Episode 008: Holistic Marketing Strategies for Neurodivergent Entrepreneurs with Abigail Schippers
I am SO excited to share this conversation with you! I had my good friend Abigail Schippers on the podcast, and this woman is absolutely incredible. I've been stalking her on the interwebs for about a year now (time isn't real, right?), and when my spirit guides pointed at her and said "HER," I knew I had to get her on the show.
Abigail is the founder of Bad Marketing Co., and she's transforming how service-based businesses approach marketing. But here's what I love most about her story – she went from being an underpaid yoga teacher to building a thriving marketing consultancy, all while being beautifully neurodivergent and living that digital nomad life I'm totally envious of as a married woman with teenage children.
This conversation is packed with real talk about holistic marketing, why being neuro-spicy is actually your superpower, and Instagram Stories strategies that will blow your mind. Plus, we get into the nitty-gritty of preventing burnout and building authentic networks. This one's gonna be all over the place in the best way, so buckle in everybody!
Her Entrepreneurial Origin Story Will Hit You Right in the Feels
Let me tell you about Abigail's journey because it's going to resonate with so many of you neurodivergent entrepreneurs out there. This woman knew she was neurodivergent way back in high school, and she was already like, "Yeah, I cannot live this way. I cannot go to class this many hours a day."
But here's where it gets interesting – she inherited a small dog kenneling business from her brother. Picture this: she's making minimum wage at her day job, then coming home and making $100-200 a night kenneling dogs. The lightbulb moment? "I was like, this is terrible. Like clearly owning a business is the way to go."
From that point on, she was "broken" – there was no way she was ever going to have a real job again. I mean, she stands by that. She can make so much more money, so much more easily, and in alignment with her truth from business.
Fast forward to her twenties, and she's living what seems like the dream – teaching yoga full-time at the best studio in the city. She loved inspiring people, helping them with their poses, being that person who could make others happy. But you know what the problem was? Yoga teachers don't make any money. Despite being respected and recognized, the financial reality just wasn't sustainable.
The universe had other plans though. She started helping with different jobs around the studio, which led her into digital marketing, and – plot twist – she had a natural knack for it! Soon she was working with multiple local wellness businesses, but the wellness community was "so scared of marketing and had been so burned so many times."
The Moment Everything Changed (And Got Dramatic)
Here's where her story gets real dramatic. When her marketing success started interfering with teaching yoga, the studio owners were like, "Oh, we actually have a problem with this." What a nice way to say she got let go, right? (She told me the actual reality was way, way more dramatic, but we'll leave it at that.)
But that forced moment was exactly what she needed. Suddenly she had a business she didn't really mean to start, and now it had to support her. So she got serious about it.
And here's what I love about her honesty – the fuel behind those early days wasn't just ambition. It was fury. She was absolutely pissed off that people in wellness, people trying to help others heal and be happy and whole and healthy, were getting paid "absolute shit."
"That anger drove me right up until I burned out a few years later, like it really built the entire first leg of the business. I was just mad."
Listen, I get this. That righteous anger that drives you to create change? That's real, and it's powerful, and it's also not sustainable long-term. Which brings us to everything she's learned about preventing burnout.
Instagram Stories: Your New Secret Weapon
Okay, let me blow your mind with Abigail's take on digital marketing. While everyone's obsessing over feed posts and reels, she's completely in love with Instagram Stories. And her reasoning is brilliant.
"I love the temporary nature of it, which I know bothers some people, but to me it feels like a playground of experimentation and connection," she told me. "It's such an interesting private door into my life, right? Where else can that happen on the internet with such fluid connection?"
She has this concept called "anchor stories" that I'm totally here for. These are consistently shared similar content pieces so your audience knows what to expect from you. For example, she regularly shares beautiful meals and moments with friends – not just because she loves it, but because she knows her ideal clients want that lifestyle too.
"I'm showing my life very naturally, but I'm also saying to these people like, 'Hey, I have what you want and I can help you get there.'"
Here's what you need to do: Start using Instagram Stories features like polls, questions, and sliding scales to actually get people interacting with you. It sounds simple, but if you just start asking your audience questions and giving them ways to engage, your connection levels will go through the roof.
And please, for the love of all that's holy, stop tilting your text in stories. Abigail called this out and I am here for it – it's so amateur and creates a terrible user experience. Text is 90 degrees. Just stop tilting it.
Why Being Neurodivergent is Actually Your Business Superpower
Can we talk about something for a minute? Abigail straight up believes that being neurodivergent is what has made her successful, and I am here for this perspective.
"If you just think of neurodivergence – autism, ADHD, dyslexia, all that – they're all just this one big spectrum. The reason that our nervous system is so sensitive, why lights are so bright and sounds are so loud, is because we were literally the ones that were like, 'I can go 3 days without eating while we go hunting. I can hear a twig crack a mile away in the forest.'"
We're not broken. We're not deficient. We're the ones who could hyper-focus and survive and thrive in ways neurotypical brains just can't. That sensitivity that feels overwhelming in daily life? It becomes a massive advantage when you apply it to understanding your clients and building business strategy.
We use "neuro-spicy" because it's just a neurodivergent person having fun. I love that reframe.
Real Talk About Burnout Prevention
I asked Abigail about her self-care practices, and this woman has it DOWN. She literally has several pages of specific things she does to make life work. But her approach goes way deeper than the typical "self-care" advice you see everywhere.
Right now, she's navigating life without her ADHD medication while living in Mexico City (the nomad life, remember?), so she's leaning heavily into alternative supports:
Supplements that actually work:
Lion's mane and reishi mushrooms (make sure the bottle says "made from flowering only" and is third-party tested)
Magnesium (she takes hers in the morning now)
Fish oil that's higher in EPA than DHA specifically for ADHD brains
Saffron and L-tyrosine for focus (but be careful with dosing – L-tyrosine can cause headaches if you take too much)
The exercise game-changer you need to know: This blew my mind. Weightlifting for 20-30 minutes (not longer!) followed by a 10-20 minute walk and 5-10 minutes of stretching creates what she calls "extended-release dopamine" for ADHD brains. The lactic acid from lifting gets into your brain and dramatically improves cognitive function for hours.
Our bodies like to lift heavy things and move them. Get in there, do it, don't worry about getting bulky.
Business structure that actually works for neurodivergent brains:
Minimum 30 minutes between client sessions to lay down and decompress
90-minute coaching sessions with a mandatory 5-minute break halfway through
No screens or work during breaks – "go shuffle your ass, go pee, go drink water, go yell at your dog"
Very intentional scheduling that accounts for your actual energy levels
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The Evolution from Trauma Hustle to Healthy Hustle
Here's something I really want you to understand. Abigail went from those trauma-driven hustle days where she could wake up, go live on social media, work at a restaurant from 11-5, hit up Target AND the grocery store, go out for drinks, come home, cook dinner, and somehow do it all again the next day.
Listen, listen. Trauma drive is real when you are in fight, flight, fawn, or freeze, and you don't even know it because none of us even knew that we were. We're all coming to terms with it now.
I used to be able to do the same thing. Wake up, get the kids to school, go live and do my makeup, work at a very busy restaurant, go to the grocery store, maybe hit up Target, maybe go out for drinks with the girls, come home, cook dinner, wash hands, do it again. What? I can't even go to Walmart and Target in the same day now.
Now her approach is what she calls "healthy hustle." In this season of dealing with mold exposure recovery and being off medication, she's had to prioritize ruthlessly: "Clients first. And like, of course, connecting with prospects, things like that. And then if I have time, I will promote my business."
She asked a question that really hit me: "How long do you want to keep working as hard as you are now? If you're telling yourself, I don't need a coach, ask yourself, how long do I want to keep working this fucking hard?"
Because here's the thing – we know everybody either wants more time, money, or energy, or they want to save time, money, or energy. Those are the only motivating factors for hiring help in business.
Building Your Network Without Being Weird About It
Abigail has this philosophy about networking that I absolutely love. She wants to be the big fish in the room 10% of the time and the small fish 90% of the time. Because being around people who are further along in their journey (not "better than you" – just further along) raises your bar.
"If you're a big fish in a small pond too often, you will slowly die," she explained. "I was very much a big fish in a small pond in my home city. While that helped me launch my career, I hit the ceiling of what I could do in that community really quickly."
Her networking approach is brilliant:
Think about what value you bring to relationships
Remember that successful people are still human with fears and insecurities
Be genuinely supportive without expecting anything in return
Don't speak up in rooms full of people committed to misunderstanding you
And here's a truth bomb: you're going to find that some people you thought had your back really don't when you start being successful. That's okay. Let them go. We do not have enough energy every day to be trying to convince people that don't want to be convinced that you know your shit.
The Power of the Right People
One moment in our conversation absolutely got me. Abigail shared about texting her best friend when she was feeling dysregulated: "Dude, I'm dysregulated. I'm fine, but I'm just dysregulated and I'm going on this podcast tomorrow. I wanna be my best self. Will you say some nice things to me?"
Her friend immediately responded with love and later sent a voice message that put her "back into my power as a person."
The beautiful part? She didn't know this best friend three years ago. The people she was hanging out with three years ago weren't the ones who would hold her in her power or support her vision.
This is why community is so important. The right people will see you, support you, and remind you who you are when you forget.
If You Want to Work with Abigail (And You Should)
If you're reading this thinking, "I want that flow and support in my business," then you need to know about Abigail's work. Her specialty is taking content that's not converting – maybe it gets you followers but not clients – and finding exactly where people are getting stuck in your path to working with them.
"I find where people are getting stuck in your path to working with you, and I fix it. I help you create messaging and content and shifts so that people move through that path a lot easier."
She offers both done-for-you services for established businesses and coaching/consulting for those still building. And get this – she's offering my podcast listeners 10% off her 90-minute one-off sessions with the code MELANIE10. This is her first-ever discount offer!
These sessions give you clear, actionable direction without a huge commitment, which is perfect if you're feeling stuck with too many options.
Connect with this incredible human:
Website: Bad Marketing Co.
LinkedIn: Abigail Schippers
What I Really Want You to Take Away
Abigail's journey isn't just about business strategy – though she's brilliant at that. It's about understanding yourself, working WITH your neurodivergent brain instead of against it, and building a community that actually supports your growth.
Her holistic approach to marketing honors who you are while building the business and life you actually want. Whether you're struggling with imposter syndrome, burning out from overwork, or trying to figure out how to make your marketing convert, her insights remind us that success doesn't have to destroy our wellbeing.
You don't have to choose between being successful and being human. You can have both.
Ready for more real talk about neurodivergent entrepreneurship? Join my newsletter where I dive deep into this stuff. I promise it's the real, messy, beautiful truth about building something that matters while honoring who you are.
