She Chose Again

Out of Edits

Women tell you they quit the job, changed careers, moved abroad, started the business, or built a completely different life. Cool...but what happened in between? She Chose Again is hosted by writer and Out of Edits Founder & Editor Elle Mills. It’s an interview series about women changing direction in how they work, earn, and live, and the messy middle between deciding something needs to change and figuring out what comes next. We get into the part that usually gets skipped. How did she make money? What skills carried over? What didn’t work? How long did it take? What did the change actually require? And what happened when the original plan didn’t work out? These aren’t pretty before-and-after stories. You’ll hear from women who changed careers, built businesses, moved countries, started over, changed their minds, tried things that didn’t work, and built lives that look different from what they once expected. Elle brings her own experience of changing careers, building businesses, living in different cities and countries, and spending 9+ years working in digital business with six and seven figure companies. She Chose Again is an Out of Edits interview series. Out of Edits is a global publication exploring career change, starting over, transferable skills, alternative ways of working and earning, and the many ways women build lives outside the default path. New conversations explore what becomes possible when women question the obvious next step...and what it actually takes to choose something else. Find more from Out of Edits: Sunday Letters: https://letters.outofedits.com/ Website: https://outofedits.com/ YouTube, Instagram + Threads: @ooecollective

Episodes

  1. 16h ago

    You Can't Manifest Your Way Out of Everything

    Coach Violetta Pleshakova has a blunt answer for anyone who's been told they can manifest any life they want: "I regret to inform that it is a freaking lie." She grew up in 90s Moscow as the girl who brought Dostoevsky to parties, moved to Germany alone at 21, and fell into coaching before anyone was selling six-figure programs. Then she got sent to Cape Town, and she says her soul came home there. What came next was harder. All four of her grandparents died within two years, then she lost her dad. She spent years trying to move to Cape Town on a Russian passport, which got a lot more complicated after 2022. In this episode of She Chose Again, we talk about the parts of starting over that people usually skip. She grew her business through grief, dated while men assumed she was a flaky digital nomad, pulled the plug on a course right before launch, and spent seven months being "nobody." We also get into faith, and why she thinks manifestation culture leaves so many people blaming themselves when life doesn't go to plan. If you've ever done everything "right" and still watched the plan fall apart, this one's for you. Find Violetta: https://violettapleshakova.com/ and @violettapleshakova on Instagram and Threads Get my Sunday newsletter, Okay, Now What?, about changing your mind and figuring out what comes next: https://letters.outofedits.com/ She Chose Again is an Out of Edits series about women who changed direction and what actually happened next. https://outofedits.com/ | @ooecollective

  2. Oct 20

    How She Rebuilt Her Business After Taking a Year Off

    Megan Czarnyszka took a year away from her business to work as a substitute teacher. When the school year ended and she needed to start earning again, she turned to LinkedIn with what she calls a “desperation post.” That post helped her find her way back into business. But this time, she had a different idea of how she wanted to run it. In this episode of She Chose Again, I talk with Megan about the winding road from nursing school to nonprofit work to entrepreneurship, and how her business has evolved through three different names and several versions of what she thought she wanted to do. Megan is the founder of Anchored Strategy Collective, where she helps purpose-driven founders and nonprofits with operations and marketing strategy. She's also neurodivergent, a mom, and now a full-time finance student at UW-Milwaukee. We talk about why she stepped away from her business, the difference between staying busy and actually making progress, and how she stopped trying to do everything herself. Her current business model brings other independent service providers into client projects, giving her more room to focus on strategy while creating opportunities for other people. There's also a great conversation about how much control we really have over our time when we're running a business, and whether the way we've always worked is the way we want to keep working. CONNECT WITH MEGAN Anchored Strategy Collective: https://www.anchoredstrategycollective.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/meganczarnyszka CONNECT WITH ELLE & OUT OF EDITS Read Out of Edits: https://outofedits.com/ Subscribe to Okay, Now What?, my Sunday newsletter about questioning the default path and figuring out what comes next: https://letters.outofedits.com/ ABOUT SHE CHOSE AGAIN She Chose Again is an Out of Edits interview series hosted by Elle Mills. Each episode features a woman who's made a change in her life, career, or business, and the story of what happened afterward.

  3. Oct 13

    She Got Laid Off While Living Abroad. Here's What She Did Next.

    Ariana Sutton was laid off while living abroad, even though her employer had approved her remote work arrangement. After two years as a digital nomad, she suddenly had to figure out how to support herself without giving up the life she'd built overseas. Instead of returning to the United States, Ariana stayed in Colombia, took an unexpected sabbatical, and started exploring different ways to earn money. In this episode of She Chose Again, Ariana joins Elle Mills to talk about what happened after the layoff, from navigating unemployment and living off savings to online English tutoring, freelance UX design, AI training, and eventually building a business helping other people earn income while living abroad. We also get into her experiences living in Colombia, Vietnam, and Albania, what it's like navigating different cultures as a Black American woman, and why financial security plays such an important role in having the freedom to choose where and how you live. Ariana shares what worked, what didn't, and how her relationship with work, money, and the idea of settling down has changed. If you've ever wondered how people actually afford to live abroad, what happens when a remote job disappears, or whether you can build a life without following a traditional career path, this conversation is for you. CONNECT WITH ARIANA She Earns Abroad (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/@SheEarnsAbroad Ariventuras (travel YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/@Ariventuras Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ariventuras/ OKAY, NOW WHAT? NEWSLETTER Subscribe to Elle's Sunday newsletter for more stories and perspectives on starting over, changing direction, and figuring out what comes next. https://letters.outofedits.com/ ABOUT SHE CHOSE AGAIN She Chose Again is an Out of Edits interview series about women who changed their minds, changed direction, and chose something different for their lives. These conversations go beyond the finished version. We talk about what happened next, how the change actually worked, what it cost, how they made money, what didn’t work, and the details that usually get skipped. ABOUT OUT OF EDITS Out of Edits is a global publication for women who’ve outgrown the default path, exploring choice, reinvention, and the many ways women are building lives beyond the expected script. Read Out of Edits: https://www.outofedits.com/

  4. Oct 6

    She Quit Her Job Without Savings and Built a Business Anyway

    The conversation explores Diamond Garcia's journey from a miserable corporate job to becoming a successful entrepreneur, highlighting her struggles, mindset shifts, and the importance of networking. Diamond shares her experiences with various jobs, side hustles, and the evolution of her business, emphasizing the significance of autonomy and personal fulfillment in her career choices. In this conversation, Diamond shares her journey as an entrepreneur, discussing the challenges and successes she has faced while balancing her business and motherhood. She emphasizes the importance of consistency in content creation, the evolution of her business strategies, and the significance of investing in personal growth and future planning. Takeaways Embrace autonomy in workNetworking is the key to successInvest in personal growthChapters 00:00 From Misery to Motivation02:53 The Power of Mindset and Planning05:54 Navigating Career Transitions09:00 The Reality of Financial Runway12:02 Discovering Hidden Skills14:59 Networking with Purpose17:59 Evolving Business Models19:34 Building Consistency in Content Creation22:26 The Entrepreneurial Journey and Adaptation24:59 Balancing Motherhood and Business27:07 Learning from Mistakes in Entrepreneurship29:14 Prioritizing Self-Care and Hobbies32:23 Creating Systems for Business Success35:40 Investing in Future GrowthSubscribe to Okay, Now What? Okay, Now What? is my Sunday newsletter about changing your mind, choosing again, and figuring out what comes next when the old plan doesn’t work anymore. Subscribe: https://letters.outofedits.com/ Connect with Diamond Garcia Website: https://sparkleassoc.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sparklebydiamond/ Threads: https://www.threads.com/@sparklebydiamond About She Chose Again She Chose Again is an Out of Edits interview series about women who changed their minds, changed direction, and chose something different for their lives. These conversations go beyond the finished version. We talk about what happened next, how the change actually worked, what it cost, how they made money, what didn’t work, and the details that usually get skipped. About Out of Edits Out of Edits is a global publication for women who’ve outgrown the default path, exploring choice, reinvention, and the many ways women are building lives beyond the expected script. Read Out of Edits: https://www.outofedits.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ooecollective/ Threads: https://www.threads.com/@ooecollective

  5. Sep 29

    Endometriosis Changed Her Life. So She Built a Wellness Business.

    Monique Brewster is preparing to leave a career in cybersecurity to make Maisha Haus, the women’s wellness brand she built after being diagnosed with endometriosis, her full-time work. In this episode of She Chose Again, we talk about what it looks like to build the next thing before you’ve fully left the old one. Monique shares how years of debilitating periods eventually led to an endometriosis diagnosis, how that experience shaped Maisha Haus, and why building a wellness business forced her to rethink the way she was working too. We get into the parts of the business that didn’t work, including trying to follow the traditional yoga-teacher path and realizing one-on-one sessions were burning her out. Monique also talks about balancing Maisha Haus with cybersecurity consulting, bringing in operational support, growing her in-person wellness events, finding most of her clients offline, and the bigger vision she has for eventually creating an actual Maisha Haus women can retreat to. This is a conversation about endometriosis, entrepreneurship, boundaries, and what can happen when the thing you’re building has to work for your life too. Subscribe to Okay, Now What? Okay, Now What? is my Sunday newsletter about changing your mind, choosing again, and figuring out what comes next when the old plan doesn’t work anymore. Subscribe: https://letters.outofedits.com/ Connect with Monique Brewster Website: https://themaishahaus.com/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/maishahaus TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@maishahaus About She Chose Again She Chose Again is an Out of Edits interview series about women who changed their minds, changed direction, and chose something different for their lives. These conversations go beyond the finished version. We talk about what happened next, how the change actually worked, what it cost, how they made money, what didn’t work, and the details that usually get skipped. About Out of Edits Out of Edits is a global publication for women who’ve outgrown the default path, exploring choice, reinvention, and the many ways women are building lives beyond the expected script. Read Out of Edits: https://www.outofedits.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ooecollective/ Threads: https://www.threads.com/@ooecollective

  6. Sep 22

    She Sold 4 Successful Online Businesses. Then Started Over.

    What happens when the businesses you built are successful, making money...and you realize you don’t want them anymore? Cindy Gordon built multiple online businesses, sold four of them, and chose to start over while the businesses were still working. In this episode of She Chose Again, Cindy takes us back to the food blog that started as a hobby and unexpectedly became a real source of income. From there, she went on to build and run multiple websites, hire a team, create different revenue streams, and eventually make the decision to sell. We talk about what that process actually looked like, including how the businesses made money, how she found buyers, what went into selling them, and what made her willing to walk away from something that was still successful. And because Cindy has spent 17 years building businesses online, we also get into what she sees changing now: SEO, AI visibility, personal branding, getting found online, and why sounding like an actual person matters more than ever. In this episode, we talk about: How a hobby food blog became a businessWhen Cindy realized the income was becoming significantBuilding and managing multiple websites at onceHiring a teamWhy she decided to sell businesses that were still workingHow her businesses made moneyHow she found buyersNetworking, cold outreach, and building relationshipsStarting over with a completely different businessSEO, AI, and the changing way people get discovered onlineWhat didn’t work along the wayWhat Cindy is choosing nowSubscribe to Okay, Now What?Okay, Now What? is my Sunday newsletter about changing your mind, choosing again, and figuring out what comes next when the old plan doesn’t work anymore. Subscribe: https://letters.outofedits.com/ Connect with Cindy GordonWebsite: https://exclusivelycindy.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/exclusivelycindy/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@cindygordon About She Chose AgainShe Chose Again is an Out of Edits interview series about women who changed their minds, changed direction, and chose something different for their lives. These conversations go beyond the finished version. We talk about what happened next, how the change actually worked, what it cost, how they made money, what didn’t work, and the details that usually get skipped. About Out of EditsOut of Edits is a global publication for women who’ve outgrown the default path, exploring choice, reinvention, and the many ways women are building lives beyond the expected script. Read Out of Edits: https://www.outofedits.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ooecollective/ Threads: https://www.threads.com/@ooecollective

  7. Sep 15

    Starting Over in Your 30s & 40s: Career Changes, Money, Solo Travel & Living Abroad

    What does starting over actually look like when it happens more than once? Usually, I’m the one asking the questions on She Chose Again. This time, my friend Tanisha interviewed me. We talked about the many times I’ve changed direction...leaving corporate, moving across the country, changing careers, becoming a freelancer, traveling solo, living abroad, and figuring out the money along the way. This is less of a clean “I changed my life and everything worked out” story and more about what starting over actually looked like for me. The plans that changed. The money decisions. The periods where I had no idea what I was doing. The times I disappeared while trying to figure things out. And why I’ve gotten so comfortable changing my mind when something isn’t working. If you’re thinking about starting over in your 30s or 40s, changing careers, freelancing, solo travel, living abroad, or creating a life that looks different from what you originally planned, this conversation gets into the parts that usually get skipped. In this episode, we talk about: Career changes and leaving corporateMoney and preparing for major life changesFreelancing and alternative ways of workingSolo travel and living abroadStarting over without having the whole planWhat the messy middle actually feels likeChanging your mind without treating it like failure About Out of Edits Out of Edits is a global publication for women who’ve outgrown the default path, exploring choice, reinvention, and the many ways women are building lives beyond the expected script. Subscribe for more conversations with women who changed direction, started over, and figured out what came next. KEEP READING WITH OUT OF EDITS If you're figuring out what you want next, Okay, Now What? is my Sunday letter about choice, reinvention, and expanding your idea of what's possible. Get the letters: https://letters.outofedits.com/

About

Women tell you they quit the job, changed careers, moved abroad, started the business, or built a completely different life. Cool...but what happened in between? She Chose Again is hosted by writer and Out of Edits Founder & Editor Elle Mills. It’s an interview series about women changing direction in how they work, earn, and live, and the messy middle between deciding something needs to change and figuring out what comes next. We get into the part that usually gets skipped. How did she make money? What skills carried over? What didn’t work? How long did it take? What did the change actually require? And what happened when the original plan didn’t work out? These aren’t pretty before-and-after stories. You’ll hear from women who changed careers, built businesses, moved countries, started over, changed their minds, tried things that didn’t work, and built lives that look different from what they once expected. Elle brings her own experience of changing careers, building businesses, living in different cities and countries, and spending 9+ years working in digital business with six and seven figure companies. She Chose Again is an Out of Edits interview series. Out of Edits is a global publication exploring career change, starting over, transferable skills, alternative ways of working and earning, and the many ways women build lives outside the default path. New conversations explore what becomes possible when women question the obvious next step...and what it actually takes to choose something else. Find more from Out of Edits: Sunday Letters: https://letters.outofedits.com/ Website: https://outofedits.com/ YouTube, Instagram + Threads: @ooecollective