about milly & the experiment
Hi! I’m Milly Stübing
and I’m on a mission to get unstuck, out of my own way & finally take action toward my biggest goals. Here’s where I document the “how” behind changing my life — in the hopes that it’ll help you change yours, too.
milly & the expeiment
For the past several years, I felt so stuck and behind, like all I could do was try to keep my head above water. I dealt with debilitating depression and trauma, and spent years “just” recovering. Even after healing and finding myself again, I kept getting in my own way, like no matter how much I wanted to change, I couldn’t do it.
That’s when I decided to turn my life into an experiment to find out what it truly takes to change your life—to quit overthinking and start taking action toward your biggest goals. This is where I’m sharing everything I learn, all the highs & lows, and whatever helps me along the way.
Want to change your life with me? Join the Summer Manifestation Challenge.
May 25th – June 22nd, 2025
This summer, stop thinking about your dream life—and start building it.
The Summer Manifestation Challenge will help you finally get out of your own way, take bold action, and make real progress toward your goals—alongside a community that gets it. For 4 powerful weeks, you’ll build momentum, uncover and overcome the blocks that have been holding you back, and begin stepping into your future self.
Over the Years
Milly’s (Bumpy) Ride
Got my first 9 -5 job…and left 8 months later
It took me all of 8 months to find out that the 9-5 life wasn’t for me. I got my first job as a medical interpreter for Spanish-speakers in Iowa after graduating from college. The patients I worked with were wonderful! Only problem was: I hated being stuck in one place.
saw a vision & left my job (with no backup plan)
Yes, I know it sounds a little crazy! I had this vision come to me — I saw myself on a beach in Croatia wearing a red one-piece swimsuit — and I couldn’t get it out of my mind. To me, that vision signified freedom in my work and my location, so I quit my job and moved back in with my parents, determined to only take remote work.
manifested the beach vision
After a few months, I found not one but two remote jobs — one as a health & lifestyle coach and another as a German & Spanish translator. I worked both jobs for half a year, all the while saving up to start my travels. Eventually, I built up enough translation work to quit the coaching gig and took off for Europe!
living as a digital nomad
I can’t lie, this was a crazy but amazing year. Not being much of a planner, I often chose a place to go and booked the first few nights, then decided if I wanted to stay or not — kind of stressful but leads to the best adventures! In this time, I went to over 10 countries, including Cyprus, Malta, the Dominican Republic, South Africa (one of my favorites!!), Panama, and more!
created a swimwear brand & sustainable fashion blog
To make that original vision with the red swimsuit come to life, I had to learn how to sew because that swimsuit didn’t exist. This slowly turned into a passion for sewing & sustainable fashion, so I started a blog sharing my tutorials, sustainable fashion tips, and multicultural fashion stories as I traveled the world and met with traditional clothing experts.
sold my first swimsuits!
As I put my designs out there, people started asking for them! So what started as a fun hobby slowly and organically became a small business.
the pandemic changed everything
Of course, the pandemic sort of put a stop to the whole travel thing. Suddenly I felt lost and had no idea what to do next. To find a way to move forward, I decided to build on my business idea by learning more at business school. I threw my all into applications and GRE prep, and the next vision came to life: I set my sights on the University of Cambridge.
was accepted to judge business school at the university of cambridge!
started my master’s degree
took a year-long medical intermission from grad school
After dealing with SA from another student (which was not the first time I dealt with SA in my life), everything hit me at once and I ended up having a huge mental breakdown, struggling with debilitating depression and PTSD, and dropped out of my program for a year. In this time, I focused on trying to stay afloat and recovering. I started going to therapy, taking antidepressants, but didn’t have it in me to do all the things I used to. Suddenly, I felt like I didn’t know who I was at all.
struggled with trauma, depression, ptsd & ADHD
Started my healing journey
As miserable as I was at this time, it allowed me to finally feel and work through trauma that I’d buried deep down for years. How much I struggled, how alone I felt — it would all later inspire me to talk about my journey and all the things I wish I’d heard along the way, but also to start the community I wished I’d had back then.
moved to cambridge & manifested my vision
Despite still being at my lowest point with depression, I was determined to make the most of my Master’s program and the opportunity to go to Cambridge. So, without a plan or even a place to live until the day of my flight, I packed up and moved to the UK!
The last-minute apartment find was a dump though. So, through a somewhat painful & extremely stressful chain of events that included needing to find a different place to live ASAP, I ended up moving into student accommodation that made my vision board — the one I kept in front of me while studying for the GRE — a reality. The exact picture on that board became my daily walk to won.
got in a toxic relationship
But moving to Cambridge didn’t fix things. I was still depressed, the PTSD was even worse, and it took enormous amounts of energy to get myself to leave the house at all. From this place of low self-worth and self-trust, I ended up in a toxic relationship that made me feel even worse, especially once we moved in together.
ended the relationship, moved back to the us
After a year of ups and downs in Cambridge, lots of therapy, and self-development podcast to inspire me — I was ready to trust myself and take the leap. I ended the toxic relationship and after months of trying to find a job so I could move out and afford a place, the universe sent one right to my inbox as soon as I made the decision to get out. Finally I was free again, and this is when the real healing began.
submitted & passed my thesis!
It took a few deadline extensions, but finally I finished my Master’s with a thesis about disability inclusion in the workplace.
continued healing, self-development work & manifestation retreat
I continued therapy and consumed anything that could help me change my life — books, podcasts, you name it! Finally I was getting to the root of the trauma and unblocking it, which was hugely aided by a manifestation retreat I went on in the Dominican Republic. There, I found my own Manifestation Bestie (which has made ALL the difference in reaching my goals & changing my life) AND I was introduced to BREATHWORK! This quickly became my favorite tool to dig deeper into my subconscious and rewire my brain.
started the manifestation besties community
Despite not being ready, I got an inspired download telling me to start the kind of community I wanted back when I was struggling so much. And with that, Manifestation Besties was born! Leading this group took me way out of my comfort zone and forced me to unblock limiting beliefs around owning my voice, being a leader, and more. Plus, it provided me with a beautiful, supportive community of people who wanted to change their lives too!
went back to cambridge for graduation
started my year-long experiment (again & again & again)
I first started my life experiment in October 2024. This helped me to start getting out of my own way and taking action, but eventually I fell behind and stopped. I attempted it again at the start of 2025, but then spent all my time planning and overthinking instead of putting myself out there. Finally I re-started the experiment in April, 2025, when I got to the point where I just couldn’t wait anymore — I was ready to change my life and had to do it.