Noël Russell is a first generation American, born and raised in California, and ever since she could walk, she’s spent every second of her free time romping in the mountains. These days, you’ll often find her camped in the backcountry, hiking along a trail, or traveling around the Sierra Nevada in a converted campervan with her husband and their two rescue mutts. In this episode, Noël talks candidly about why and how she and her husband travel part-time in their van while maintaining a small home base and full-time jobs. Speaking of jobs, Noël is in a period of transition right now, having recently moved from social service and a fulfilling career working in homeless shelters to freelance creative work, and she talks all about that in this conversation. We talk about defining success for yourself, taking the pressure off any one thing or person to meet all your needs, and how living your values isn’t always a sexy thing to do. Noël is one of my favorite Instagram follows, and I absolutely loved this conversation. I hope you enjoy it just as much! (more…)