The Messy Metamorphosis: Amanda McCombs’ Season 3 Return

If life has ever thrown you curveballs you never trained for, you’re in good company with Amanda McCombs. In the Season 3 opener of Not So Genius Mind Podcast, Amanda returns to the mic with unfiltered honesty about grief, health, and the tender art of rebuilding.

She doesn’t position herself as a genius. Instead, she celebrates the adaptable, empathetic, practical, resilient mind—the “not so genius” mind—where ordinary brilliance lives. That’s the heart of this new season: talking about the parts of life we usually hide, and finding a way forward even when the path is messy.

Grief, Identity, and the Courage to Keep Showing Up

Losing both parents is a seismic event. For Amanda, it ripped away familiar safe spaces and forced a reckoning with identity. Layer on long‑term nerve damage after shingles ran through her sinuses, and you get a picture of healing that refuses to be tidy or linear.

She names the reality many of us feel: you can’t outrun pain, and trying to overachieve your way past it only dulls, never heals. Season 3 is Amanda’s commitment to talk about the mess—to allow grief, anxiety, and vulnerability to be part of the conversation instead of something to fix behind closed doors. It’s a reminder that resilience isn’t a performance; it’s a practice.

Finding a Voice at the Farm

The unexpected place where Amanda rediscovered her voice wasn’t a studio or stage. It was a farm.

Volunteering with the Wellness Firm Foundation since March, she moved from helper to manager, and the rhythms of farm life became an anchor. Belly rubs for Petunia, the 700‑lb pig. Tossing feed to peacocks she hatched in a hotel. Long afternoons with goats.

Even after the ribbon‑cutting, there’s still so much work to do—and somehow, that unfinished, ongoing effort feels like a perfect metaphor for healing. At the farm, Amanda learned that consistency and care, even in small acts, can restore a sense of belonging. Farm therapy isn’t a slogan; it’s the embodied reality of showing up for animals, seasons, chores, and community.

A Skillshare Farm Vision

From that grounding came a bigger dream: a Skillshare farm blending practical learning and retreat‑style healing.

Imagine half‑day or full‑day retreats with a focus on grief recovery, mental health, or community care. Add classes on sourdough, baking, cooking, canning, tending trees, and farm‑to‑table skills. Layer in drum circles, healing circles, and business meetings in a space designed for connection.

The vision includes animals, horses (she planned for two and ended up with three), and possibilities like farm‑to‑market initiatives, charity events, tea parties, and even weddings. Amanda is drafting proposals, creating a nonprofit volunteer board, and exploring grants and rescue status.

It’s ambitious, imperfect, and exactly the kind of community‑minded project that proves healing can be practical, social, and joyful. When properties fall through, she recalibrates and controls what she can: preparing her current home, taking the next step, and staying in motion.

Pageants as Practice: Visibility, Confidence, and Community

This year wasn’t only about the farm. Amanda competed in Mrs. Utah America, USOA (United States of America pageant), and Continental Worldwide (representing Mrs. Oregon).

She didn’t win a judge‑awarded crown—and she’s candid that the crown isn’t the point. Showing up is. Pageants expanded her network and gave her a platform to advocate for healing, resilience, and community.

Returning to Daybreak felt grounding, like an integration of where she’s been and where she is now. As a teacher, she says it’s often easier to advocate for others than for herself. But teaching self‑care to first graders eventually demanded that she model what she teaches: embrace imperfection, ditch the filters when possible, and practice the courage she encourages in others.

Milan Fashion Week, Rome, and a First Passport Stamp

Another dimension of Amanda’s year: Milan Fashion Week. Walking for Robin Towel Designs, she made her first trip abroad and spent the first half solo.

In Rome, confidence arrived on cobblestones. She jokes about having three Tiffany’s within walking distance of her hotel, but the deeper point is how travel reframed her story. Moving through unfamiliar streets, trusting her instincts, and representing on an international stage gave her new perspective and proof of growth.

The Italy experience deserves its own episode, and she promises to return to it later in the season.

Imperfection as an Invitation

Season 3 embraces imperfections: a pickle pimple patch on camera, butterfingers, pocket chickens named Harry Styles, and the trio of horses she meant to keep as a duo.

It’s all part of the invitation: bring your mess. Talk about the things we don’t usually discuss. Find beauty in everyday, ordinary moments. Amanda is building a safe space where vulnerability isn’t a liability; it’s the glue that holds real community together.

If you want to be a guest, the door is open. She wants to hear from people who are ready to tell the truth and laugh at the absurdities of life while they heal.

How to Connect and Contribute

Amanda’s ecosystem is growing, and there are many ways to plug in:

• Follow on Instagram: @notsogenius
• Visit: notsogeniusmind.com and notsogeniuspodcast.com
• Volunteer at the farm or attend retreats
• Propose classes: canning, cooking, creative workshops, healing circles
• Join the nonprofit board or help with event planning and grants
• Pitch an episode idea and share your story

Key Themes and Takeaways

• Grief reshapes identity and demands honesty. Healing is nonlinear, and small, consistent acts of care help.
• Farm therapy and community work can restore belonging and voice.
• Skillsharing brings practical learning and healing together in one place.
• Visibility—through pageants, travel, and creative work—can be a practice for confidence and advocacy.
• Imperfection is an invitation. Real connection thrives when we show up as we are.

Conclusion

Amanda McCombs’ Season 3 return isn’t a polished comeback—it’s a brave continuation. From grief and health to farms, pageants, and fashion week, she models a way to keep growing with humor, humility, and heart.

If you’re searching for a space where ordinary brilliance counts, where learning and healing blend, and where community welcomes your story, this season is for you. Bring your mess, bring your truth, and join the conversation.

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