I want to share how I met Michelle Rohr and Aimee Johanan and how they changed my life by empowering me and helping me find my magic through creating printables and planners. I recorded this while in the drive thru to get coffee and the fangirling began to just flow! This is a perfect example of something I never would have done before meeting Michelle and Aimee. Record my thoughts and feelings and hit publish? Um, no ma’am! But that clearly isn’t the case now. lol. I just love these ladies so much and if you need help finding the following in your life: direction and your voice, they will help you on your journey too! The magic is in you and here is how I met them and they changed my life. Grab a carpet square and your favorite snack and stay awhile. ;)
Where do I even start with Michelle and Aimee? They are the most incredible women I’ve met in a very, very long time. When I was going to work in the morning taking the kids to daycare and …both of them were in daycare at the time. I had an early shift to get to my management role in corporate. I would go back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. I had a good handle on things for awhile but I needed help with all of the things. They were piling on with layers of the kid’s needs, my needs, house needs, etc. I was constantly looking for something to organize my time and I clearly wasn’t doing it the best way.
So I thought about planners and I tried many and I have a huge notebook graveyard. I tried those and nothing seemed to be the right fit or they were too precious. Then I got into bullet journaling and that worked the best so far. Writing down my tasks, migrating them to the next day and going on and on. But I was tired of making spreads and everything was really redundant. I was running out of time to make a whole weekly spread, a whole monthly spread, etc. Somehow I found Michelle and she had The Secret Owl Society at the time. She was talking about taking 100% responsibility for your life which was a sucker punch to the gut but I knew that was true. Sometimes you just kind of feel like someone is going to save you from fairytales and things but that is not the reality. I think I got a couple printable planners from her that she’s made before and they were working very well. I loved the way she broke things down because it was an inside peek into another working mom with two kids who were younger than mine and she had a successful business. [I gasped here because someone backed out really quickly in the drive thru with a big truck, caught me off guard twice, lol.]
She had the Ultimate Life Binder and I absolutely loved it and it worked very well for me. After that she was talking about planner courses and what you could build yourself. Little did I know what I was going to embark upon. I thought I was just going to be learning about making planners and I didn’t think anything of it but that isn’t what it is. What you learn is empowerment. You learn self discovery. The things that work for you, acceptance of yourself in that your way is just as good as anyone else’s way. Who knew how she set up her days, weeks, months and years would help me with mine and then I can take what she has and it make it fit my life even more streamlined. Then I can make my own planner and other people can resonate with that too! All different designs and things like that.
Taking the Passive Income Planner Girl course not only got me into accepting what I do as valid, something worth sharing and something others would value and use, there was also an amazing community. A community of women who were likeminded, were feeling the same kind of rut and needed the same kind of help. We honestly had no idea that was what we were going to be getting out of this. Story after story of hearing other women, we didn’t realize how much our voices had been quieted over the years. And why we were in the state of “I’m not sure what I like” and the cycle of going into other business groups and asking multiple questions without taking a step forward on our own. “I want to start a business but bank should I use though?” “I want to be on social more but what platform should I choose though?” Never taking a moment to ask yourself first or try something because you were so scared of “failing” that you just want to get an A++ in whatever route you are taking. That isn’t how you learn and grow. Give yourself permission to say “it’s ok”. Just because you try something and it doesn’t work the way you thought, you can still repurpose, maneuver and pivot. So that is how I got introduced to Michelle.
Then when everyone was making printables, there was one lady in there who had the most incredible skill and design. I had never seen printables designed in this way, they spoke to my heart. My design heart was just in love with hers and her name is Aimee Johanan. Absolutely smitten with her designs, how was she doing this?! How are we using the same program and you are doing this? So incredible, love her! Then she started to talk and she had the most beautiful calming voice and the things she had to say about her own philosophies and things like that. And so with Aimee she was actually making her printables in her Etsy shop and Michelle found her, loved her, purchased her printables and then realized that Aimee was actually one of her students! Then I was just sold, I was super sold. I said, “I’m a super fan from now on”. “I absolutely love Aimee and now whatever Michelle does, I am a fan and can’t get enough!” So I have followed everything Michelle has put for offer, anything she recommends I absolutely love, etc.
They are just incredible and then they started teaming up! Michelle had a YouTube show where she pops on and everything she said was from the heart and genuine. I would listen and empowered and I felt so strong. When I was transitioning from my corporate job to a full-time artist, she was a constant. She helped me through all of those stages and gave me a safe place to land. So she had her YouTube videos and I would listen to those and watch those. Then she teamed up with Aimee and it became the Michelle and Aimee show! It was cool because Aimee was more of my perspective as a student and Michelle was the leader. Somewhere along the lines they both provide fire information of empowerment and encouragement and their journeys have converged.
They are just incredible. I just love them. I think you will love them. If you are looking for a way to make passive income and to empower yourself, their planners are incredible. Then once they shared how to make printed planners they started getting into digital planners and everything skyrocketed. Then you don’t have to worry about ink, etc. It’s a whole new world. You need an iPad or a device and it just changes everything. With printed paper you have to carry it all around, you have to have it on you, etc. My schedules are super flexible, I need something that is super adaptable and so getting into digital planners was perfect for me. I made my own and I use it every day, it is called the Sweet Life Binder and it’s the best tool I have found.
Michelle and Aimee have impacted my life in so many ways. After digital planners they started to make a life and business coaching plan which is called The Magic Is You. This is what they have always said with planners and printables, the magic is you. You have something to share and step by step systems for someone else’s success can only take you so far. Go back to what is working for you and share that with the world! Whatever you like: design, colors, super minimal, super detailed, etc. I absolutely love them! :)
xo,
Erika