direction of going out on my own.
(06:06):
And I didn't just drop everything and start anew.
I know some people may think that one of my relaxation activities, and I know Connie has
talked about this recently, shopping on Amazon, right?
Just laying in bed at night and scrolling and looking at the deals.
And I found a couple of ladies who had these shopping groups.
(06:31):
And this was like 10, 12 years ago.
And I would find myself scrolling at night, checking out the deals, also looking at the
conversation within the group and the community, the feel of community within those groups,
positivity, just different conversations going on around just shopping, which is an easy
(06:51):
topic for me.
Interesting.
So I found myself scrolling and then I would get up in the morning and I would check to
see what deals these ladies had posted in their groups.
And then I found myself going to work and saying, oh my gosh, you guys, you have to
see this deal that I found.
So then one night I thought to myself, gosh, this looks like a lot of fun, but I bet these
(07:16):
people aren't doing this for free.
Like this is too much work.
They've got to be making some money.
This was in like 2017.
So I kept shopping in the groups and then I started researching.
Like, what are these links about?
Where are they getting these discounts?
I just found myself spending more time figuring that out and I figured it out.
(07:40):
It's kind of secretive.
It's hard to learn, but I figured it out.
So in 2018, I started my own group.
I sat with some girlfriends at the pool one day and said, hey, if I started this shopping
group and got you guys some deals and discounts, do you think you'd join the group?
And they were like, oh yeah, we would be happy to.
(08:00):
That sounds great.
So the day that I launched the site, I was actually in a training with one of my supervisors
and I told them what I had done and he and I just watched the numbers increase the whole
day.
So when I dropped the group out on Facebook that morning, you know, there are a couple
hundred followers.
(08:22):
And by the time we left for the day, I feel like we had almost 10,000 people follow me.
Wow.
Holy crap.
It was wild.
Wow.
It was wild.
That's amazing.
Well, that shows that you were filling a need apparently in the market.
Wow.
(08:43):
Obviously.
I feel like also being an educator, I had kind of a big base of contacts and it just
people were spreading the word.
They were sharing the group with others and saying, hey, you know this lady, this is the
principal over at the elementary building or oh, didn't your child have her back when
(09:04):
they were in fourth grade?
And it just was like a snowball effect.
That gave you a little bit of credibility instead of it just being an online presence.
Right.
Right.
People already had trust in me, which I think is a big deal.
You have to gain trust in your audience and it just exploded.
(09:25):
So how many followers do you have now?
So that was 2018.
That was well, interesting story.
So it went all the way up to 125,000 followers.
And then all of a sudden one day Facebook decided that they didn't want to push out
any of our information anymore and they cut us off.
(09:46):
And so it went to nothing.
So I had 125,000 followers.
I had a great big business running and I had actually quit my job by then and I decided
I did it once.
I can do it again.
So I started over again and changed some of my methods and it's been running for three
(10:11):
years now as the new group.
And now we have 88,000 members and that is a hundred percent organic, not a single advertisement,
every little promotion of the group.
This is just word of mouth.
Oh, wow.
Well, congratulations.
That's huge.
That is so huge.
I remember somebody telling me who was starting an Instagram page said, is that what you call
(10:36):
it?
You can tell I'm just not very.
Yeah.
So she said, once you get a thousand, you can start getting, you can start selling stuff
on there.
And I just, I thought, oh, that's interesting.
Okay.
So you immediately hit huge numbers.
And how did you get by that?
Like when she said, I have to hit a thousand before I can do affiliate marketing, you were
(10:59):
already doing that.
Is that correct?
When you started or did you start in a different way?
Do you even want to share that?
I started with a blog, but I still to this day, I'm not really well versed in blogging.
So I started with a blog because that was the Amazon rules.
And then I opened the group.
And you have to have 500 followers for Amazon to allow you to post affiliate links.
(11:25):
So yeah, that was no problem.
Right?
Not that day.
And then I do not remember when you and I had talked.
You had said something to me.
I don't know if I was asking you about affiliate marketing or something.
And you said, you know, there have been a lot of ladies say, oh yeah, I've made a couple
(11:46):
hundred dollars this month.
And she goes, you said to me, I made that in a day.
And I was thinking, oh my goodness, that is so amazing that you were able to do that.
One of my questions to you is not only in the transition.
I mean, did you do it thinking, oh, I'm going to make a lot of money or did you do it thinking,
(12:07):
oh, I'm going to get a lot of discounts out of this?
Oh gosh, yes.
I thought that I would just get some good discounts for myself.
I thought maybe I'd get a little bit of free product and then maybe I'd make a tiny bit
of extra income, just a little bit of extra spending money.
I had zero intention of making it a career.
(12:29):
And then when it worked so well and made such a splash, I knew that there could be a possibility
of a job change with that.
But I will say that when COVID hit, I keep in mind, I started the group in 2018, so it
was pre-COVID.
When COVID hit, Amazon cut their commission rates in half and that was a big deal.
(12:54):
And so then I realized, I don't know, it was kind of like come to Jesus for me.
Like, okay, you can't actually rely and depend on this income.
This is, you're going to have to think of this as extra.
And it also forced me to branch out to other companies.
So at the time I was only posting Amazon deals.
(13:16):
So I had to get back in there and learn and dig in and find other companies that I could
work with and other publishers that I could partner with to expand my reach of deals.
So yeah, that was a big eye opener.
I'm trying to think of like what happened after that.
(13:37):
I think that that just kind of brought the income back up, gave me that realization that
I can't rely on that.
But I also at that point had my partner, John, helping me working.
I mean, he works the site just as much as I do and he works a full-time job too.
So after COVID, things changed in the school district.
(13:59):
I guess things probably changed for all districts all over the country.
And that just, I guess, wasn't going to work for me.
Like I just was not happy, miserable, didn't want to get up and go to work in the morning.
I just wasn't loving my job anymore.
And I've always told myself, like, if you don't love your job, you don't love what you're
doing, don't do it.
Life's too short.
(14:20):
So I felt like I had saved enough and had enough put into savings and kind of had the
business end of it going after four years.
So that was when I was able to retire early and then do this full-time.
So what was the biggest fear that you had jumping into this?
(14:41):
Because if you're a principal at a high school, of course, you've got a steady income, you've
got benefits, you've got all of that.
Jumping over into an industry that was a little bit unknown.
And it sounds like there could be some up and downs depending on, like you said, with
Amazon.
So what was the biggest fear and drive for doing this?
Well, I honestly think the biggest fear and still remains that way most days is that it
(15:07):
can all be taken away at any moment because I don't have any control over the platforms
that I use.
I've just had to try to find ways to get control on my side.
So now I have a large email list that's really important in this kind of work so that I have
a backup.
So I don't have to rely on those platforms to keep my business going, thankfully.
(15:32):
And then I don't know.
I mean, I feel like that's just my only worry ever.
It sounds like diversifying was a big thing though.
You needed to get out of more than just Amazon to make this really work and to go forward
because if you're trusting only Amazon, then you're held hostage to them.
Right.
If you're putting your trust in these big companies and you don't have anywhere else
(15:56):
to go, I just think it's not good for business.
You have to find ways to be independent, do things on your own.
So I want to kind of go back to the transition from your 26-year career to doing just the
online marketing.
At what point, I know you said you were dissatisfied with going to work every day after COVID or
(16:22):
during COVID, you were dissatisfied with that.
Was there any one thing that really made you go, okay, I'm done with that.
I can do this.
Did the money come in that you were expecting to survive?
Because I don't know that most people will go from a career where they're making just
great money supporting themselves and their families to doing something that they make
(16:47):
pennies in a month.
So tell us a little bit about that transition when you knew you could switch and it was
all going to be okay.
So I think you're right.
It's pennies.
Every time an item is purchased, it's pennies.
So it's all about volume.
And I think some people think that they can open a group and just throw a few deals on
(17:08):
there and make a bunch of money.
And it's just not the case.
You have to interact with the group.
John and I call it the grind.
You've got to be up every day working.
You work 365 days a year, never have a day off.
And for me, it was, is this replacing my income?
Yes.
And well, it allowed me to spend my daughter's senior year with her.
(17:32):
I was the parent who missed out on lots of activities, especially if it was anything
during the day.
I was the parent that could only vacation in the summertime.
I just wanted that freedom to be able to say yes to my friends and my family.
I still work really hard.
I probably work more hours now than I did before, but at least I'm in charge of my schedule.
(17:56):
So I feel like you asked me about at what point did I decide.
I feel like during COVID and even the year that we came back from school after COVID,
it was just, I guess, uncertainty, fear, trying to help parents with fear, helping children
and teachers with fear, and just realizing that all of that negativity was not really
(18:22):
healthy for me and also probably not very healthy for the staff that I was leading.
And I've always been the positive person.
Like anybody who knows me will say that I'm like the most positive person they know.
And I've always been that way at work.
So I also felt like I was putting on a face that wasn't really mine every day, just jumping
out of my car and putting my smile on and just kind of gritting my teeth through the
(18:46):
day.
And I just didn't want to be that person.
So I hope that explains it.
Sure.
So I've got a question.
You jump into this, you know, I'm in the technical field and I know how it advances every year
and you've got to constantly be monitoring.
How big of a learning curve is it to jump into something like what you're doing?
(19:08):
It was a big learning curve.
I mean, like a completely different industry.
So one thing I've had to learn is just like embrace technology instead of saying I'm not
really good at tech, just find ways that tech can enhance my adventure.
So like instead of being scared of AI, I've embraced AI and learned about ways that that
(19:31):
can help my business.
I heard your episode about AI and appreciate a lot that you said about ways that it can
help and not hurt.
So AI definitely has made my business better by just doing tasks for me that I don't necessarily
have to think about.
(19:53):
And for me, I feel like I do get a lot of messages from people asking, how can I get
into this business?
You make it look so easy.
And I'm glad I make it look easy because if it looks easy, it looks like I guess when
you make something look easy, that means that you've probably mastered that area, right?
(20:16):
But it took a lot of work.
I watched tons of YouTube videos and still do.
I listen to podcasts every day about marketing and AI.
So I just got in there and learned what I needed to learn before I even started.
So I think it's not just easy.
(20:37):
It's not about putting a group together and just putting some deals on there.
It's about dedication, constant learning, networking.
At first it was a really lonely adventure because I didn't know anybody else who did
this.
But I've been to a couple of Amazon conventions.
I've met people that I still keep in contact with every day and we learn from each other.
(21:00):
And then I'm in a couple of Facebook groups full of people that do what I do, who share
all day long, and I owe a ton to those group leaders for starting those groups and being
willing to share because I felt like it was kind of lonely at first.
Do you see that getting to the point that maybe you would hire employees?
(21:22):
And the reason I ask it, it sounds like that, I mean, in this type of work, you've got to
constantly be in front looking for the deals, posting them, you or John.
So do you ever see getting to the point that maybe you would have an employee or is this
something that you want to keep close to you guys?
Oh, absolutely.
So I do have a full-time employee.
So not only do John and I work the site full-time, we also have a full-time employee.
(21:46):
She's been with us for three years.
Hailey is in Ohio.
So yes, she and I work together all day, every day.
She's kind of like the manager of our group.
She assists with brand deals and keeping track.
She is so good at organizing and making lists and keeping spreadsheets.
(22:10):
And I absolutely suck.
Like, I mean, I can't keep track of anything.
So thankfully, she's really good at that.
And then I also have a virtual assistant who works full-time as well.
So yes, definitely needed the help.
And that helped me, I feel like, get some of my regular life back because John and I
(22:35):
were vacationing, but we would...
I mean, the beach is awesome, but we would find ourselves working the entire vacation.
So doing the same thing, but just from a different location and not really enjoying our time
as much as we should.
So you became an entrepreneur.
You went from being an employee to an entrepreneur.
(22:56):
Had you ever had any other experience running a business or was this the first time?
No, not...
I mean, not really.
I had kind of dabbled a little bit.
Like I had sold a skincare line for a while back forever ago and was a district manager
with that.
And that's pretty much it.
(23:17):
I mean, I feel like managing a school building is a lot like managing a business.
There are budgets, there's data.
Honestly, running a building as a principal, like I said, it's like running a business.
So a lot of the skills that I learned as a principal, I've been able to use in this business
(23:38):
as well.
So do you find it hard having remote employees?
That's the world we live in now.
Everybody's used to, your employee comes in and you work with them.
So with technology, I'm sure it helps, but do you find it still challenging or are you
okay with 100% remote employees?
Oh, absolutely.
(23:58):
I'm totally fine with that.
I would rather have somebody that's a really great fit for the job and be across the country.
We communicate regularly.
We do video calls.
We have messaging platforms that we use to communicate throughout the day.
So it works just fine.
(24:18):
Everything is so automated and easy.
That's awesome.
So as far as a career change goes, because I would love to sit and talk to you about
the career you chose, but as far as the career change goes, what do you think has been, if
you were to sit down with somebody and tell them the steps they need to take or the helpful
(24:38):
tips for somebody looking into a career change, a big one, like what you did, what would you
tell them?
I think that the first thing you need to do is just take an inventory of what your passions
are and what you are good at and expert at.
I was an expert before I even did this job at searching out deals and codes, before I
(25:01):
even dreamed of making it a business.
I'd be excited if I found a coupon for $10 off a Domino's order or 10 cents off a Domino's
order, just anything to save money.
So just take an inventory.
Were you really good at?
Make a list of that.
And then so many things now are digital.
(25:21):
A lot of people want to work from home and work for themselves.
So I tell people this all the time who ask, like if you want to make your platform Facebook
or Instagram, like after you have taken inventory of what you're really good at, what you're
passionate about, then start telling the world about it.
(25:42):
Don't just start trying to sell things, but have a presence, share what you know, share
pictures, grow an audience of people who are like-minded.
And then once you have that trust and that community, then you can think about how can
I monetize this business?
(26:03):
I see people that have, like I follow a couple of golden doodle groups and the groups are
huge and I don't see them monetizing that group at all.
And like part of me is just screaming like, oh my gosh, if you'd give me an hour of your
time, I can show you how you can turn this great audience that you have into a way to
(26:25):
make just a little extra money, you know?
And then I think, like I said before, you have to be willing to embrace technology.
I honestly, I don't know how anybody can start a business now and not, and think that there's
not going to be some technology component because everybody wants to buy online, communicate
(26:46):
online.
That's just the way the world works.
Yeah, really that happened even before COVID, but when COVID hit, you know, that's when
you started noticing all the restaurants willing to even basically you pull up and call them
and they bring the order out.
Nobody wanted to go in to buy.
I mean, even Walmart, I will order online and go pull into a parking place and they'll
(27:10):
bring out my groceries.
So you're right.
Right.
Yeah.
I mean, we don't, nobody wants to do that anymore.
And people used to say, well, how do I buy an outfit if I can't try it on?
Well, that's why I'm trying on outfits.
That's why I'm showing you pictures so that you can, I can share my measurements so you
can compare and decide if that might be something that would fit you or be your style.
(27:34):
I don't know, just be willing to share and be a resource to people.
I feel like once, when you get in the selling mode, because on occasion, I feel like our
team gets into the sell, sell, sell mode.
As soon as you do that, your sales drop.
You have to be more of a resource than a salesperson.
(27:54):
Oh, really?
Interesting.
That's interesting.
I would have thought the opposite.
I firmly believe that.
Yeah.
I firmly believe that.
Learning about this business, that was one point that a lady had made in her podcast.
And she said the same thing for her group.
She runs a huge group, just like ours.
And she's so right.
(28:15):
What I love about this, it is your own business, but you also have, you know, whether it's
Amazon, whoever it is you're affiliated with, at any point in time, you can fire them if
you're not getting what you need out of them or if they decide to cut you.
And there's always so many more that you can go after.
It sounds like to me, though, you've constantly got to be hunting.
You can't just sit back and think everything's going to be good for the next 10 years.
(28:39):
Not at all.
Right.
And we've actually started recently attending these affiliate conferences that happen twice
a year.
And we have loved those.
And every time we go to a conference, we bring back something that really makes a big difference
in our business.
And we've found new partners using those conferences and contacts.
(29:04):
So yeah, those are awesome as well.
I have one last question.
Excuse me.
How did this change in careers affect your personal life?
Besides, you talked about how, you know, you got to spend the senior year with your daughter.
What about just you personally?
What has it done besides that part for you?
(29:24):
Well, way less stress.
I mean, if I'm stressed out about leaving on the porch, that's my own fault, really.
I've allowed that.
But just the stress, the sleepless nights, taking better care of myself, I feel like
those have been big changes for me.
(29:44):
So when I was in my other career, I would just be exhausted and come home and want to
go to bed.
But now I am going to the gym and working out with friends.
And I'd like to say I cook more, but that's not true.
I hate cooking.
There's no cooking going on in this house.
(30:07):
So I feel like just overall a more relaxed, healthier person.
So do you think that whenever you made this huge transition, was it was it good for the
whole family?
Did you notice a difference in you?
You probably had to have your own space in the house.
You had to have time to do what you're doing.
And it might not be on the hours they were used to.
I feel like it.
(30:28):
I feel like it went fine for everybody.
I do feel like I work more hours than I did before, honestly, even though they're on my
own time.
You know, I used to have weekends and summers off.
Now I have zero time off.
But that that's my choice.
I've done that.
So I felt like I would probably when I retired, get to spend more time with my parents.
(30:53):
And I unfortunately haven't.
So I'm trying to make that shift now that we have our virtual assistant as well.
Trying to make the shift away from working so many hours.
Yeah, I'd love to say, wow, I have so much more free time and everybody's everybody's
at the top of my list.
But I'm trying to say yes more often.
Sure.
(31:13):
That's my own issue, though.
It also sounds like you're you're in a very unique state because you're you're big enough.
You probably need more people, but you're still small enough that you don't want to
grow or get too many people.
But it sounds like you're kind of in that that stage to where honestly, this could explode
and you could end up with several employees.
Right.
I mean, my ultimate goal would be would be to keep growing, leave it on the porch on
(31:38):
Facebook and Instagram and reach a point where all I have to do is get up in the morning
and post my deals of the day list, which is just like a one click shopping experience
and then, you know, let the team run the site for the rest of the day.
And I really want to take a vacation this winter and not take my computer.
(32:00):
Sure.
A vacation with my my parents and my sister.
And so I'm working on that.
But yes, ultimately, it would be amazing to just let the team handle it, oversee it when
necessary and not have to work so hard.
And we'll get there.
Do you think that the hardest part jumping into something like this is the technology
(32:24):
if you're not technical?
You know, if you're a great shopper and you really know what people want and need, is
it the technical part that that's the biggest challenge?
It's not.
It's the stick within us.
Yeah.
Yes.
And honestly, like times have been hard several times with Leave It On The Porch.
(32:45):
We've had some big changes.
We've had some big disappointments, but we stick with it.
Like I've been doing this now for eight years.
I could have quit 10 times.
Right.
And I've seen people start groups and it doesn't work.
But it's just it's not working because you're not you're not putting out the deals regularly.
(33:07):
You're not communicating with your audience.
They don't know you.
There's a hundred other groups to shop with with people who are posting original content
and really digging in there with their group members.
Also a lot of groups I've seen get really negative and mean.
And I do not allow that in my group.
(33:28):
That's the same that same way I ran my building.
We don't allow meanness and hatefulness.
Same thing in the group.
When you post something mean or hateful, I'll delete your comment.
I will message you.
And if you continue it, goodbye.
But you have to be there to monitor that.
So if you're just opening a group up and you're letting people just run all over the place
(33:49):
with your group, then your group won't be successful because nobody needs that negativity.
I love that.
Listening to your story, though, what I see out of this that probably gave you the greatest
success is when you made that leap and decided that you were going to quit doing what you
were in the education system and do this.
Because if time gets hard, you go back to what's easy.
(34:12):
And if you had a regular paycheck as a principal and Amazon cut all your deals in half, it
would have been so easy to just say, I'm done.
It's just not worth it.
But you made that leap because you knew this is what you wanted to do.
Right.
I truly believe that people do not have to go to a job every day that they are not happy
(34:33):
with.
I mean, I know that people rely on paychecks and benefits.
And I totally get that.
But there's so many different opportunities out there.
And it doesn't have to be just going to work for yourself.
It can be going to work for another company in a different area that you're interested
in.
(34:54):
I said at the beginning, I feel like our generation is stuck in that.
I'm going to just work here for 30 years and bang it out and get done and then be old.
Well, you know, it's and maybe it's because of the Midwest.
I don't know if it's that way everywhere.
But it was that's the way you were conditioned.
You go to college, you get a degree, you get a job, hopefully within that degree or something
(35:15):
like that.
And you know, you just that's your life.
Right.
And there are a few people that I know, you know, had that role model of people that would
have a successful business, even on the side, you know, standalone business.
So for me, it was a conditioning.
It really wasn't that I didn't want to do it.
I just I don't I don't even know if I knew that was an option.
(35:36):
I also love that you talk about you were talking about how you may not love your job.
You don't have to go do your own job.
You can go somewhere else.
Because we have a lot of listeners who are sitting here doing this.
I'm not an entrepreneur, because let me tell you, when I listen to you, Joellyn, you have
the ultimate entrepreneurial spirit, spirit in you.
(36:00):
And so to some of our listeners are thinking, I don't have that in me.
I don't have that in me.
But the big career change can be something as simple as go do something that makes you
happy.
Right.
You know, yeah, I'm so glad that you said that.
You don't have to do it on your own.
You can go work for somebody else.
(36:20):
And yeah, it's scary.
But just like you said, it's the stick with it.
Keep looking, keep doing.
Right.
I agree.
So is there any other unexpected benefit that you think you got out of doing this venturing
out on your own that maybe you didn't realize you was going to have in the beginning?
Well, I love working from anywhere I want to work from.
That's pretty nice.
(36:42):
And I love not having I'm in my lounge pants and my sweatshirt right now.
So I love that.
I love my dogs.
I love that they're my little business guys every day all day and just taking moments
to enjoy just beauty and and life.
You know, many times I know as a career person, I would I would get up in the morning when
(37:07):
it was dark and go to work in the dark and come home in the dark.
So now I'm, you know, taking these moments to sit outside and listen to the birds and
just enjoy, enjoy the things around me.
I know that might sound a little corny, but no, it sounds ideal for me.
I was going to say, I think that's what most people want.
Yeah, right.
Right.
(37:28):
And I don't know, I feel like there's ways to make that happen.
And maybe that means just starting small on the side, keeping your regular job and just
doing something a little extra that you love to find happiness in that.
But I think the big thing is it's exactly what you said.
You have to stick with it.
Nothing's going to be easy.
(37:48):
I mean, if it was easy, everybody would do it.
Right.
Absolutely.
You have to work it and you have to work it hard.
Nothing comes easy.
Right.
Especially in the tech world.
That's one thing that, you know, John and I have talked about a lot.
Like I do get a lot of people asking, will you help me?
Will you train me?
And I always say I'd love to, but it's not just it's just not something easy to do.
(38:12):
It's not something I can tell you in a text message or it's not a one time shot.
So one thing I may eventually do is like open up a like a training group.
Like I'll be your, I'll be your leader.
I'll be your voice and help you open your own group and do what I'm doing.
You can replicate what I'm doing and just be like a coach to people along the way.
(38:35):
I can't do that while I'm working full time every day.
But if I'm able to get my team built up and have it kind of run itself with my team, it
would be fun to teach others how to do what I do and how to stick with it and run their
groups as well.
Which is actually full circle because now you are back to being an educator and yet
(38:57):
it's on your own.
I actually love that.
Yeah.
Very nice.
Well, do you have any other words of wisdom for people looking for career changes?
I guess I just always come back to find something you love and something you're passionate about.
It could be as simple as like, I love finding coupons.
I love finding deals.
(39:18):
Got a craft that you're really good at and your friends are always telling you to share
about it.
There's just so many ways to tie what you love in with technology to promote your products
or your skills.
Nice.
So before we jump off for sure, I want you to tell people how to connect with you, how
(39:39):
to figure out how to get some of these deals and look at what you're doing today.
Oh, thank you.
Okay.
Probably the easiest way to find us is by going to our website and that's leaveitontheporch.com.
Our website is not the most beautiful place, but when you get there, there is a direct
(39:59):
link to our Facebook group, which makes it easy.
There's a direct link to my Instagram account.
And then there's also a way to sign up for the email list, which I send out one email
per day.
So I feel like that's the best way to reach us without being complicated.
So what does the email list get them?
I get up early every morning and make a list of about 70 to 100 deals that I find on Amazon
(40:25):
that I feel like our group members would love.
And I put that list together in my Amazon storefront and I send out one link.
So that one link connects you to all of those items.
So that's what goes in the email.
That's awesome.
That is awesome.
I have to say I was on because, you know, I'm kind of laid up.
(40:45):
I was on it the other day and I'm also a makeup fiend and you had so much makeup on there.
I was like, okay, just a few things, Connie, just a few things.
Don't be, don't be going crazy.
But they were good discounts too.
They were good discounts.
And that's where the collaboration with other group admins is so nice because somebody sent
(41:09):
that out to our group.
They said, hey, Rimmel has this amazing deal going on Amazon.
They've got like 50 items that are deeply discounted.
So I took that link that she sent me and pulled together that list, sent it out and that was
a great list.
Yeah, it was.
And I'm so glad because I actually did get some Amazon gift cards.
(41:32):
I had put a post out like feeling sorry, sorry for myself.
And I got some Amazon gift cards and I'm dying laughing.
Nice.
It all came together because I'm like, oh wow, now I get to go shopping again.
But yeah, thank you.
A little bit of retail therapy.
Thank you for that.
No kidding.
Scott, do you have anything else?
I don't think so.
I want to say thank you so much.
(41:52):
I got so much out of this if nobody else does, but I know they will.
I love, absolutely love seeing a person transition into a career like this.
And I love how you said that it may not be any easier than what you did, but you are
directing your own life.
You decide your hours.
You could do it of a night or a day.
You can be anywhere.
I just love the success story of what you've done, how big you've grown this.
(42:16):
And I'm excited to see where you're going to go in the future.
I really truly am.
Well, thank you.
And Joellyn, and there is nothing that I've seen from you that doesn't surprise me.
You have always been such an amazing lady, girl, when I knew you, and then an amazing
lady.
And I'm so happy for you.
I love that this has been such a great part of your life.
(42:40):
Thank you.
I feel fortunate.
Yes.
And we appreciate the fact that you were willing to talk to us and give our listeners some
insight.
Absolutely.
Well, thanks for having me.
I appreciate that.
Sure.
We'll talk to you soon.
Okay.
Thank you so much for listening to this episode of Our Life Beyond.
(43:03):
We really hope that you found our discussion insightful and inspiring, or at least brought
a smile to your day.
If you did enjoy this episode, please consider subscribing to the podcast on your favorite
platform and leave us a review.
For more information, resources, or show notes, visit our website at ourlifebeyond.com.
You can also follow us on social media, search for us on Facebook at Our Life Beyond.
(43:27):
We would love to hear from you, our listeners, so feel free to reach out with your questions,
comments, or suggestions through our Contact Us page at ourlifebeyond.com or on social
media.
And once again, thank you for joining us on this journey.
Till next time, remember, Life Beyond any challenge is possible, and we're here to navigate
(43:47):
it with you.
Stay strong, stay positive, and keep moving forward.
Stay positive, and keep moving forward.
Well, hello, hello, hello.
(00:09):
Welcome to our Life Beyond the podcast where we explore how to navigate and hopefully thrive
through some of life's biggest transitions.
I'm your co-host, Scott Dibben, and I've teamed up with my great friend and mentor,
Connie King, to share some stories, strategies, and insights that helped us adapt to the ever-changing
seasons of our life.
(00:30):
Whether your life transition is divorce, death of a loved one, switching careers, moving
to a new city, or just trying to figure out what the hell is next, we're with you every
step of the way.
But always remember, we're not therapists, just fellow travelers with a knack for finding
humor in the chaos and maybe some untraditional method of overcoming what life dishes out
(00:51):
to us.
Hopefully you'll have fun embarking on this journey.
So now, let's get started.
This episode of Our Life Beyond is proudly sponsored by Habit Coffee Company.
Located right off Highway 60 in Rogersville, Habit Coffee is more than just your average
coffee shop.
(01:12):
They serve up delicious, scratch-made breakfast and lunch options daily.
And they even specialize in catering local events.
With their state-inspected kitchen and a passion for quality, every visit to Habit Coffee is
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Now that the construction is complete, getting to Habit Coffee is easier than ever.
Stop by and during the month of October, mention Our Life Beyond to get a 10% discount off
(01:37):
your coffee order.
Thank you to Habit Coffee for being a proud sponsor of Our Life Beyond.
Make Habit Coffee your new habit today.
Hello, Connie.
Hello, Scott.
How are you?
I'm doing well.
How are you, Connie?
I'm good.
I'm actually excited because I know we've had some requests on things people want to
(01:58):
hear about.
Yes.
And we have made it happen.
So do you want to kind of talk about what we are going to hit on today?
Sure.
So we had a request come out actually by more than one person that wanted to see if we could
do a podcast on midlife transitioning into a new career.
(02:19):
It surprised me because I didn't know that there would be that many people interested
in that, but it does make sense in the job market today and just the way jobs are today.
Yes.
I hear that all the time also.
So today we kick off a special two-part series focused on navigating career transitions later
in life, just what our listeners asked for.
(02:41):
In our first episode, I am thrilled to welcome Joellyn Travis, a remarkable guest who spent
26 years as an educator before taking the bold leap into the world of digital marketing.
Joellyn is the founder of LeaveItonthePorch, a dynamic online shopping site focused
on giving consumers deep discounts on thousands of products from popular brands, all curated
(03:04):
in one place to help shoppers find the best deals.
Join us as Joellyn shares her inspiring story, the challenges she's faced, the lessons she's
learned, whether you're contemplating a career change or just curious about the journey,
this episode is packed with insights to motivate and guide you.
So let's dive in.
Hello, Joellyn.
How are you?
(03:25):
Hi, I'm great.
How are you, Scott?
I'm doing well.
Thank you.
It's really good to meet you.
I did a little research just going out and looking at your website and wow, I mean, it
looks great.
I am so impressed with where you're at.
Thank you.
You said something in the introduction that made me think like I'm in my 50s and isn't
it interesting how our generation is kind of stuck in that mode of choose a career and
(03:50):
stick with that until you're old and tired and hate your job?
Yes.
That's exactly.
I think we're discovering that a lot more.
And Joellyn, you and I have known each other for a long time.
I did not say this because I say it with every one of our guests, but I'm so excited to have
(04:11):
you on and I'm so excited to learn what you've done and how you've transitioned.
I think our listeners are going to be completely in awe of how you've changed actually the
landscape of shopping.
If you want to know the truth online shopping.
So why don't you tell us a little bit about how this change came to be?
(04:32):
Tell us about your career in education and how that transitioned to online marketing.
Okay.
Hopefully you won't hear my dogs growling in the background.
They're my work companions every day.
They get a voice too on here.
So as you said before, I was an educator for 26 years.
(04:53):
So I spent 14 years in the classroom in the same school district and loved my job.
Honestly, I got my master's degree in leadership for the ability to become a principal, obviously
to be able to affect more lives, lead teachers.
I was just a natural leader in the positions that I held within the building.
(05:16):
So I got my first principal job, went back to Lebanon actually where we grew up to be
an assistant there for a couple of years.
And then actually finished out my career as a principal for 12 years in Springfield public
schools.
So I loved my job.
I loved the kids.
I loved the staff, loved the parents and the relationships.
(05:41):
I just, I found myself not loving having bosses and not just one, but lots of bosses, lots
of levels of leadership and lots of levels of people to answer to and wanted an opportunity
to be independent.
So that was probably what pushed me in the direction of going out on my own.
(06:06):
And I didn't just drop everything and start anew.
I know some people may think that one of my relaxation activities, and I know Connie has
talked about this recently, shopping on Amazon, right?
Just laying in bed at night and scrolling and looking at the deals.
And I found a couple of ladies who had these shopping groups.
(06:31):
And this was like 10, 12 years ago.
And I would find myself scrolling at night, checking out the deals, also looking at the
conversation within the group and the community, the feel of community within those groups,
positivity, just different conversations going on around just shopping, which is an easy
(06:51):
topic for me.
Interesting.
So I found myself scrolling and then I would get up in the morning and I would check to
see what deals these ladies had posted in their groups.
And then I found myself going to work and saying, oh my gosh, you guys, you have to
see this deal that I found.
So then one night I thought to myself, gosh, this looks like a lot of fun, but I bet these
(07:16):
people aren't doing this for free.
Like this is too much work.
They've got to be making some money.
This was in like 2017.
So I kept shopping in the groups and then I started researching.
Like, what are these links about?
Where are they getting these discounts?
I just found myself spending more time figuring that out and I figured it out.
(07:40):
It's kind of secretive.
It's hard to learn, but I figured it out.
So in 2018, I started my own group.
I sat with some girlfriends at the pool one day and said, hey, if I started this shopping
group and got you guys some deals and discounts, do you think you'd join the group?
And they were like, oh yeah, we would be happy to.
(08:00):
That sounds great.
So the day that I launched the site, I was actually in a training with one of my supervisors
and I told them what I had done and he and I just watched the numbers increase the whole
day.
So when I dropped the group out on Facebook that morning, you know, there are a couple
hundred followers.
(08:22):
And by the time we left for the day, I feel like we had almost 10,000 people follow me.
Wow.
Holy crap.
It was wild.
Wow.
It was wild.
That's amazing.
Well, that shows that you were filling a need apparently in the market.
Wow.
(08:43):
Obviously.
I feel like also being an educator, I had kind of a big base of contacts and it just
people were spreading the word.
They were sharing the group with others and saying, hey, you know this lady, this is the
principal over at the elementary building or oh, didn't your child have her back when
(09:04):
they were in fourth grade?
And it just was like a snowball effect.
That gave you a little bit of credibility instead of it just being an online presence.
Right.
Right.
People already had trust in me, which I think is a big deal.
You have to gain trust in your audience and it just exploded.
(09:25):
So how many followers do you have now?
So that was 2018.
That was well, interesting story.
So it went all the way up to 125,000 followers.
And then all of a sudden one day Facebook decided that they didn't want to push out
any of our information anymore and they cut us off.
(09:46):
And so it went to nothing.
So I had 125,000 followers.
I had a great big business running and I had actually quit my job by then and I decided
I did it once.
I can do it again.
So I started over again and changed some of my methods and it's been running for three
(10:11):
years now as the new group.
And now we have 88,000 members and that is a hundred percent organic, not a single advertisement,
every little promotion of the group.
This is just word of mouth.
Oh, wow.
Well, congratulations.
That's huge.
That is so huge.
I remember somebody telling me who was starting an Instagram page said, is that what you call
(10:36):
it?
You can tell I'm just not very.
Yeah.
So she said, once you get a thousand, you can start getting, you can start selling stuff
on there.
And I just, I thought, oh, that's interesting.
Okay.
So you immediately hit huge numbers.
And how did you get by that?
Like when she said, I have to hit a thousand before I can do affiliate marketing, you were
(10:59):
already doing that.
Is that correct?
When you started or did you start in a different way?
Do you even want to share that?
I started with a blog, but I still to this day, I'm not really well versed in blogging.
So I started with a blog because that was the Amazon rules.
And then I opened the group.
And you have to have 500 followers for Amazon to allow you to post affiliate links.
(11:25):
So yeah, that was no problem.
Right?
Not that day.
And then I do not remember when you and I had talked.
You had said something to me.
I don't know if I was asking you about affiliate marketing or something.
And you said, you know, there have been a lot of ladies say, oh yeah, I've made a couple
(11:46):
hundred dollars this month.
And she goes, you said to me, I made that in a day.
And I was thinking, oh my goodness, that is so amazing that you were able to do that.
One of my questions to you is not only in the transition.
I mean, did you do it thinking, oh, I'm going to make a lot of money or did you do it thinking,
(12:07):
oh, I'm going to get a lot of discounts out of this?
Oh gosh, yes.
I thought that I would just get some good discounts for myself.
I thought maybe I'd get a little bit of free product and then maybe I'd make a tiny bit
of extra income, just a little bit of extra spending money.
I had zero intention of making it a career.
(12:29):
And then when it worked so well and made such a splash, I knew that there could be a possibility
of a job change with that.
But I will say that when COVID hit, I keep in mind, I started the group in 2018, so it
was pre-COVID.
When COVID hit, Amazon cut their commission rates in half and that was a big deal.
(12:54):
And so then I realized, I don't know, it was kind of like come to Jesus for me.
Like, okay, you can't actually rely and depend on this income.
This is, you're going to have to think of this as extra.
And it also forced me to branch out to other companies.
So at the time I was only posting Amazon deals.
(13:16):
So I had to get back in there and learn and dig in and find other companies that I could
work with and other publishers that I could partner with to expand my reach of deals.
So yeah, that was a big eye opener.
I'm trying to think of like what happened after that.
(13:37):
I think that that just kind of brought the income back up, gave me that realization that
I can't rely on that.
But I also at that point had my partner, John, helping me working.
I mean, he works the site just as much as I do and he works a full-time job too.
So after COVID, things changed in the school district.
(13:59):
I guess things probably changed for all districts all over the country.
And that just, I guess, wasn't going to work for me.
Like I just was not happy, miserable, didn't want to get up and go to work in the morning.
I just wasn't loving my job anymore.
And I've always told myself, like, if you don't love your job, you don't love what you're
doing, don't do it.
Life's too short.
(14:20):
So I felt like I had saved enough and had enough put into savings and kind of had the
business end of it going after four years.
So that was when I was able to retire early and then do this full-time.
So what was the biggest fear that you had jumping into this?
(14:41):
Because if you're a principal at a high school, of course, you've got a steady income, you've
got benefits, you've got all of that.
Jumping over into an industry that was a little bit unknown.
And it sounds like there could be some up and downs depending on, like you said, with
Amazon.
So what was the biggest fear and drive for doing this?
Well, I honestly think the biggest fear and still remains that way most days is that it
(15:07):
can all be taken away at any moment because I don't have any control over the platforms
that I use.
I've just had to try to find ways to get control on my side.
So now I have a large email list that's really important in this kind of work so that I have
a backup.
So I don't have to rely on those platforms to keep my business going, thankfully.
(15:32):
And then I don't know.
I mean, I feel like that's just my only worry ever.
It sounds like diversifying was a big thing though.
You needed to get out of more than just Amazon to make this really work and to go forward
because if you're trusting only Amazon, then you're held hostage to them.
Right.
If you're putting your trust in these big companies and you don't have anywhere else
(15:56):
to go, I just think it's not good for business.
You have to find ways to be independent, do things on your own.
So I want to kind of go back to the transition from your 26-year career to doing just the
online marketing.
At what point, I know you said you were dissatisfied with going to work every day after COVID or
(16:22):
during COVID, you were dissatisfied with that.
Was there any one thing that really made you go, okay, I'm done with that.
I can do this.
Did the money come in that you were expecting to survive?
Because I don't know that most people will go from a career where they're making just
great money supporting themselves and their families to doing something that they make
(16:47):
pennies in a month.
So tell us a little bit about that transition when you knew you could switch and it was
all going to be okay.
So I think you're right.
It's pennies.
Every time an item is purchased, it's pennies.
So it's all about volume.
And I think some people think that they can open a group and just throw a few deals on
(17:08):
there and make a bunch of money.
And it's just not the case.
You have to interact with the group.
John and I call it the grind.
You've got to be up every day working.
You work 365 days a year, never have a day off.
And for me, it was, is this replacing my income?
Yes.
And well, it allowed me to spend my daughter's senior year with her.
(17:32):
I was the parent who missed out on lots of activities, especially if it was anything
during the day.
I was the parent that could only vacation in the summertime.
I just wanted that freedom to be able to say yes to my friends and my family.
I still work really hard.
I probably work more hours now than I did before, but at least I'm in charge of my schedule.
(17:56):
So I feel like you asked me about at what point did I decide.
I feel like during COVID and even the year that we came back from school after COVID,
it was just, I guess, uncertainty, fear, trying to help parents with fear, helping children
and teachers with fear, and just realizing that all of that negativity was not really
(18:22):
healthy for me and also probably not very healthy for the staff that I was leading.
And I've always been the positive person.
Like anybody who knows me will say that I'm like the most positive person they know.
And I've always been that way at work.
So I also felt like I was putting on a face that wasn't really mine every day, just jumping
out of my car and putting my smile on and just kind of gritting my teeth through the
(18:46):
day.
And I just didn't want to be that person.
So I hope that explains it.
Sure.
So I've got a question.
You jump into this, you know, I'm in the technical field and I know how it advances every year
and you've got to constantly be monitoring.
How big of a learning curve is it to jump into something like what you're doing?
(19:08):
It was a big learning curve.
I mean, like a completely different industry.
So one thing I've had to learn is just like embrace technology instead of saying I'm not
really good at tech, just find ways that tech can enhance my adventure.
So like instead of being scared of AI, I've embraced AI and learned about ways that that
(19:31):
can help my business.
I heard your episode about AI and appreciate a lot that you said about ways that it can
help and not hurt.
So AI definitely has made my business better by just doing tasks for me that I don't necessarily
have to think about.
(19:53):
And for me, I feel like I do get a lot of messages from people asking, how can I get
into this business?
You make it look so easy.
And I'm glad I make it look easy because if it looks easy, it looks like I guess when
you make something look easy, that means that you've probably mastered that area, right?
(20:16):
But it took a lot of work.
I watched tons of YouTube videos and still do.
I listen to podcasts every day about marketing and AI.
So I just got in there and learned what I needed to learn before I even started.
So I think it's not just easy.
(20:37):
It's not about putting a group together and just putting some deals on there.
It's about dedication, constant learning, networking.
At first it was a really lonely adventure because I didn't know anybody else who did
this.
But I've been to a couple of Amazon conventions.
I've met people that I still keep in contact with every day and we learn from each other.
(21:00):
And then I'm in a couple of Facebook groups full of people that do what I do, who share
all day long, and I owe a ton to those group leaders for starting those groups and being
willing to share because I felt like it was kind of lonely at first.
Do you see that getting to the point that maybe you would hire employees?
(21:22):
And the reason I ask it, it sounds like that, I mean, in this type of work, you've got to
constantly be in front looking for the deals, posting them, you or John.
So do you ever see getting to the point that maybe you would have an employee or is this
something that you want to keep close to you guys?
Oh, absolutely.
So I do have a full-time employee.
So not only do John and I work the site full-time, we also have a full-time employee.
(21:46):
She's been with us for three years.
Hailey is in Ohio.
So yes, she and I work together all day, every day.
She's kind of like the manager of our group.
She assists with brand deals and keeping track.
She is so good at organizing and making lists and keeping spreadsheets.
(22:10):
And I absolutely suck.
Like, I mean, I can't keep track of anything.
So thankfully, she's really good at that.
And then I also have a virtual assistant who works full-time as well.
So yes, definitely needed the help.
And that helped me, I feel like, get some of my regular life back because John and I
(22:35):
were vacationing, but we would...
I mean, the beach is awesome, but we would find ourselves working the entire vacation.
So doing the same thing, but just from a different location and not really enjoying our time
as much as we should.
So you became an entrepreneur.
You went from being an employee to an entrepreneur.
(22:56):
Had you ever had any other experience running a business or was this the first time?
No, not...
I mean, not really.
I had kind of dabbled a little bit.
Like I had sold a skincare line for a while back forever ago and was a district manager
with that.
And that's pretty much it.
(23:17):
I mean, I feel like managing a school building is a lot like managing a business.
There are budgets, there's data.
Honestly, running a building as a principal, like I said, it's like running a business.
So a lot of the skills that I learned as a principal, I've been able to use in this business
(23:38):
as well.
So do you find it hard having remote employees?
That's the world we live in now.
Everybody's used to, your employee comes in and you work with them.
So with technology, I'm sure it helps, but do you find it still challenging or are you
okay with 100% remote employees?
Oh, absolutely.
(23:58):
I'm totally fine with that.
I would rather have somebody that's a really great fit for the job and be across the country.
We communicate regularly.
We do video calls.
We have messaging platforms that we use to communicate throughout the day.
So it works just fine.
(24:18):
Everything is so automated and easy.
That's awesome.
So as far as a career change goes, because I would love to sit and talk to you about
the career you chose, but as far as the career change goes, what do you think has been, if
you were to sit down with somebody and tell them the steps they need to take or the helpful
(24:38):
tips for somebody looking into a career change, a big one, like what you did, what would you
tell them?
I think that the first thing you need to do is just take an inventory of what your passions
are and what you are good at and expert at.
I was an expert before I even did this job at searching out deals and codes, before I
(25:01):
even dreamed of making it a business.
I'd be excited if I found a coupon for $10 off a Domino's order or 10 cents off a Domino's
order, just anything to save money.
So just take an inventory.
Were you really good at?
Make a list of that.
And then so many things now are digital.
(25:21):
A lot of people want to work from home and work for themselves.
So I tell people this all the time who ask, like if you want to make your platform Facebook
or Instagram, like after you have taken inventory of what you're really good at, what you're
passionate about, then start telling the world about it.
(25:42):
Don't just start trying to sell things, but have a presence, share what you know, share
pictures, grow an audience of people who are like-minded.
And then once you have that trust and that community, then you can think about how can
I monetize this business?
(26:03):
I see people that have, like I follow a couple of golden doodle groups and the groups are
huge and I don't see them monetizing that group at all.
And like part of me is just screaming like, oh my gosh, if you'd give me an hour of your
time, I can show you how you can turn this great audience that you have into a way to
(26:25):
make just a little extra money, you know?
And then I think, like I said before, you have to be willing to embrace technology.
I honestly, I don't know how anybody can start a business now and not, and think that there's
not going to be some technology component because everybody wants to buy online, communicate
(26:46):
online.
That's just the way the world works.
Yeah, really that happened even before COVID, but when COVID hit, you know, that's when
you started noticing all the restaurants willing to even basically you pull up and call them
and they bring the order out.
Nobody wanted to go in to buy.
I mean, even Walmart, I will order online and go pull into a parking place and they'll
(27:10):
bring out my groceries.
So you're right.
Right.
Yeah.
I mean, we don't, nobody wants to do that anymore.
And people used to say, well, how do I buy an outfit if I can't try it on?
Well, that's why I'm trying on outfits.
That's why I'm showing you pictures so that you can, I can share my measurements so you
can compare and decide if that might be something that would fit you or be your style.
(27:34):
I don't know, just be willing to share and be a resource to people.
I feel like once, when you get in the selling mode, because on occasion, I feel like our
team gets into the sell, sell, sell mode.
As soon as you do that, your sales drop.
You have to be more of a resource than a salesperson.
(27:54):
Oh, really?
Interesting.
That's interesting.
I would have thought the opposite.
I firmly believe that.
Yeah.
I firmly believe that.
Learning about this business, that was one point that a lady had made in her podcast.
And she said the same thing for her group.
She runs a huge group, just like ours.
And she's so right.
(28:15):
What I love about this, it is your own business, but you also have, you know, whether it's
Amazon, whoever it is you're affiliated with, at any point in time, you can fire them if
you're not getting what you need out of them or if they decide to cut you.
And there's always so many more that you can go after.
It sounds like to me, though, you've constantly got to be hunting.
You can't just sit back and think everything's going to be good for the next 10 years.
(28:39):
Not at all.
Right.
And we've actually started recently attending these affiliate conferences that happen twice
a year.
And we have loved those.
And every time we go to a conference, we bring back something that really makes a big difference
in our business.
And we've found new partners using those conferences and contacts.
(29:04):
So yeah, those are awesome as well.
I have one last question.
Excuse me.
How did this change in careers affect your personal life?
Besides, you talked about how, you know, you got to spend the senior year with your daughter.
What about just you personally?
What has it done besides that part for you?
(29:24):
Well, way less stress.
I mean, if I'm stressed out about leaving on the porch, that's my own fault, really.
I've allowed that.
But just the stress, the sleepless nights, taking better care of myself, I feel like
those have been big changes for me.
(29:44):
So when I was in my other career, I would just be exhausted and come home and want to
go to bed.
But now I am going to the gym and working out with friends.
And I'd like to say I cook more, but that's not true.
I hate cooking.
There's no cooking going on in this house.
(30:07):
So I feel like just overall a more relaxed, healthier person.
So do you think that whenever you made this huge transition, was it was it good for the
whole family?
Did you notice a difference in you?
You probably had to have your own space in the house.
You had to have time to do what you're doing.
And it might not be on the hours they were used to.
I feel like it.
(30:28):
I feel like it went fine for everybody.
I do feel like I work more hours than I did before, honestly, even though they're on my
own time.
You know, I used to have weekends and summers off.
Now I have zero time off.
But that that's my choice.
I've done that.
So I felt like I would probably when I retired, get to spend more time with my parents.
(30:53):
And I unfortunately haven't.
So I'm trying to make that shift now that we have our virtual assistant as well.
Trying to make the shift away from working so many hours.
Yeah, I'd love to say, wow, I have so much more free time and everybody's everybody's
at the top of my list.
But I'm trying to say yes more often.
Sure.
(31:13):
That's my own issue, though.
It also sounds like you're you're in a very unique state because you're you're big enough.
You probably need more people, but you're still small enough that you don't want to
grow or get too many people.
But it sounds like you're kind of in that that stage to where honestly, this could explode
and you could end up with several employees.
Right.
I mean, my ultimate goal would be would be to keep growing, leave it on the porch on
(31:38):
Facebook and Instagram and reach a point where all I have to do is get up in the morning
and post my deals of the day list, which is just like a one click shopping experience
and then, you know, let the team run the site for the rest of the day.
And I really want to take a vacation this winter and not take my computer.
(32:00):
Sure.
A vacation with my my parents and my sister.
And so I'm working on that.
But yes, ultimately, it would be amazing to just let the team handle it, oversee it when
necessary and not have to work so hard.
And we'll get there.
Do you think that the hardest part jumping into something like this is the technology
(32:24):
if you're not technical?
You know, if you're a great shopper and you really know what people want and need, is
it the technical part that that's the biggest challenge?
It's not.
It's the stick within us.
Yeah.
Yes.
And honestly, like times have been hard several times with Leave It On The Porch.
(32:45):
We've had some big changes.
We've had some big disappointments, but we stick with it.
Like I've been doing this now for eight years.
I could have quit 10 times.
Right.
And I've seen people start groups and it doesn't work.
But it's just it's not working because you're not you're not putting out the deals regularly.
(33:07):
You're not communicating with your audience.
They don't know you.
There's a hundred other groups to shop with with people who are posting original content
and really digging in there with their group members.
Also a lot of groups I've seen get really negative and mean.
And I do not allow that in my group.
(33:28):
That's the same that same way I ran my building.
We don't allow meanness and hatefulness.
Same thing in the group.
When you post something mean or hateful, I'll delete your comment.
I will message you.
And if you continue it, goodbye.
But you have to be there to monitor that.
So if you're just opening a group up and you're letting people just run all over the place
(33:49):
with your group, then your group won't be successful because nobody needs that negativity.
I love that.
Listening to your story, though, what I see out of this that probably gave you the greatest
success is when you made that leap and decided that you were going to quit doing what you
were in the education system and do this.
Because if time gets hard, you go back to what's easy.
(34:12):
And if you had a regular paycheck as a principal and Amazon cut all your deals in half, it
would have been so easy to just say, I'm done.
It's just not worth it.
But you made that leap because you knew this is what you wanted to do.
Right.
I truly believe that people do not have to go to a job every day that they are not happy
(34:33):
with.
I mean, I know that people rely on paychecks and benefits.
And I totally get that.
But there's so many different opportunities out there.
And it doesn't have to be just going to work for yourself.
It can be going to work for another company in a different area that you're interested
in.
(34:54):
I said at the beginning, I feel like our generation is stuck in that.
I'm going to just work here for 30 years and bang it out and get done and then be old.
Well, you know, it's and maybe it's because of the Midwest.
I don't know if it's that way everywhere.
But it was that's the way you were conditioned.
You go to college, you get a degree, you get a job, hopefully within that degree or something
(35:15):
like that.
And you know, you just that's your life.
Right.
And there are a few people that I know, you know, had that role model of people that would
have a successful business, even on the side, you know, standalone business.
So for me, it was a conditioning.
It really wasn't that I didn't want to do it.
I just I don't I don't even know if I knew that was an option.
(35:36):
I also love that you talk about you were talking about how you may not love your job.
You don't have to go do your own job.
You can go somewhere else.
Because we have a lot of listeners who are sitting here doing this.
I'm not an entrepreneur, because let me tell you, when I listen to you, Joellyn, you have
the ultimate entrepreneurial spirit, spirit in you.
(36:00):
And so to some of our listeners are thinking, I don't have that in me.
I don't have that in me.
But the big career change can be something as simple as go do something that makes you
happy.
Right.
You know, yeah, I'm so glad that you said that.
You don't have to do it on your own.
You can go work for somebody else.
(36:20):
And yeah, it's scary.
But just like you said, it's the stick with it.
Keep looking, keep doing.
Right.
I agree.
So is there any other unexpected benefit that you think you got out of doing this venturing
out on your own that maybe you didn't realize you was going to have in the beginning?
Well, I love working from anywhere I want to work from.
That's pretty nice.
(36:42):
And I love not having I'm in my lounge pants and my sweatshirt right now.
So I love that.
I love my dogs.
I love that they're my little business guys every day all day and just taking moments
to enjoy just beauty and and life.
You know, many times I know as a career person, I would I would get up in the morning when
(37:07):
it was dark and go to work in the dark and come home in the dark.
So now I'm, you know, taking these moments to sit outside and listen to the birds and
just enjoy, enjoy the things around me.
I know that might sound a little corny, but no, it sounds ideal for me.
I was going to say, I think that's what most people want.
Yeah, right.
Right.
(37:28):
And I don't know, I feel like there's ways to make that happen.
And maybe that means just starting small on the side, keeping your regular job and just
doing something a little extra that you love to find happiness in that.
But I think the big thing is it's exactly what you said.
You have to stick with it.
Nothing's going to be easy.
(37:48):
I mean, if it was easy, everybody would do it.
Right.
Absolutely.
You have to work it and you have to work it hard.
Nothing comes easy.
Right.
Especially in the tech world.
That's one thing that, you know, John and I have talked about a lot.
Like I do get a lot of people asking, will you help me?
Will you train me?
And I always say I'd love to, but it's not just it's just not something easy to do.
(38:12):
It's not something I can tell you in a text message or it's not a one time shot.
So one thing I may eventually do is like open up a like a training group.
Like I'll be your, I'll be your leader.
I'll be your voice and help you open your own group and do what I'm doing.
You can replicate what I'm doing and just be like a coach to people along the way.
(38:35):
I can't do that while I'm working full time every day.
But if I'm able to get my team built up and have it kind of run itself with my team, it
would be fun to teach others how to do what I do and how to stick with it and run their
groups as well.
Which is actually full circle because now you are back to being an educator and yet
(38:57):
it's on your own.
I actually love that.
Yeah.
Very nice.
Well, do you have any other words of wisdom for people looking for career changes?
I guess I just always come back to find something you love and something you're passionate about.
It could be as simple as like, I love finding coupons.
I love finding deals.
(39:18):
Got a craft that you're really good at and your friends are always telling you to share
about it.
There's just so many ways to tie what you love in with technology to promote your products
or your skills.
Nice.
So before we jump off for sure, I want you to tell people how to connect with you, how
(39:39):
to figure out how to get some of these deals and look at what you're doing today.
Oh, thank you.
Okay.
Probably the easiest way to find us is by going to our website and that's leaveitontheporch.com.
Our website is not the most beautiful place, but when you get there, there is a direct
(39:59):
link to our Facebook group, which makes it easy.
There's a direct link to my Instagram account.
And then there's also a way to sign up for the email list, which I send out one email
per day.
So I feel like that's the best way to reach us without being complicated.
So what does the email list get them?
I get up early every morning and make a list of about 70 to 100 deals that I find on Amazon
(40:25):
that I feel like our group members would love.
And I put that list together in my Amazon storefront and I send out one link.
So that one link connects you to all of those items.
So that's what goes in the email.
That's awesome.
That is awesome.
I have to say I was on because, you know, I'm kind of laid up.
(40:45):
I was on it the other day and I'm also a makeup fiend and you had so much makeup on there.
I was like, okay, just a few things, Connie, just a few things.
Don't be, don't be going crazy.
But they were good discounts too.
They were good discounts.
And that's where the collaboration with other group admins is so nice because somebody sent
(41:09):
that out to our group.
They said, hey, Rimmel has this amazing deal going on Amazon.
They've got like 50 items that are deeply discounted.
So I took that link that she sent me and pulled together that list, sent it out and that was
a great list.
Yeah, it was.
And I'm so glad because I actually did get some Amazon gift cards.
(41:32):
I had put a post out like feeling sorry, sorry for myself.
And I got some Amazon gift cards and I'm dying laughing.
Nice.
It all came together because I'm like, oh wow, now I get to go shopping again.
But yeah, thank you.
A little bit of retail therapy.
Thank you for that.
No kidding.
Scott, do you have anything else?
I don't think so.
I want to say thank you so much.
(41:52):
I got so much out of this if nobody else does, but I know they will.
I love, absolutely love seeing a person transition into a career like this.
And I love how you said that it may not be any easier than what you did, but you are
directing your own life.
You decide your hours.
You could do it of a night or a day.
You can be anywhere.
I just love the success story of what you've done, how big you've grown this.
(42:16):
And I'm excited to see where you're going to go in the future.
I really truly am.
Well, thank you.
And Joellyn, and there is nothing that I've seen from you that doesn't surprise me.
You have always been such an amazing lady, girl, when I knew you, and then an amazing
lady.
And I'm so happy for you.
I love that this has been such a great part of your life.
(42:40):
Thank you.
I feel fortunate.
Yes.
And we appreciate the fact that you were willing to talk to us and give our listeners some
insight.
Absolutely.
Well, thanks for having me.
I appreciate that.
Sure.
We'll talk to you soon.
Okay.
Thank you so much for listening to this episode of Our Life Beyond.
(43:03):
We really hope that you found our discussion insightful and inspiring, or at least brought
a smile to your day.
If you did enjoy this episode, please consider subscribing to the podcast on your favorite
platform and leave us a review.
For more information, resources, or show notes, visit our website at ourlifebeyond.com.
You can also follow us on social media, search for us on Facebook at Our Life Beyond.
(43:27):
We would love to hear from you, our listeners, so feel free to reach out with your questions,
comments, or suggestions through our Contact Us page at ourlifebeyond.com or on social
media.
And once again, thank you for joining us on this journey.
Till next time, remember, Life Beyond any challenge is possible, and we're here to navigate
(43:47):
it with you.
Stay strong, stay positive, and keep moving forward.
Stay positive, and keep moving forward.
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