Social Media Decoded – Episode Summary

Episode Title:
Show Up, Sell & Scale: The Specificity + Simplicity Playbook w/ Steph Rubio
Host: Michelle Thames
Guest: Stephanie Rubio
Date: August 26, 2025

Episode Overview

In this episode, Michelle Thames sits down with "operations unicorn" and business strategist Steph Rubio. Steph shares her journey from couch-surfing single mom to no-nonsense business coach, revealing how grit, clarity of purpose, and a focus on both mindset and actionable strategy empowered her entrepreneurial journey. Together, Michelle and Steph break down common barriers faced by women in business—imposter syndrome, overcomplicating offers, undervaluing yourself, and visibility fears. The conversation is packed with candid insights, actionable frameworks, and Steph's signature mix of real talk and real-world advice, all centered on the theme of showing up, simplifying, and scaling with confidence and conviction.

Key Points & Insights

Steph’s Gritty Origin Story (01:13–03:29)

• Early Challenges: Steph reflects on her early 20s, struggling as a single mom living in a trailer, barely making rent, and feeling immense pressure but never letting determination waver.
  • “The keep going has always been there. The grit has always been there. It’s like my default. And that has served me well.” — Steph Rubio [01:41]
• Why She Kept Going: Initially, her son was her main motivator, but she later realized she was also fighting for herself—both her future self and her past.

Success: Titles vs. Fulfillment (03:04–05:21)

• Turning Down a Title: Steph recounts choosing family and alignment over work titles, sharing how therapy and self-reflection helped her make the bold decision.

  • “Success, what it looks like and what it feels like can be two different things.” — Steph Rubio [03:32]

• Chasing Your Own Dream: She underscores the distinction between working for someone else’s dream and crafting your own, prioritizing real life (time and presence with her kids) over career optics.

  “I want to give [my kids] more of me. And it’s not just a time thing. It’s a mental space... It needs to be my dream. It needs to be our dream.” — Steph Rubio [04:37]

Mindset + Strategy: Why Both Are Essential (05:59–08:57)

• Blending the Two: Steph dismantles the “mindset only” myth and explains how knowledge without self-belief leads to undercharging and limited growth.
  • “If you don’t believe in yourself... you’ll undercharge yourself, you’ll show up scary in calls or in the DMs, you won’t actually charge your worth.” — Steph Rubio [07:24]
• Imposter Syndrome: She shares a pivotal moment when she was intimidated in a room of C-suite executives, only to be validated by mentors who encouraged her contribution.
  • “They got the wrong person. Not supposed to be me. I don’t have anything to share with them... That’s a mindset issue. Because, yes, I did.” — Steph Rubio [07:53]

The Importance of Getting in (the Right) Rooms (08:57–12:46)

• Networking as Growth: Michelle and Steph reinforce the need to “get in the room”—connecting with peers, showing up for events, and not letting follower counts distort perceived value.

  • “You belonged in the room when you bought the ticket to be there.” — Steph Rubio [10:29]

• Cooking Analogy: Steph uses cooking to explain how sharing your knowledge (even if it seems basic) is crucial—people need what you know.

• Connection Over Numbers:

  “You can have 800 followers and connect with your people. You can have a million and not connect and put your pretty content out there. And your impact is wildly different.” — Steph Rubio [12:21]

Simplifying Offer Suites: Why Simple Sells (12:46–15:17)

• Why We Overcomplicate: Steph diagnoses overcomplication as a form of seeking validation or trying to help everyone, leading to scattered offers.
  • “You could do that with one to two to three offers. So when I talk about simplifying offers, I mean one funnel... all one track with one purpose.” — Steph Rubio [13:41]
• Raise Your Standards: She encourages service providers to set clear minimums (hours, commitment) and quit playing small.

Visibility & “Bragging”: Overcoming the Fear (15:17–18:53)

• Conditioning Against Visibility: Steph explains reluctance to self-promote as centuries of conditioning, and urges women to reframe visibility as a business necessity, not vanity.

  • “You need to show up to be successful. Especially on social media these days. Just carousels are just not going to cut it.” — Steph Rubio [16:15]

• Judgment & Family Fears: She points out that fear of judgment—especially from family or old acquaintances—should not be a reason to stay small.

  • “You got one of two options. Either they’re going to see it and they’re going to judge the hell out of you... or they’re not going to judge you and they don’t need what you’re selling.” — Steph Rubio [17:40]
  • “Get rid of the fear and show up anyways.” — Michelle Thames [18:16]

Mental Freedom, Simplicity & Messaging Audits (18:55–22:09)

• Mental Freedom Matters: Steph expands the idea of “freedom” to include mental space, not just time and location.

  • “We ain’t talking about that one up. We all admit, we all want to work from wherever we want. We want more time. But I want to be free up here.” — Steph Rubio [18:55]

• Actionable Messaging Audit: Steph suggests a simple peer review—ask someone outside your head to review your messaging honestly.

  • “Go find someone else and ask them to look at it and offer to do the same for their messaging, truly, because you’re in your head so much.” — Steph Rubio [19:25]

• Specificity Is Key: Strong messaging hinges on clarity—who you help, how, and the transformation you create.

  “If you’re not clear, they’re not clear. And then they’re not buying from you.” — Steph Rubio [22:00]

Final Words & Where to Find Steph (22:09–23:16)

• Messy Action Encouraged: Michelle closes with a powerful reminder: Don’t wait to feel ready, just start taking action and showing up as you are.
  • “You don’t need to wait to feel ready to show up. Take messy action.” — Michelle Thames [23:41]
• Connect with Steph:
  • Instagram: @virtuallystephrubio (most active)
  • Website: stephrubio.com (“living document”—Instagram offers the real, day-to-day insights)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Origin Story & Family Motivation: [01:13–03:04]
• Walking Away from Titles: [03:04–05:21]
• Blending Mindset & Strategy: [05:59–08:57]
• Getting in the Room & Networking: [08:57–12:46]
• Simplifying Your Offers: [12:46–15:17]
• Visibility, Bragging & Judgment: [15:17–18:53]
• Mental Freedom and Messaging Audit: [18:55–22:09]
• Final Thoughts & Where to Find Steph: [22:09–23:16]

Memorable Quotes

• “The keep going has always been there. The grit has always been there. It’s like my default. And that has served me well.” — Steph Rubio [01:41]
• “Success, what it looks like and what it feels like can be two different things.” — Steph Rubio [03:32]
• “If you don’t believe in yourself... you’ll undercharge yourself... you won’t actually charge your worth.” — Steph Rubio [07:24]
• “You belonged in the room when you bought the ticket to be there.” — Steph Rubio [10:29]
• “You can have 800 followers and connect with your people. You can have a million and not connect... your impact is wildly different.” — Steph Rubio [12:21]
• “You have to flip it on its head. You have to remove the emotion from it just a little bit and make it a part of your business.” — Steph Rubio [16:13]
• “You don’t need to wait to feel ready to show up. Take messy action.” — Michelle Thames [23:41]

Tone and Style

• Honest, relatable, motivational, and rooted in real-world experience.
• Both Michelle and Steph use direct, encouraging language, offer candid self-reflections, and share actionable steps with empathy and humor.

Takeaways for Listeners

• Your backstory is your superpower—embrace every part of the journey.
• Mindset without strategy (and vice versa) keeps you stuck; real progress comes from blending both.
• Simplify your business offers—clarity attracts, confusion repels.
• Stop waiting to feel “ready”—start taking messy, authentic action today.
• Don’t let follower counts, imposter syndrome, or fear of judgment shrink your visibility or impact.
• Audit your messaging with a trusted outside perspective for relevance, specificity, and conversion power.

For more from Steph, connect on Instagram at @virtuallystephrubio, where the real-life and business shenanigans happen daily.

This summary covers all key strategic, mindset, and practical lessons from the original episode, minus the promotional and non-content segments.