She moved to Fayetteville in 2020 for school, got COVID, mono, and tonsillitis three times, and genuinely did not think she was going to stay. Fast forward a few years: she's the publisher of Fayetteville City Lifestyle Magazine, a published author, and one of the people most responsible for making sure this city's stories actually get told. Sydney Sullivan did not plan any of this. And that's exactly what makes her story worth hearing.

In this episode of HerStory, Sami sits down with Sydney to talk about what it looks like to build a career around something you've loved since childhood, how to walk into rooms where you feel like you have no business being there, and why Fayetteville keeps doing this thing where people show up planning to leave and end up obsessed. Sydney also shares a goal she hasn't said out loud yet, and it's one that anyone in a season of figuring it out needs to hear. In this episode, we get into:

• What it actually felt like to go from tech sales to publisher in her mid-20s, and why following what you loved as a kid is still the best career advice
• How to walk into a room where you don't belong and stay anyway
• The 'secret sauce' of Fayetteville according to someone whose entire job is to pay attention to this city
• What she hopes Fayetteville never loses as it grows
• A secret goal involving women's stories that she's never said out loud before

Sydney talks about the mindset shift that got her through imposter syndrome: "somebody put me here, so it wasn't on accident." She shares what her dad's steady belief in her built inside her, the advice she'd give her younger self about leaning into natural giftings instead of chasing stability, and the question she most wants to ask the panelists at the Women of All Generations event on June 16.

What you'll take from this conversation is a little more permission to be exactly where you are, even when it doesn't look like what you planned. Sydney is 24, running a magazine, and still figuring things out in real time. That's not a disclaimer. That's the point.

The Women of All Generations event is June 16, 2026, 3 to 6 PM at the Fayetteville Town Center. Grab your tickets and find out everything at fayettevillear.com/woag.

Mentioned in this episode:

• Fayetteville City Lifestyle Magazine: fayettevillecitylifestyle.com
• The College Girl's Guide to Fayetteville by Sydney Sullivan
• The Soul of Shame by Curt Thompson
• Andrew Huberman's Huberman Lab Podcast: hubermanlab.com
• George's on Dickson Street, Fayetteville AR
• Dodo Coffee, Fayetteville AR
• Baba Boudan's, Fayetteville AR
• Women of All Generations event: fayettevillear.com/woag

Connect with Sydney:

• Instagram (personal): @sydney.i.sullivan
• Instagram (magazine): @fayettevillecitylifestyle
• LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/sydney-sullivan-17699320a

Mentioned in this episode:

Women of All Generations | June 16, 2026

The Women of All Generations event is almost here. Join us June 16, 2026 from 3 to 6 PM at the Fayetteville Town Center for an afternoon of real conversation, connection, and celebration. Tickets and sponsorships are available now. You belong in that room. Grab your spot at fayettevillear.com/woag.