Find Your Travel Tribe

You want to you want to open? I know I usually opened, you wanna.

It was really weird last week when I said, hey, hey.

Hey, all right, I'll do it. Hey, hey, guys, did you miss me?

I know I wasn't feeling so great last week, but you guys had an awesome show because honestly, you had one of my faves. Marsha, Marsha, Marsha, She's amazing. So but I did miss you, guys. I'm so glad that Brown Ambitioned. It's back and we are black and brown. So I'm excited for today's show. Are you excited for Toda's show?

Mandy?

I've been waiting for this because you've been talking about her NonStop. I feel like since we launched Brown Ambition. I can't believe it's taken us two years to have her on.

I know we have a special guest that you'll hear a little bit more about later by this time. By the time they hear from us next, Mandy, I'll be a missus A miss yeah, a missus like.

You married woman. Yeah to the dog side.

I'm joining the double ring club.

Wait, Mandy, so wait with the ring, which one goes, which one goes to the bottom your your your engagement ring or your wedding ring.

There's no rules. No, don't believe in any rules. I mean, I put my wedding band below it. There's also an unspoken rule of like when do you stop wearing your engagement ring? Because you know what I mean, Like there's a lot of anyway. I don't know, just whenever you just get tired of it poking you in the face when you sleep. I guess.

Yeah no. But I'm excited though, so I can't wait to see you there.

I can, we can, we can talk about it right again. Okay, awesome, Yeah, I'm so excited. I'm sorry I had to miss your surprise bridal shower yesterday. I'm getting my teeth ripped out of my face.

No, it's fine, because I almost missed it. I was like, I don't feel like going. Girols, like you only should.

Go, so like we were having a surprise party.

No, I didn't know.

My friend Linda told me that she was doing a speaking engagement, her very first one. And I was like Linda, because Linda's kind of on the shy side, and I'm like what, And.

She's like, can you please come with me?

I know you're used to it, but I was like exhausted and tired, and I wasn't in the greatest mood. And Jerrelle was like, well, Superman, I mean, look at me. I sound like you now, Man, he's just putting people's names off. Superman was like, you should really go. I was like, I don't any line I got.

He's like, you really need to get out of the house.

And I didn't really realize why. And I was like, why is everybody pushing me to get out of the house. So I was slightly suspicious, but I didn't know that's what it was. I was just like, what's happening? And it turned out to be awesome. Honestly, it was so me. It was just a lunch with like I don't know, it must have been like fifteen twenty people if that, just like my closest family and his family and friends,

But I was like, no, I want this fancy dress.

I have our priorities. Don't tell me anything. I want to be surprised. I want to be stunned. I think it's Supergirl going to be throwing pedals.

No, Supergirl is like, you know, she's not. I don't think so anyway, because we're honestly, because it's just we're going to the justice of the piece and then we're going to have lunch with our family and friends.

I know it's going to be all very cute, very humble, but come on at the wedding.

I know, right, we're definitely gonna do like a whole And it's crazy because I so we're because I live right next to really beautiful park and so it's beautiful. So we're going to take like hours worth of pictures beforehand of like just pictures, and my friend, well, my video guy have you ever seen any of my budgetist videos on social media or online. He's amazing. Well, he's a director really, and he's young, like in his twenties. So he's actually here because he's coming with me to

I'm so excited for you.

Yeah, I'm excited.

It's weird, I know, like, was it weird the transition, like when you guys like came back to the apartment where you guys were like, hey husband.

I mean I was a little bit. No, not weird. It did sort of feel I don't know, we'll see how Superman does, but I did feel like Enrique for the first time, like a little bit of that Latin machismo came out where he's like, yes, I am a husband and you are my wife.

Somebody else, the young woman Andrea who's making my dress she's got this amazing if you ever get a chance to go to Pantora Bridal like her, uh Pantra p A n t O r A.

She's on Instagram and like and she has her own webite. She's like twenty eight Mandy. She's literally a.

She's an artist. Her stuff is amazing. I'm like, wait, how old are you again?

And are in the lines and I'm almost thirty.

Her stuff is I mean, I just can't even describe how amazing. So she made my dress and she just got married herself just last year, and she said the same thing. She was like, cause it's just like us. She lived with her husband.

Beforehand, and it was like, I was like, it didn't really change when you guys got married. She's like, no, but he definitely was more protective, Like that's my wife, you know. And she said that, you know, you might see that a little bit. But other than that, she's like, it's the same awesome.

Yeah.

Well, I mean if it was her, there's what I'll say. If it was good before, it'll be good after. It was bad before, it'll be bad after that. Is that a downer now?

Because not for me, because I don't think it's good now, you know.

I just it's good things worse. There's what I'll say. Yeah, no, I make good things better and actually bad things worse.

Yeah. I'm just glad.

I'm really fortunate in that I found the perfectly imperfect partner because I can be a hot mess and I'm always like, yeah, my bad about everything that's gonna happen.

But here it is. And the fact that he's like, oh my crazy baby, I'm like thanks.

My mom was very excited when I told her you're getting married.

Oh she was.

She sends her best.

Oh thank you, mama, Tifa. That's so cute. I love your mom and your sister.

They're so cute.

So anything new happening that I missed out in your life? I feel like we haven't spoken in so long.

I got a tooth taken out on Sunday, which was the worst thing I've ever done. And Magnify money got acquired.

I heard. I was like, wait, I mean that's like every CEOs, well most people who build a business. That's like, you know, like the golden fleee isn't the right terminology. I don't know if the golden flee like the golden goose, like the golden parachute, like you know what I mean, basically the end goal.

At a second, I'm turning it to my dad because he always mixes up like his his like you know, he'll be like, hey, I don't know, like right, dad always mixes up his terminology, like that's not the word you think I think you meant to use, but you know what I mean.

Yeah, So it was. It's all sort of been obviously really really really really really been sitting on this for a little while, not as long as the founders of the company, but for too long. I hate keeping secrets. Super exciting Magnify Money. We were bought by lending Tree, which is a huge, a huge player in like the

I was thinking that it was like, you seem pretty excited considerably.

I've always I'm like, yes, it's okay. It's the kind of acquisition where people don't lose their jobs, and in fact, my job will get a lot bigger and scarier soon.

So like, isn't it so crazy? How you know?

You're like, oh, I'm going to leave this huge conglomerate Yahoo to do this, you know, you know, a little smaller, a little humbler job, and all of a sudden, you're like, psych, I was kicking ass.

Sometimes I wonder where I got the balls. I'm like, gow, how did I do that? I could? I don't even. Yeah, I think that being so far away from having left like a big corporation or leaving y'allhoo, a big brand, like a recognizable media brand, being so far I'm like, I realized now the huge risk I took, now that it's sort of paid off, as that makes sense, Like I guess I was just like putting my hand down and doing the work and not really thinking about everything

Are we ready for our guests?

I'm ready?

Are you ready be a listeners?

I hope you are, because I think you're going to really enjoy her, because I know I do. She's not just you know, like a business owner. She's not just the innovator, not just to influencer. She's also my friend.

Come on down. I'm so loopy, I'm exhausted. Might gonna lie.

I'm gonna save this one. We have the delightful Avita Robinson on the show today of No Madness Without further Ado.

Here's our chat with Avida two snaps.

Yay, hey, hey, hey, be a listener.

So I'm super excited.

You know, we don't usually have a whole bunch of guests on Brown Ambition because you know Mandy stink Now, I'm just joking. No, I'm always the one that's like, aw but no, we don't have a whole lot of a whole lot of guests. But this guest I'm super duper excited about because she is the founder of a movement that I'm a part of. She's one of the reasons why I travel so dang all much. We have a Vita Turquoise Robins, and she is the founder of No Madness.

Welcome a Vida. Thank you, ladies, I really appreciate it.

Thanks so much for coming on, Avita. I'm so excited because I feel like Tiffany has been talking about you since the founding of Brown Ambition.

Yeah, that's my sweetheart, So Avida, like, I think, well not everyone's familiar with No Madness, So let's start with that.

Like what is no Madness? Yea? And like how did you start it? Why did you start it? So?

No Madness is an international travel group. We are approaching seventeen thousand members right now worldwide, and we are made up primarily of Brown women, African American women eighty percent, although we have all ethnicities and all gender affiliations as a part of No Madness travel Tribe, but we definitely are skewed more towards African American women travelers that are

Of their kind of their juncture.

So it's yeah, yeah, but it's an online resource where literally, if you were going to travel anywhere literally tomorrow, you could just say, I want to roll out to Italy tomorrow, Where's the best place.

To stay, who's in town?

Is there a couch I can crash on, where's the restaurant and the club to hit up? And it's a twenty four to seven communication cycle of people really just supporting one another, and that kind of bleeds into offline relationships which are done by over one hundred meetups that we have around the world throughout the year. We have approaching fifty ambassadors for No Madness right now regionally in

To different sites and landmarks, to you know, a.

Group of people getting together just to have dinner and vibe out in some crazy locale, all the way to huge events that we throw, like the one that's coming up soon actually is our annual barbecue, which has morphed from an event that's usually around two hundred to two hundred and fifty members and now we have over six hundred coming.

So that's what I've been working on.

I remember, like when I first joined No Madness, I think like I had just missed out on like this trip you guys were going to India, and I was so jealous because I remember I had seen pictures of the Holy Festival where they throw like that powder, and I put it literally on my vision board and I said, this time, I didn't even know if you were ever going to go back, but I said, I'm going to go to Holy with No Madness, and I put it

And I remember you having a buy in.

So Mandy, they have like when a Vida used to do trips, they would have buyings that would sell out literally in five minutes. Yeah, and so they had a buyo and I told my date, I was like, so in about five minutes, this trip that I want to go on is having a buy in. So I'm whiving up my computer and I'm I'm handling my business. So we were at a restaurant, I took my computer and

It was amazing. So what made you like think and I don't want to take up all your questions many but what made you wait?

Wait, wait, I trying to keep up.

Maybe like hould up now?

I have so many questions. That's why I'm going to be like pull the brakes. Okay. So first, because I've heard about these trips, these amazing trips that you guys planned, So are you part Like because I've been on these organized trips that I booked through a travel like a travel agency, and it's all sort of like planned out for us and you just pay a fee. Do you guys offer that as well, like more than kind of just a community but actual trips.

Well, yeah, so we're approaching six years old, right, and so for the first five years that was primarily what we've done. And five years i'm my team as well

To India alone.

So they were like, look like I'm jumping in on somebody who's she's been doing this for a couple of years. She's been going to India even before she started No Madness on her own.

So you know, I had the legwork and the dues paid as far as India was concerned.

But yeah, what we would do is drop the buy in and we don't get involved with flights. We never have and that makes sense just because my members live all around the world. Nobody's ever leaving from the same place at the same time, let alone a group of you know, somewhere between fifteen.

To twenty people.

So we would take care of the itinerary points as well as the lodging and like round trip transportation to and from the airports, as well as of the itinerary points that we created. So that's essentially what people would be buying into when it was a no madness package.

Oh that sounds amazing. I mean, as someone I accidentally went to India alone last year. Not accidentally. I went for work and I was like, well, I'm all the way in India. I need to actually go to Mumbai and like see what this is like. And I've always been like a confident, independent traveler, but one of the first things I did was arranged like a get part of join like a walking tour, and there were three other single women on the tour and we just sort

Yeah, India specifically is a very polarizing place, and I've heard it and I've seen it.

You know, India for the most part, when.

People go with us, they you know, they want to go back.

Or they really took something from it.

It has the ability to be a real life changing trip because it will humble you upon arrival. Yes, and and that's one of the biggest things. That's why I've gone to India every year for the last seven years in a row, even before i started No Madness, And so that's how I've built these organic connections with people.

It was growing out in its earlier days.

I mean, within six months of us starting the group, we were on a trip to bocus El Toro, Patama, so and that was not something that I had foresight on or you know, saw when I created the community, I had no idea that it was going to turn into a business. I remember entrepreneur dot com did an interview on me, and I can't remember if it was in the title, but it's.

Definitely in the interview where she.

Told me, she's like, you know, you're kind of like an accidental entrepreneur. And I was like, actually, yeah, you're kind of right because I was looking for community. You know, I was a three time expat. Right after I graduated college. I had moved to Paris and was doing filmmaking with the New York Film Academy, and Parish just kind of like sucked me in.

And you know, you're very raw right after college.

You're very raw. You're emotional, you're sensitive. I'm an mpath by nature too, so it's like everybody's coming at you.

With a what are you gonna do? What are you going to do?

And it's like, actually, I need everybody to have a seat because I'm nervous and you're making me anxious, like while I figure out this thing called life and for me, while everybody.

Else was trying to hustle so hard to get, you know, a job, I actually.

Went and I started traveling right after, literally six weeks after I got my diploma, and I was the commencement speaker of my graduating class. Like from the time I got off that stage at Madison Square Garden. It was about a six week countdown from when I got on a plane and I left. So while everybody else was looking for jobs, I was looking for me.

Sure, yeah, yeah.

I feeling finding a kindred spirit. That was exactly what I did in twenty twenty. My little brother's famous quote was he was seventeen. He's like, you're gonna regret this. You should have a job, my seventeen year old brother.

Oh no, what So, how did the so walk us through a little bit of the transition from making this community into a business.

Yeah, so again, kind of like accidentally, I remember one of the most pivotal points.

I'll never forget this day and I don't.

Remember the actual day, but we were only three months into creating No Madness, so it had only been maybe like a couple hundred people that were in the group, and at that time we had one member, Alex Hardy, who was living in Patama, and it was like.

The one that's my boom.

Yeah, it was the one place where nobody else had been yet. So he was like this really sarcastic. If you know Alex, you know he's super sarcastic, intelligent as hell, but really funny and.

Kind of a smart ass.

And so he was a character that stood out really early on in the days of No Madness, and.

So we were like, look, you're dope.

You have nobody else around you in Paanama, Like, let's bring the new No Madness experience to you. And that's how I picked the destination for the first trip. And I remember it being like a Tuesday or Wednesday, some like work night, school night. At around midnight, I said, you know what, Okay, I'm going to open up. These people are talking about how they want to travel together. This is not what I signed up for, but I'm going to say yes to this part of the programming

So I'm like researching places.

I find this villa that fits sixteen people in it, and so I dropped the information in the group, just thinking that I can go to sleep and then I'll be able to finish this conversation when I get up in the morning. And it was one of the most amazing things. Because I dropped it, it.

Had to be approach at one o'clock in the morning.

I didn't go to sleep until about three because within an hour we knew who the people that were going to be. We were setting up a way to give deposits. I had already reached out and people started screenshotting how much flights were from where they lived to be able to get to the villa and Bocus del Toro. And I had never seen something move so fast in my life, and that was the moment that I realized that I was really onto something here, that there was a community built.

So as soon as like money started being exchanged.

That's when I realized that I needed to have some type of entity to protect it, but also to kind of like have on standby because I had no idea what was being built here.

I just needed community.

So bad with people that had travel as a priority, you know, not somebody who just hung up on going when they can for their vacation days, like people who were really making moves in their lives to have a either location independent lifestyle or it was a priority, like they were getting rid of TV bills and stuff like that to put it towards a travel fund, like people who weren't playing around with this. And so that's really when it started to shift into a business.

It was never a part of my plan.

It was a part of the evolution of me seeing what the community wanted and where they were going and saying yes to that, even though I was terrified.

What were you doing around this time? Were you working? Were you sort of paint the picture for me where you were in your life and your career when you decided to make, like make a go of this.

I was twenty seven years old and I was a freelance television producer, so I was working in television, which is what my background is in. I went to Iona College and my degree was in mas colm with a focus in TV and video production, and then my minor was in fine arts. So I'm also a creative that entered the business realm. I have absolutely no business background, and a lot of it is trial and error, you know,

You know.

I've seen some business people they kind of get so wrapped up in like the numbers and the business ye part of stuff, that they lose that creative edge and you know, the vision to really like go forth and innovate.

That's something that I actually have in masks.

It's like the day to day stuff that I need, you know, that I pull the help in on, so you know.

But but yeah, So I.

Was actually working in television production and it was funny because the show that I was working on, I mean, it's normal in freelance, especially in a city like New York City. You know, shows will just end and people will just get.

Fired, you know.

And so what ended up happening when I started No Madness was that I the show that I was on

Somebody else ever since. Wow, that's awesome. Thank you. It's been a pode. No, you know, I know it's been a crazy ride, but I did. I had to make the diligent decision.

I remember writing in my journal I actually have this, and at our anniversary I usually dig this journal up and kind of take a picture of it and put.

It on social media. Where I got to a.

Point in an age at I got to an age at one point where.

I stopped asking, Like I wasn't asking people for money.

You know, some people get in a buying and they want to ask people for money. What I started to do at this point was I started to ask people to tell me that it's all going to work out. And I was like, I just need to hear this from somebody outside of myself, you know, huge practitioner of law of attraction. But when it gets like crazy, I saw people and I'm like, I just Tiffany, you know this. I'm like, I just need to hear that it is all going to work out. I'll take the reins from there.

Believe in you. And people who have really been through those.

Tough times too and come out on the other side, like you just need to hear that. And so I remember when it got nuts and my unemployment was only two hundred and twenty dollars a week living in New York City, and I remember getting that information, like when I got the breakdown of how much.

They give you a month, like a month.

And a week, and I remember that was the day that I called I called Jason up. But also I wrote in my journal in huge sharpie, I was like, it's all going to work out, and that's really all I had to keep going until things started to pop off with no madness. So it's very interesting looking back in retrospect.

I mean I always looked at because I was laid off to in New York City. See, I feel like it's like I know and that there was no better There was like no better drive and like push than being laid off in New York City and getting that puny little like unemployment check then to push you forward and like keep you going. I feel like it's like a really good, I don't know, momentum starter, like kicking the ass kind of yeah, you have to.

I feel like sometimes the universe like edges you into things.

But I'm also on air, so.

Like life is really really like rough with me because I think that it knows that I can handle it. Sometimes it'll just kick you off the cliffs, you know, and you got a free fall for a little bit before you realize how to fly on your own. And and it's and it's crazy. It really is crazy. And it's not for everybody. That's the other thing. So you know, I'm definitely not one of these people anymore who is along the lines of like entrepreneurship is for everybody, it's not.

But this not everything.

It's so funny when you first I think, I feel like when people first jump into entrepreneurship, it's like it's like when you first like get into a relationship and you're like, yes, girl, everybody need to get them a man, yes, And then once you start really doing the work, you're like, well, you know, you might be good.

Single, right, it's right, but I mean I.

Have to keep it one hundred for sent with you. I have friends that are entrepreneurs.

That I don't think are cut out for entrepreneurship.

And that's real.

Yeah, And it's just and you just you see it, you know, you see it in different ways. But then I have friends that are, you know, phenomenal entrepreneurs, you know what I'm saying, and the people that I can turn to when you know, we have those safe spaces and candid conversations and we build each other up and you keep going. But yeah, it's definitely not for everybody, Absolutely not. I know, I am very very aware that I'm thatshit crazy.

So it's like I take that and I run with it.

Well, you must be good at I mean, you must have been good at it in some way because it's doing so well. But I want to ask, I want to ask the question of at what point, Well, first, how does no Madness make money? How do you make money? How do you live? And at what point did you get to a place where you felt like, Okay, I'm actually sustaining myself with this business and it's viable and you know it's all going to be okay.

Right.

I feel like the light at the end of the teruminal came about four years in and we're about to hit six years in.

So it was very turbulent.

And let me not say that as if right now, like I'm sitting pretty and everything is like colorful. Like entrepreneurship is real, and there are ups and downs and you try different things, you come out with different products. You know, you try to bring value to people's lives while also offering something that you can make money off of.

You know, that's kind of the name of the game right now.

But the different there's a trillion avenues and one of the things that's been really awesome over the last two years.

Of throw it in the mix.

So the trips were one way that No Madness was making money. Our pivot from there has now gone into events, both international and domestic, which are a big part of it. So you're talking our anniversary parties, our trips abroad, our events abroad. We just did spearheaded two in Johannes's work South Africa and in Jiport, India all the way to our conference, our annual conference that we have. Then you

Wait a second, why did you bury the lead that you're part of my favorite show ever? I understand how they don't know that friends with.

I'm friends and co creator with Issa. I am not a part of Insecure.

Let wait, right, right right, you're tapping on it.

I'm like, wait, don't let me hit Your hands were somewhere on it at some point.

Yeah, yeah, No, Issa's dope.

I may Yeah, that's awesome.

No. I love Issa.

Issa really came on board early on too, actually with No Madness, Like we've been in cahoots for a couple of years now and actually built a friendship. I was just on the set of Insecure maybe like a month and a half ago and was like.

Catching up with her.

I happened to be in La for some production stuff that I was doing, and she's just like, look, anytime you're around, come down. So I did a cameo thing. We'll see if it makes the cut. But Issa and Molina are really really dope, So I literally hung out with them all day and was doing some shooting with them. So we gonna see, We're gonna see. I'll have my eye on this season. But but yeah, there's ads, there's ad revenues in there, and there's sponsorship and partnerships, which

Gonna make money one way.

I'm gonna make money like ten ways, so that if I ever have to lean on something more than others, you know, even speaking with you know, Tiffany. We have our online course that we fearheaded last year n MDN black Box, you know, really introducing travel and breaking down these fears and you know, stereotypes and misconceptions that you have to be of a certain economic bracket to be able to travel, you know, and and really taking the mission of No Madness and putting it into a course

Bunch of ways that I may though it's all about the first time income.

Absolutely, I think that is so important, just like you said, to have different income streams. But you mentioned Airbnb, and I was gonna bring that up earlier, just like how important it is to have groups like No Madness, and especially at a time where people may be wondering like, well, why do we need groups like this? I mean, ask any person who's of color who wants to travel. And it's clear to me why there's been such a massive response and emotional response to to No Madness. And now

It came before actually, and it's funny because even we did our first conference, what three Yeah, they were approaching the third one. So we did our first conference three years ago, so No Madness was three years old.

And it was.

Funny because from the time that we had very first started, I was like, yo, we got to partner with Airbnb because as a mission, I really really love what this company stands for and I like their story, and it was something that I was like, listen, this is what we do. And the other thing that makes No Madness unique is because we weren't staying at hotels.

When we were doing our group trips.

We would find tricked out houses or flats that would fit like ten people in them, or mansions and we would actually book those out. So everything goes back to the mission of us having a very intimate and familial type of feel with us, so we weren't really staying like India is one of the few places we stay in hotels because I don't trust the water and sanitation, so I make sure that we're in a place that's

So they're also a part of the No Madness makeup.

From the get go, and so I had wanted to work in partner with.

Them for years.

And then our first conference, which launched maybe like I want to say six to nine months before the hashtag Airbnb while Black came out. They actually were one of the smaller sponsors that we had as kind of like a litmus test to see what it was. So they had come on board not just as a partner, but even as a small monetary sponsorship for our first conference. And then it was like maybe six or seven months after that was when stuff started to hit the fan

I spoke on a panel with we did.

A fireside chat with their head of I think community belonging is the name of it. At Blavity's acrotech in Silicon Valley at the end of last year.

I'm going to be going back.

They're actually bringing me to Essence Fest, so I'm going to be speaking at Essence. Hey, I'll see you in sen Yeah, so I'll see you there too. So yeah, we've bridged. I was their community in New York. We forged like a really really cool partnership.

And just kind of growing.

And I'm a huge fan of their chief marketing officer, Jonathan.

I spoke at Harvard Business School.

On a panel ironically with Jonathan from Blavity, which is funny, but not that long ago, maybe about two months ago, and their keynote was Airbnb's chief marketing officer Jonathan, who also had worked for Coca Cola and some other huge name brands. And just the man's heart and head and artistry is just in the right place.

And so I really love the way that they've gone about addressing it.

And I've even spoken directly to their CEO, Brian Cheske about it.

I've been invited to some private dinners where.

You know, there's maybe one of like twenty five people in the room along with Brian Cheskey to really be able to hash some of this stuff out and hear them out, but also voice the other side, you know, and and let them make sure that they really get what.

This means to our community. So I'm actually really proud.

Of the work that we're we're doing with Airbnb and our partnership.

I'm heartened by that because I love me some Airbnb. Yes, if I weren't allowed to, like, no, there's.

Anything tricky, And it's a tricky you know spot honestly, because like you know, on one hand, on one hand, there's also like, okay, I'm the face of this, you know, not just no Madness, but also the black travel movement. So I caught some some shit on the back end, you know, when people saw me like doing this stuff, and it's like you don't understand the historical context of how we've been working with them, and you know, people especially online, it's like the drama. They just want to

Like, I love this community, but we got everybody in here.

You got to part about this, like get an attorney and get this thing going. And they ended up running into their own issues at the onset of it. But these things really started from No Madness and.

That's something you know to take note.

But it shows the power of our community, like I really want to say, and I.

Think I'm pretty much on point with this.

Every single like noted black travel group that is out right now that you can name, I believe all of their CEO started as No Madness, all of them.

Yep.

How do you protect yourself when you have so much competition right at the gate? I mean it's one for one thing, it's a compliment Uber lift, you know that sort of thing happens. But yeah, talk about that you have to.

Innovate, you know what I'm saying, Like, there's only but so far that you can you know, it's like somebody else coming up with a you know, a finance group.

You can't stop people from popping up with these things. It just is what it is.

But I think getting to the core, refining and making sure that you are said fast with your mission. In addition to like I don't I'm one of these types of people. I'm extremely competitive, I'm an aries and I'm also an artist, so like I'm sensitive about my shit and all that being said, it's like I don't need to be in these other groups.

I have spies.

Like anytime I need to see something that's going on or get some feedback, I will. I create very much in a bubble, and I've learned that as being a creative because I never want the next person saying whether it was organic to them or not to start influencing why and how I do what I do. That's I can't, like I just even just as an artist and as a person like I don't rock like that, you know. So with that being said, I let people do what

You know what I'm saying, and moral boundaries crossed over.

Its exactly exactly. But as long as I can look myself in the face and I.

Will go to bat for what I have, I'm extremely.

Protective of what I've had and I've been called every name in the book because of it, because I will definitely rise to the occasion with class.

But I'll let you know, you know what I'm saying.

It's been like that over years. But I think the more that you are self assured in what you bring to the table, and again that level of innovation, nobody is touching us. And that's just not just no Madness, but even me personally, you know, like in taking the culture, because for me.

It's not just about for example, I just gave.

A TED talk that is about to shut this entire system down.

Okay.

So and that's after being in a TED residency for three and a half months in which I'm building out the next phases of No Madness that now have not just to do with us traveling abroad, but now our acquiring property abroad.

So again, it's about.

Innovating and thinking outside of the box and going to the next levels and staying true as hell to who you are, regardless of what other people are doing in your space. Yeah, it's not easy, and so it's sensive at times, like yeah, to be off with their heads.

And the thing is, you have every right to feel that way, you really do.

Especially and I've said this to Tiffany too, Like, it's different. Nobody knows what it's like to be first in a realm. Even if you're second in an industry, you do not go through the same things that the first person goes through, and there's some real humbling and ego checking and you know, swallowing of pride that happens in that first position because everybody is going to pull something from you, something because you were the first in that space and so your groundbreaking.

It's my favorite one, the only one I bought.

But it was a quote that had something to do with Richard Pryor, where they say the mark of the mark of genius is when everything before you is obsolete and everything after you bears your mark.

And That's how I feel about No Madness?

So what was Can you give us a taste of what the Ted talk is about?

Oh, the Ted Talk is about the evolution of black travel from Jim Crow until what is now a worldwide movement that No Madness started.

That's the taste test I can give you. How does it feel like?

I always wonder, you know, like, you know, as a business owner, because you know, sometimes you like you said, you live and you create in the bubble?

Are you? I mean it seems like you are. I'm like today I was getting like a.

Burger and somebody was like but and I was like, hey, you know, and I how do you wrap your mind around that you've created? Like an actual shift? Not just like, oh, you know, some more people are traveling.

No, like a real shift.

There's a concrete I can look at the data, more brown people are traveling, and we could like, how like are you able.

To wrap your mind around that? Are you able to conceptualize what that actually means? You know, like, how does that? You know? How does that feel? So there's a couple things to that. One. I am a workaholic, and so having self care and having a moment.

To reflect, I have to work just as hard as that at that as I.

Have to do on my actual work. Right. So, for instance, I disappeared this weekend.

Literally I just got back this afternoon after getting an airbnb, and like, I was up in Kingston, New York by myself for two three days and I'm post anything on social media.

I was like, I need to get out of here.

And and it's because a lot of feelings were conjured up after you know, the Ted residency was done. A lot of stuff as happening, huge things that have made me question a lot of stuff and look at things and figure out what I want my wife and my business to look like and how they intersect together in harmony.

And so I'm gonna be honest with you.

I don't stop and let that feeling sink in a lot, because as beautiful as it is, it is terrifying. It's really crazy because you think about that or you know, I can run even like you know, walking in downtown Newark now, especially when I first moved here, it's like I felt like I was running into a tribe member every day, you know, and I'm out like painting my new apartment. So I'm out and like painted up, you know, sweatpants.

And looking crazy, and but it was it was beautiful.

And it's usually when I'm on the trips or when I'm abroad where I allow myself the time to really sit with it, and I normally end up crying.

You know, I'm a crier. It's how I deal with stress and all types of stuff. I just I gotta let it out. But it's those.

Moments where I let it sink in and it's so powerful, but I always just keep going. I am really one of those people that kind of focuses on what's next and that innovation piece.

That's really important for me.

Because I always want to stay ahead of the curb and and so I have these many celebrations that happen with all the goals along the way, and then some goals that are obtained just shut me down, Like keV shut me down. It was like I have had give a Ted talk on my vision board. It's funny because we just pulled out the old the first High Council meeting.

It'll take some time, but it's coming, you know.

And so it's those moments that really stopped me, like, whoa, You're really doing it and you're really changing people's lives, you know. Like I said, I didn't start. I didn't go into this thinking that I was starting a business. But there's also some side effects to No Madness that I didn't understand. For example, everybody in No Madness has grown, Like we're a.

Millennial, you know, travel group. For the most part.

We have members that are upwards of sixty who have come on our trips and they will.

Drink and party you under the table.

But you know, our guts are really between like twenty five and forty five years old.

And so everybody's grown.

And I've met these people's parents, and I've had parents come up to me and say, Avida, you know, I just want to.

Say thank you for creating this community. Because I'm not a.

World traveler, and as a parent, I don't care how old your child is. You're always nervous about what would I do if something happen, And they're like, now.

We know that there's a community where it should hit the fan.

There are people that would take care of them, you know, and unfortunately a couple of years ago they had to tap into the community for them. And I rose to the occasion as a leader. You know, I say, as a leader, you got to be there when it's pretty and when it's shitty.

If not, don't sign up for it. Don't sign up for it, because it's going to happen.

And you know, that's really it's those moments where we come together and celebration. It's the moments when I hear, you know, two tribe members hooked up and now they're having a baby together, you know, and they met at a meetup or on a trip. It's the businesses of which there are many that have been created from no madness, solopreneurs, location independent entrepreneurs, even people that met at meetups or on trips and now they've created businesses together.

Like we are a community that is so much bigger than travel and so much more personal than social media. And so when you.

See it in that context, it is it's beautiful. It really is beautiful. And it's amazing. I say I've done. I've been able to pinpoint my three things that I've done in my life thus far and I put after giving my Ted Talk, I put on social media. I said, you know, there's the second biggest thing that I've done in my life. And one of the organizers of the residency was like, damn, well, what do we have to do to be number one?

I said, creating No Madness is number one? Okay, and I.

Don't know if anything is going to beat that until I've become a mother.

Okay. Yeah. Wow.

Well, I mean that's a good segue to kind of our our kind of wrapping up, like, so what's next, Like, what's any major thing that's coming up?

Yeah, we have.

We have, like we're releasing the app this summer, which I'm really excited about. It's going to be coming out on iOS first, just because we were trying to get this Android together. Android's too glitchy. This is like the thing that you learn about when you're coming out with an app. So the No Madness Connect app is definitely going to be dropping this summer, which is going to be amazing.

I can't wait. And we're you know, we're.

Getting our ducks in a row to really push forward for this Ted Talk going viral when it comes out, which is probably going to be early and really producing the residency program, which I'm starting to speak more openly about, which, like I said, I think the first six years of No Madness was really about breaking the stereotype of an international traveler and getting us out there and letting us know that we could do it at various price points.

What we do while we're out there.

And one of the first transitions that we're going into, you know, we started the events, launched those this year, but something that's going to be hitting before the end of twenty eighteen is real twenty seventeen, excuse me, is really this property acquisition.

And I'm really excited.

I have a development company that's already on board with the project that I was working with through Ted, and yeah, I can't wait to get that going. And you know, start with No Madness as the funnel system, so we can really start rooting abroad and making change, you know. And I just I don't trust our president at this juncture.

So I'm getting my apartment first.

So where can where can people find like more about nomadic because I know a ton of people are going to be like I want to be part of the tribe. How do how do they join the tribe? Where they can where can they find you?

They can go directly to the website No Madness tv dot com and you will see a join the Tribe tab and you can go right in there and funnel through and we'll get you in the group. But yeah, no Madness TV dot com. At social media, we're at no Madness Tribe on every platform across the board.

I'm so proud of you, a Vida, honestly, because I mean, I know you know how hard you work. I know how hard you work, so not just how hard, but how hard you know, I know how soul you work.

And so just to see all that you put in and to see you.

Reap the benefits and also not just reap the benefits but change the world around you. So thank you so much for coming on.

Thank you. I appreciate you, ladies.

Thank you Avita. It was so much fun talking to you.

Yes, likewise,