Ep.92 Megan Spencer: A Rebellious Introvert’s Path From Debt To Freedom with UGC

This week I sit down with Meg the Creator to dive into a calm, repeatable way to earn online without chasing followers, going live, or turning your life into content. Megan left her 9-5 job during maternity leave, paid off $60,000 in debt, and built a sustainable business by creating user‑generated content for brands—quiet work with loud results.

We unpack what UGC really is and why marketers love it: real people making authentic videos and photos that brands own and scale across ads and social. Megan breaks down how beginners get hired fast through apps like JoinBrands, Billo, Incense, and Tribe, often with scripts and shot lists provided. No portfolio? No problem. You’ll learn how to land first gigs in a day, and use simple negotiation to move from one‑offs to bundles and retainers. We dig into the psychology that sells—leading with emotion, not specs—and how to frame everyday benefits that drive clicks and conversions.

For introverts, this path feels humane. We talk boundaries that protect energy, batching to avoid burnout, and choosing brand categories that feel aligned. Meg shares candid student wins, from parents earning 5k in their first month to older creators landing paid videos without public profiles. She also reveals the edge behind her Anti‑Influencer Method: a living master list of brands, agencies, and faceless opportunities that bridges learning to paid work. If you’ve been stuck in the myth that only influence equals income, this episode hands you a blueprint that turns one content skill into multiple revenue streams.

Loved this conversation? Follow and share the show, leave a quick review, and send this to a friend who needs to think differently...

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Chapters

• 0:00 Welcome And Mission Of The Show
• 1:34 Meet Meg The Creator
• 2:51 Anti‑Influencer Money Mindset
• 4:14 From Job Hopping To Social Media Manager
• 5:45 Burnout And Pivot To UGC
• 6:59 What UGC Really Is
• 8:20 Introvert‑Friendly Paths To Income
• 10:36 Leveraging Skills Across Platforms
• 12:18 Learning By Doing And Brand Feedback
• 14:24 Pricing, Apps, And Early Negotiation
• 16:15 Building Boundaries And Avoiding Burnout
• 18:15 Confidence, Mindset, And First Wins
• 20:05 Success Stories Across Ages
• 21:16 Getting Started Without A Portfolio
• 22:40 What Makes The Method Different
• 23:45 Future Plans And Where To Find Meg
• 24:28 Rebellious Recap And Closing

Transcript

Megan Spencer: 0:00

Like I had racked up so much freaking debt on credit cards by the time I was like 20. That's pretty much the biggest difference. It's because not only am I helping people learn the skill of UGC and how to be a good creator and how to do this and how to do that, but I have the connections for them. Where it's like, okay, you're done learning. Now you can go apply. Now you can go get hired.

Zoe Greenhalf: 0:21

Hey there. Welcome or welcome back to the Mischief Movement Podcast. I'm Zoe, your guide on this journey to shake up the status quo and design a life that truly makes you feel alive. If you've ever felt disconnected, stuck on autopilot, or trapped in a life that feels more like a treadmill than an adventure, you're in the right place. I know the change can feel scary, so let's turn down the fear and crank up the fears as we transform your life from the inside out. Whether it's solo episodes packed with actionable advice or interviews with some absolute badass human beings who've dared to defy the norm by living life their way, we're here to inspire, activate, empower and challenge you each week. My mission is simple. To help you reawaken your rebel spirit, break free from mediocrity and design a life that's anything but dull. You only get one wild life. So what are you planning to do with yours? If you're ready to stop settling, start living boldly and create a positive impact along the way. Let's dive in and stir up some mischief together. Now buckle up and let's go. Today's guest is someone who proves you don't need a megaphone to make a big bold move. Megan Spencer, better known as Meg the Creator, is an introverted parent who looked at the so-called safe path, gave it a polite little side eye, and walked herself straight into a life that she actually wanted. A few years ago, she quit her cushy government job, built a business from nothing as a social media manager, and managed to pay off $60,000 worth of debt in the process. Now she teaches others how to take charge of their lives through content creation, especially those who think being introverted means they have to stay small. Because, spoiler, it doesn't. Her work is all about showing you the sneaky, sustainable, quietly powerful ways to create content that changes your life without draining your soul. She's proof that rebellion doesn't always show up with glitter and fireworks. Sometimes it's a soft-spoken, hmm, just watch me, that turns everything upside down. So let's jump in with a brilliant, quietly unstoppable Meg the Creator. Okay, so welcome back to the Mischief Movement Podcast. And this week I'm joined by Meg Spencer, also known as Meg the Creator. Meg, what is your mischief?

Megan Spencer: 2:51

So my mischief is in the online space of money making, everyone thinks you have to be an influencer. Everyone thinks you have to have a ton of followers. And I think I've shown people that there's a different way. You can be an introvert, you can be a shy hermit at home and still make enough money to pay your bills, live however you want, be an anti-influencer, if you will, and pay your groceries. Like literally, I have students who make five figures a month and they're introverts. So that is my mischief.

Zoe Greenhalf: 3:23

That's very interesting. Um, where should we begin? How on earth did you end up doing this?

Megan Spencer: 3:32

Yeah, great question. So I uh so I've always been introverted. I grew up in a very small town, and when I was like early 20s, I job hopped a lot. And I think at the time it was kind of negative, right? Like I was like a job hopper, but I think when I look back on it, I think it was just my entrepreneur spirit coming out because I just never felt whole with anything like that I did. And so I worked at banks, I did everything, and I ended up ending my nine to five career in 2020, and we all know what was going on in 2020. I was on my maternity leave and I never went back to my job because I became a social media manager and I started working with brands who basically just needed help like scaling their social media following. I didn't even have an account, I had no social media account at all, but I just convinced these people that I could help them. Although, how did you do that? I think just a lot of like confidence, honestly. Like just like I was just like, I know what I can do. Like I Googled, I watched YouTube videos, like I figured it out on myself to where once I could at least get hired by someone, I knew I could prove it to them that I could do it. And so that's pretty much that's pretty much how I got into like working for myself. And I did that full time for three and a half years. But what happened was I started bringing on more and more clients. And we all know what happens with that when you do freelancing, you burn out pretty quickly. And I did burn out. So in 2023, I started doing UGC, which is where you basically work for brands. They don't care about your follower account, they just want you to create content for them, normal people that use their products. And I started seeing that I could pay my bills with that. Just to stop you, what is UGC? So UGC stands for user-generated content, meaning actual users of products create content. Because if you think about it, like an influencer, you'll pay an influencer $20,000 to do one post, right? Well, you could break that budget down and pay 20 people $1,000 to make you videos, and then they can use those videos, the brands. Like with an influencer marketing, most of the time the influencer, you know, owns the content. I mean, there could be ads and all those things, but with UGC, the brand actually owns the content. They can use it however they want, marketing, social media, whatever. So it's basically like you create a video using your favorite cup or whatever, you send it to the brand, they own it, they pay you a thousand dollars or whatever. Yeah. And so when I started doing that, I really found that it was introvert friendly because I didn't have to post it on my social media. I didn't even have to have an account, right? Well, in 2024, I started, I wanted to post online. So to backtrack, like all this time I've never posted online, you know. So I've been an entrepreneur for four years. So like I did build up confidence over the time. It was still hard, and sometimes it's still hard to show up online because it's it can be draining. But I started posting about it, and people were like, Oh my gosh, like what are you doing? Like, share your experience. And so I started sharing my experience and how I'd paid off a bunch of debt, all those great things. And that's basically how I created the anti-influencer method, was because I was like, I want to help other people know that there's a way to make money online without followers.

Zoe Greenhalf: 6:42

Amazing. So you kind of went you went from self-made social media manager to then exploring this user-generated content. And now you're teaching other people how to exactly use that.

Megan Spencer: 6:58

That's quite a cool journey. It's well, yeah, it's been good. When I look back, I'm like, golly, it's been like five years in the making, you know, but I feel like all of the all of those building blocks helped me get to where I am now. And because like I know so much about it, like I, you know, I can help people at the beginning of their journey, middle of their journey, and like expert level, because you know, I've done all of them for so long. So it's been fun and I love helping people too.

Zoe Greenhalf: 7:24

So yeah, it's crazy because until I met you, obviously I've seen the content, I've seen content everywhere. I've seen videos that people have made, but I've never actually put two and two together and realized that somebody out there, or lots of people probably, um, you know, are making a living from creating all of these videos. And what blew my mind was the fact that you you just always kind of associate uh stuff like that with having to show your face and having to be on camera because it's about you know making videos and stuff, and you think, oh, as an introvert, perhaps you don't want to do that. Um I really feel like this is uh a different way of thinking um that had never really occurred to me.

Megan Spencer: 8:11

And wow, like yeah, then there's like multiple things that like go into it. So, like in the anti-influencer method, UGC is probably one of the biggest ones that I bring people in because it's the easiest to get started, but there's also side hustles like Amazon reviews, which is where you make products, uh product reviews for Amazon and they pay you. So it's like a whole nother side of like UGC, I guess. It's like UGC for Amazon. I actually started doing that's actually where I started doing UGC was on Amazon. Okay. And then there's also TikTok shop, which is essentially like UGC on TikTok shop, right? So it's like you can use your one skill that you learn in like multiple different avenues to kind of like have multiple different income streams because I find that to be so important in this day and age, you just never know what's gonna happen. And so I did TikTok shop full-time from like May 2024 till May of this year, and I made over 60,000 just doing that alone, which is like a full-time that's like a full-time salary here in America.

Zoe Greenhalf: 9:13

So, like Yeah, a full-time create salary, but not full-time hours, I presume.

Megan Spencer: 9:18

No, oh gosh, no, absolutely not.

Zoe Greenhalf: 9:21

Because let's not forget that you're also a mom, aren't you?

Megan Spencer: 9:23

Yeah, yeah, no, yeah, I'm a mom. So I definitely had no time at this point. I'm like, how would I even go back to working full-time like in an office? You know, like I commend the people that do that because there's just so much happening constantly with the kids. Like pick up early or take to an appointment or whatever, they're sick, or you just you just never know. So yeah, yeah, the all of these side hustles are like part-time. Obviously, if you do all three of them, like you might would have more on your plate, but there's ways to like batch your content. You know, I help people with that type of thing. Like if you work during the week, you could work batch on the weekend, you know, so you have more free time, that type of stuff.

Zoe Greenhalf: 10:03

I love that because what you've said to me really just I'm just thinking about the leverage of what you're creating. I think that's that's a lot to do with your method, isn't it? It's kind of, I'm gonna teach you how to do it, but also here's how you can make it work harder for you and more efficiently.

Megan Spencer: 10:20

Yes, exactly. The name of my course used to be purposely repurpose content, which is a tongue twister. But basically what I was trying to get at was like you can use one skill and repurpose that across multiple different like avenues. And I feel like that's still true. And a lot of people still do all three of those side hustles because they're all so like intertwined together. Like the skill, the basis of the skill of all three of them is just good content, being a good creator, understanding what makes a person want to buy product is literally the basis of every single one of those side hustles. And once you learn that, which is people buy from emotion versus logical, then you're good.

Zoe Greenhalf: 11:01

So, how do you learn all of this? Did you go to the university of YouTube?

Megan Spencer: 11:06

The University of YouTube, yes. I I feel like I learned it because when you work with brands, especially like with UGC, they like teach you. And I feel like a lot of people don't understand that. And I try I like try to tell people that. I'm like, when you go work with a brand, especially as a beginner, they're gonna tell you what to do. And they're gonna be like, hey, here's the script, or hey, here's these outlines. So if you create a video and it performs well for them, obviously they're gonna want to work with you again, but also they're gonna test things with you as well. So you're like doing on-the-job training. I like to call it that. And I'm like, you know, when you start a new job, you are in no way are you supposed to be an expert on day one, right? Like, yeah, I think everybody thinks, oh my gosh, it was my first day of UGC. I need to be like the best creator ever. And I'm like, that is too much pressure. Like, you've just started this job. You know, like you're learning. It's fine to learn. And so I think I watched a lot of YouTube videos. I tested my own when I had started posting on my own account. Like I understood what would make people buy from me as a person selling something. And I think I just over time learned because I'm a logical buyer. I think I'm like in the 5% of people that buy, like, I want to know what the features are. Normal, like other people don't want to know that. They want to know what can your product do? How can it change my life? Like, what is your what's it gonna do for me? Is it gonna help me pay off debt? Is it gonna help me go on trips? Is it gonna help me be home? Like my product. But what's this cup gonna do for someone, right? It's gonna keep their coffee warm, it's gonna keep their coffee from spilling in the car. Like, what is it gonna help them? What's the problem that it's solving? And once you get that down pat with anything that you're selling, you're good. You got it.

Zoe Greenhalf: 12:50

You can do it, you can do it anywhere. Are you still doing those things? Or are you now have you now moved more into the teaching space?

Megan Spencer: 12:59

Well, this is a great question. So I'm more in the teaching space now, like probably 80%, but I still do have two active UGC gigs that I do. And those alone make me $5,000 a month. But I like to tell people I've had those for months. Like these are been these are ones that I've been working with for a while. So like I get bonuses, like it wasn't that when I first started the the gigs. So I don't want people to be like, oh well, I have two and I'm not making that much money, you know. It's it's because I've been working with them for a while. But um, yes, I'm trying to move out of doing it because it's a lot. I like being involved in it still because I feel like it keeps me up to date on like yeah, the new happenings, but it is a lot to like manage because my community has like 1800 paid people inside of it. Oh that's a lot.

Zoe Greenhalf: 13:50

Maybe uh in the future you'll end up working on a more psychical model where you're in like a season of creating and a season of teaching, just so that you end up with more balance.

Megan Spencer: 14:03

That makes sense. Yeah, right now it's kind of like everything at once, yeah. I can imagine.

Zoe Greenhalf: 14:08

Yeah. But I mean did you have any fears when you started doing this? Were you like, oh, I don't know if I can do it? And or did you just go fuck it, I'm just gonna try. It doesn't matter, I've got nothing to lose.

Megan Spencer: 14:23

I think I was a little more like fuck it with my virtual assistant, the social media manager, because I think I was coming from a place of being like, I wanted to get out of my job immediately. And so I definitely was just like, screw it. But when I first started working with them, like I didn't know how to send a contract. Like when I first got my first virtual assistant client, they were like, send me a contract. And I'm like, for what? Like, what do you need a contract for? I was so confused. So, like, yeah, yeah, I think a lot of people thank think I knew everything. I definitely did not, like, I was a fish out of water now with UGC. I definitely was a little more like nervous because I was having to show my face, I was having to create content, you know, using like my face. Like I did, I think one of my first gigs was like a cream. So like I had to show like my skin. And so that was a little more nerve-wracking because I was just like, yikes, like what are they gonna do with this? But I think after I did it like a couple times and I made money from it, then I was like, oh, this is fine. Like once you make money from it and you're like, oh, like someone looked at that video or photo and bought from it. Oh, you know, like this is fine. I guess it boosts your confidence, doesn't it? It does, it does. It's and I think that's like the biggest thing of everything that I teach is like building people's confidence because people do come in and they're just like, you know, just like desperate for change, right? And I hate using that word because I feel like it's like negative, but I do feel like a lot of people come to me when they're in that situation where they're like, I need a change. I've tried this, I've tried this, I've tried this, I've like they'll list out like a billion things they've done, but they've never done this before or never heard of it, but want to try it, want to give it a shot, know it's gonna make them uncomfortable, but they want to try it, you know. And I'm like, well, this is the place to be because we have a community, like, you know, I think the fears are always I'm gonna fail, right? But I've always like, you need to reframe that. Like if you go into it thinking that that will happen. You know, you need to go into it being like, this is gonna be it. This is gonna be the one that's gonna change everything for me. Yeah. To just have like a better mindset.

Zoe Greenhalf: 16:39

You know, I've been talking to so many people lately who feel a bit stuck, not broken or lost, but just caught in that weird in-between where you know that you're meant for more, but you just can't seem to get yourself moving. Um, and honestly, I get it because I've been there too. That's actually why I created something new called the Rebel Reset. It's a 90-minute session where we shake things up, we cut through the fog, and we get you moving again in a way that actually feels like you. So if you've been waiting for a sign or you're tired of ending the year feeling frustrated, this might be exactly what you need. You can just message me reset on Instagram, or you can reply directly via text through the show notes if you're curious. All right, back to the episode. And when you first started, were you setting fixed prices of what you wanted to be paid, both in terms of social media and then in UGC? Or were you having to just accept whatever the brands threw at you or whatever?

Megan Spencer: 17:50

I accepted, yeah, I accepted whatever they threw at me because as a beginner, I was just like, whatever, like I'm I'm cool with whatever because I just wanted experience. So I think it would depend too on the type of, I think because I went with like social media management, I went the route of like applying to gigs versus people coming to me. So if I was doing like attraction marketing, I think having my own rates obviously would make more sense. But like since I went like applying to opportunities, I just went with whatever they had because I was like, oh, if you're willing to hire me, whatever. Same for UGC. I did I started with most of mine on like an app, like Join Brands, which is a free app that anyone can download and make money with content. They would pay me like $20 for a photo, which I'm like, $20 for one photo. That's fine. You know, took me two seconds to take the photo. So yeah, I definitely didn't set my own rates to start.

Zoe Greenhalf: 18:44

Yeah. And I imagine that you got pretty good at negotiating them now. We've you've got five years' experience.

Megan Spencer: 18:50

Yes, I've definitely gotten better at negotiating. And um, I think too, because I've kind of gone into doing brand deals because through all of this, this is like the most ironic situation. I actually grew a small follow, like like 40k followers. So like that's it's so funny. That's well to yeah, well, to me, it's huge. It's really I'm like, oh my gosh, but then I see like other people that are like a million or whatever. I consider that like influencer level, but people look at me and consider me influencer level. So you know, it's so funny when like I tell people how to make money without followers, and here I am a following teaching people that right. So I was kind of like, that's so crazy. So, like what came with that has is brands have reached out to me to do brand deals, which is a little different than UGC because that is me using my following to promote their product. That's influencer marketing, kind of like what I was talking about before. So most of my negotiating has come from that because I feel like it gets lowballed so much. Like, I was actually shocked. One of the first brands that reached out to me, I'm not gonna say their name or anything, but they were kind of just like asking me for free, like a gifted collaboration. And at that point, I think I had like 30,000 followers, and I was just kind of like, what? Like it wasn't even something that I really wanted to promote either. You know, like I don't just promote anything because that page is solely about anti-influencer, you know. So most of the things I show on there, like I have a brand that is an introvert merch brand. I talk about that because it's like it kind of works. And then I have like apps and services that will reach out to me to be like, hey, this this is a creator, you know, this is something creators can use to make their business better. Like I promote stuff like that. But most of my negotiating definitely has come from that side of things. Um, and I think that's a great skill to have because you don't want to get lowballed. Um, and they'll they'll start there. But I always say, like, aim, especially if like you have a portfolio, like your portfolio of work for UGC. Let's say you had that. I always tell people to put at the bottom of their like um pricing page, like custom packages can be created. Because when you work with a brand, they may not only want one photo. And let's say your one photo rate or one video rate is like 250. Okay, that's pretty standard. Well, what if they want three? Like you could make them a deal, and I think that's fine. Like if you're already creating content, you can make them a deal and be like, I'll do three for 650. That gives them like $100 off or something. And I feel like that builds trust with the brand too, because they're kind of like, oh, thanks, you know, like thank you for that. But also a lot of these brands have huge marketing budgets. So sometimes I'm like, shoot, just just shoot for the stars, you know, like they're they're they're gonna come back with a counter offer too. You know, so the the worst they can do is say no. And it's like, whatever, on to the next.

Zoe Greenhalf: 21:47

Yeah. I mean, when you were saying about you, you know, getting that offer to promote something that you weren't even that interested in, I imagine that you also have your own boundaries about what feels aligned to you, what you're willing to promote and what you're not.

Megan Spencer: 22:03

Yeah, for sure. I do, I do, and I think that comes over time, you know. Like at first, like I definitely would not do probably like face creams or things like that now, just because like how I've kind of niched or niched, I don't know how to pronounce that word, myself to be more like in the business space, creator space, econom like that type thing. Like most of the UGC I do now is for that type, you know, because people people know me, right? Like, not everyone, but like there are people that know me, like, oh, that's Maggie Creator. She does this, this, and this. So, like, if they see me promoting an app that's like they'll help you write scripts for your videos, like that makes sense, yeah, right. Of course. And it gives the brand like that awareness of like this is a person that would actually use it. This is a user generating content, you know what I mean?

Zoe Greenhalf: 22:55

Yeah, yeah, because obviously it looks more authentic as well. Exactly. I know that we've talked a lot about you being introverted and how you like to help other introverted people to make money online. Have you ever felt like being an introvert was a weakness? And have you discovered now that it's actually a bit of a superpower?

Megan Spencer: 23:18

Yeah, I think when I was younger, I definitely thought saw it as a weakness because I wasn't the person that was like, you know, doing all the things in school. I didn't play sports.

Zoe Greenhalf: 23:29

You know, I'm asking you as a fellow introvert, not you know, yes, yes, yes.

Megan Spencer: 23:33

I didn't play sports. I think I did track for a while, but it was only because like my parents were like, Your sister did tracks, you should do track. So I did that. Then I ended up managing the team. I didn't even do it anymore. I became the manager because I was like, I didn't want to, I didn't want to run. So like I didn't do sports, and I think I also like didn't hang out with people from my school as much because I was just kind of like a hermit, you know? So like when I got older, I definitely saw I've definitely, definitely now I see it as a superpower because I feel like people that are introverted, where you stay to yourself, I feel like you're more creative naturally because you don't have a lot of like outside, like uh what's the word? Like people like intervening with your thoughts constantly. Like I feel like I can stay in my lane a lot easier than other people who maybe get like squirrely, which I'm not saying I'm not squirrely, but like when it comes to like my things, like I feel like I'm very like, this is what I'm doing, this is what I want to do, and I'm staying the path, right? And I don't, I don't tell a lot of people what I'm doing either. I'm just like, this is what I want to do. Like, no one in my family knew that I've started any of these businesses when I did. Like I was like, oh, I've been doing that six months, you know, like I've been making money. Yeah. I feel like I'm very private about things too. So like I definitely have to come out of my shell with like the helping people, helping other tutorials because I'm forced to share things about my life to seem more relatable. So it has made me come out of my shell, like sharing how much money I've made. Like that is not something I ever would have talked about before because I'm just like, I didn't want to, you know. So now I feel like it's like a constant like, oh, how much did you make from that deal? Or oh, how much did you make last month? Or oh, how did you do this? Oh, how did you do that? Like the intricacies of what I've been building for over five years, you know, I'm now sharing. But it helps other people. So on the flip side, like I don't mind sharing it. But yeah, I see it as a superpower because there's so many people that I work with that are just like killing it, that are just like, I don't even have a portfolio. I don't have my own social media channel and I'm making 6k this month. And you're just like, Wait, girl, like it's crazy.

Zoe Greenhalf: 25:43

Have you got like a favorite success story of somebody that you've helped?

Megan Spencer: 25:48

I have so many. I actually just posted one the other day. Let me see, I can put I could probably read it. She wrote me, Hey, I haven't even began to make a portfolio yet, and I'm ending my first month ever doing UGC, making right under 5K with only two gigs. And she's just like a normal person. She's a mom, introvert. And I was like, What? So that was a recent one, but I have a ton. Like, there's two on my YouTube channel. One girl who she's not a mom, but she was a student and she had a full-time job. And as soon as she joined my course, I guess she just saw the potential, quit her job. Everything she's done has paid for her honeymoon. Like, she just got back from her honeymoon, she was gone for like a month, and then she paid for her own wedding. Like, she made like $10,000 in like a month doing this only. Yeah. And I think her like boy, her fiance at the time, her husband now, that he did it with her. He like helped her edit videos. And so I was like, Oh my gosh, but then there's like smaller success stories, like those are like the big, the big money ones, but there's people that are like, I'm 55 years old, I have gray hair, and I've never posted anything online before, but someone just hired me to do a video for $200. I'm like, that's crazy. Like, that's amazing. So I have like I have a ton of like success stories, but I think a lot of my favorite ones come from like the underdog, right? Where it's like the person that was skeptical, the person that felt like nobody was gonna hire them. Yeah. And then now here they are, more competent, money in their pocket, and a skill to that can literally take them wherever. Like you can use the skill of UGC to do anything.

Zoe Greenhalf: 27:30

Yeah, and I guess it doesn't matter what age you are either, does it? And I think that's one of the nicest things from talking to you is that I get how this could impact somebody from a younger student to somebody whose kids have flown the nest and they're at home going, right, what do I do for a side hustle now? You know? Exactly. Yeah.

Megan Spencer: 27:51

It's kind of like one of my slogans. I say, like, anyone of any age can do this. Yeah. Because there's brands for everyone. There's brands for teenagers, there's brands for people my age. I'm in my 30s, there's brands for people my grandma's age that's in her 80s. Like I literally was just scrolling one of the um job boards the other day, and I saw they were hiring people 60 to 80 years old. And I'm just like, what? Like, I just love that. You know, I love seeing it. So yeah, and that's the other thing too, is I have people in my course of all different ages, all different genders. Men do this too, you know? And so I just think it's so fun that like anyone can do it. And I think that's what makes it so accessible. And yeah, you know, I don't want to say easy, but I do like to say it's simple. Like it's a simple process of what you're doing, but it's nothing that's like easy. Like you have to learn it, you know, you have to get better at it and practice just with anything. But it's definitely a confidence booster for sure.

Zoe Greenhalf: 28:49

Yeah, I can imagine. Um, you know, I'm thinking about the people listening to this, and I bet that they're just dying to ask you how do they get started? What where would be the first place you would point them?

Megan Spencer: 29:02

Yes, I have a free UGC guide. It's called Land Your First U UGC Gig in One Day. And it actually has broken down, I think it's like six steps within it, of like how to get started without a portfolio. I have a list of like apps and websites you can land jobs on because you know, one of the one of the biggest objections I get is people saying, like, I don't have a portfolio. You don't need one.

Zoe Greenhalf: 29:24

I was gonna ask you about the portfolio thing as well.

Megan Spencer: 29:26

You don't need one. You do not need one. I do think after you've done like a handful of gigs, definitely throw them in a portfolio so you can have something to show. But like the apps that I was mentioning, like Join Brands, Billow, Incense, Tribe, most of them ask you for like a test video and they tell you exactly what to say. So basically, when you come onto one of these apps, you fill out a profile. It's just like your name, your age, your interest. You put a video on there. Like you do have to make like a test video, but it gives you a script. Put that on there, and then you can literally start applying to jobs like within 10 minutes. And so that's kind of my gig is like that's my free guide is land a gig in one day because you can. You can literally go on there, apply your heart out, and hear from a brand the same day. It's really I'm totally gonna go and download this afterwards, don't you?

Zoe Greenhalf: 30:16

I'm so curious. I'm like, let me see.

Megan Spencer: 30:18

Yeah. It's and it's introvert friendly. Like I actually recently updated it about a month ago to make it more like step by step, just kind of like, here's how you can get started, legit today.

Zoe Greenhalf: 30:31

Yeah. Do you think as an introvert, you you do have certain boundaries to protect that energy a little bit? I know you talked about getting burnt out from when you're doing the social media and getting all the clients and stuff. What what kind of things have you put in place now to make sure that that doesn't happen again?

Megan Spencer: 30:49

I was doing an interview the other day and I they asked me a similar question. I feel like I'm in a space right now. I feel like life ebbs and flows. I'm in a growth phase, so my boundaries are kind of bad right now, just to be completely honest with you. Yeah. But when things are good, my boundaries are after I pick my kids up from school, I don't work. I don't do calls anymore, especially calls, because when they're here, like the whole freaking goal of my business was to be with them. Yeah. Like I left when I was on maternity leave and I already had one daughter. Like my daughter, my oldest daughter was like four at the time. So I always think back to that. And like when I'm here working and they're in there like watching TV and we're not hanging out. I'm always like, I have to think back, why did you start doing this? So my boundaries are always around them because I'm like after 2 p.m. or whenever I pick them up, I try to just cut off. Now, back to being like completely transparent. That has not been happening the last couple of months because it's real life. Like I'm in a phase right now where I'm trying to grow my course. You know, it's right to around Black Friday, like people are expecting promos from me. I have that commute, the Facebook community. I have a team now that's, you know, that looks to me for help. So like it's just a different phase of life. But I'm hoping in like the new year, when after everything dies down after the holidays, I can get back to being like, okay, after two, like I'm not doing calls or whatever. But that's definitely a boundary for my burnout as well. Because taking like the afternoons off is like huge, right? Like it's nice to just be able to, I don't cook dinner like my husband cooks, but it's nice to just kind of be like, I need to do laundry and go do laundry, not wait till it's piled up, you know, on the dresser over there because I haven't gotten to it. Like those things will also stress you out, you know. I haven't gotten to laundry, the dishes are overflowing, like all that's all those things. So like, yeah, that's pretty much my biggest boundary. And I take a relaxing bath every night. That's non-negotiable. I don't care what stage of life I'm in. A relaxing bath.

Zoe Greenhalf: 32:57

Would you say then that you your your big why behind why you keep doing this is a lot to do with your kids and being present as a parent. I imagine there's more to it than that, but it sounds like that's a big driving force.

Megan Spencer: 33:11

Yes. My both of my parents worked all the time. They still work, they haven't retired yet. I'm like, y'all need to retire. If you're listening to this, y'all need to retire. But it's like, I think back to, you know, they worked a lot. They worked long hours. So I would always be like at my grandma's house waiting for them to come pick us up or you know, whatever. Because my my sister was like five years older than me. So it's not like she could really watch me. You know what I mean? Like she was just, it just wasn't, it didn't work out like that. So like we'd have we'd get home late, they'd get home late. I'd watch my mom cook dinner at like six o'clock or whatever. And I always just was like, when I have kids, like I didn't want that. Like I wanted to be here. Like it's cool that I get to pick my kids up from school every day. I get to drop them off, you know. Like, yeah, I love doing those things because I rode the bus. I would ride the bus to my grandma's house and my girl I would get picked up, you know. So, like being here for them, especially when they're this young, I love it. And also, I want to be able to like literally when they get older, just be like, here's this large amount of money. Like, go buy a house, go to college. Like, I don't want them to start their life off in debt like I started. Like, I had racked up so much freaking debt on credit cards by the time I was like 20. Really? Like 20 years old because I just didn't know what I was doing. I didn't, I worked at McDonald's, like I just didn't understand like finances like that. So I want to educate them for one, and two, I want to be like, you know, I want them to have a good start in life financially. Like go buy a house or buy a car, you know, or whatever it is they need is basically what I'm trying to say. What but I just want them to be like set financially.

Zoe Greenhalf: 34:57

Yeah, yeah, that makes a lot of sense. Um and I think it's incredible and well done for getting yourself out of that debt as well. Because it was rough, yeah, yeah, I can imagine. So given that you have this anti-influencer method and it feels a little bit like it's gonna rock the status quo in some way, which I love. Um what makes it, you know, what makes your approach different? Because there are so many people out there selling online courses and things like that.

Megan Spencer: 35:30

Yeah, I think my approach is different because for one, it's not revolved around growing followers or having to go live or anything like that, which I think a lot of people in the online space do teach those things. But also the biggest piece about it is I have connections with brands. So I've been since I've been a creator since 2023, I have like this huge list of brands, like people in the space will come to me and be like, hey, I want to hire your creators. So I built this whole thing that's like a UGC master list. It's just a spreadsheet with places to land jobs, faceless opportunities, apps, websites, brands, applications. Like that is literally worth the course itself, that sheet, because you can go on there and apply, and it's a connection from me, you know. So it's like you can say, Oh, I'm an aim creator, you know, and I feel like that's pretty much the biggest difference is because not only am I helping people learn the skill of UGC and how to be a good creator and how to do this and how to do that, but I have the connections for them where it's like, okay, you're done learning. Now you can go apply. Now you can go get hired. Um, and I have a lot of like connections with agencies too that like do training for new creators. And so they'll hire people that literally just started two days ago. It's pretty fun.

Zoe Greenhalf: 36:51

Listen, um, Meg, it's been so interesting um talking to you. It's been super insightful. Like, this is a whole world I knew nothing about. Um you know, I feel like you you reinvented yourself in doing this. For sure. What plans have you got for the future? Um, are you gonna reinvent yourself again? Are you gonna keep going where you are? Like, what are you thinking? Oh gosh, that is a loaded question.

Megan Spencer: 37:17

Um, I think I'm trying to figure that out for sure. I would love to eventually like launch merch of my own. Um, so I think I don't know if that's reinventing, but kind of like extension of current thing. Like, I I don't know. I have a lot of like plans for my current course, the anti-influencer method, like rebranding and new colors and my new website and like things that I want to branch off of, like the main Meg the Creator brand.

Zoe Greenhalf: 37:46

Yeah.

Megan Spencer: 37:47

But yeah, I think just kind of optimizing, making it better, continuing to grow it, maybe start some Facebook ads one day. So yeah, I'm I'm excited, and then I would love to eventually like branch into merch that kind of fits my vibe. Maybe some black beanies or black hoodies or something. But yeah, I'm excited to see where it takes me.

Zoe Greenhalf: 38:08

I saw you um describe yourself as a bit of an older emo. Is that true?

Megan Spencer: 38:13

Yes, yes, for sure. Um love that. I just got back from the music festival, which is like an emo rock music festival, and so yeah, that's like a whole nother like persona that a lot of people like identify with me as well. So it's really cool. I love that.

Zoe Greenhalf: 38:30

Um, Meg, where can everybody find you? Just remind everybody about your website and um your social media and stuff.

Megan Spencer: 38:37

So my website is MegTheCreator.com, and then on YouTube I am at Meg the Creator. On TikTok, I'm at MegTheCreator1 underscore, and then on Instagram, I'm at MegTheCreator2 underscores. Don't you love that?

Zoe Greenhalf: 38:51

I will link to them all in the show notes so there won't be any problems. But um thank you so much for sharing your story and thanks for having me. Yeah, all the best. I can't wait to see where it takes you. I know, thank you so much. Here's this week's rebellious recap, then. Number one, so you can create a job or a side hustle for yourself with user-generated content or UGC, which basically means showing the project the products in use for brands. Two, even if you're not really into the idea of UGC, the name of the game here is to take one skill that you have and leverage it. So, where else can you apply that skill? What other inju industries need it? How can you repurpose something that you already have or know how to do? Number three, if you want to enter the creator game, ask yourself what is going to make someone buy this product. And most of the time it's all tied into emotion. Number four, in this industry, it's allowed to be a beginner. Brands will guide you, which means it's a great place to learn on the job. Five, don't go into things thinking that you're gonna fail. You need to reframe it as an opportunity to learn and have fun. Six, if you're gonna start working for yourself, you might want to get good at negotiating skills. And number seven, have yourself a little self-care routine and make it a non-negotiable. Whether that's a bath like Meg, a daily walk, drawing, reading, but make sure you've got some boundaries in place so you don't burn out. That's a wrap on another episode of the Mischief Movement Podcast. If today's content stirred something in you, let's keep in touch on Instagram or connect with me on LinkedIn. You can even click the link in the show notes to sign up to my Mischief Mail newsletter, where you'll get exclusive insights on upcoming episodes and your chance to submit questions to future guests. But shh, don't tell anyone, it's our secret. For more info on ways to work with me and some fun free resources, check out the website themischiefmovement.com. Until next time, stay bold, stay rebellious, and of course, keep making mischief.