Build Abundance, Not Burnout With Nicole Sauce

Your homestead can grow more than food—it can grow freedom. In this straight-shooting session, Nicole Sauce shares how she turned her land, skills, and everyday life into a patchwork of income streams that support the life she actually wants to live. Whether you’re growing food, crafting, building, or teaching, Nicole will show you how to build abundance without burnout.

She’s the force behind Holler Roast Coffee, the Living Free in Tennessee podcast, and Self-Reliance Festival itself. If you’re ready to stop spinning your wheels and start earning from what you already do, this is the session you don’t want to miss.

What you’ll learn:

  • Where most homesteaders leave money on the table
  • How to turn daily activities into income stream
  • What works, what scales, and what to avoid

I caught up with Nicole and asked her a few things:

  • If your homestead had a warning label, what would it say?
    WARNING: Long-term life upgrades underway. Side effects may include sudden clarity, chronic self-reliance, and uncontrollable urges to build a chicken coop. If you’re not ready for an epiphany that wrecks your comfort zone—in the best way possible—turn back now.
  • What’s the weirdest thing you’ve ever sold (or thought about selling) for money?
    Poop. We have thought about selling poop to gardeners for money and that just sounds weird, doesn’t it? But Rabbit poop is garden MAGIC.

Catch Nicole at SRF! Get your tickets now:

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Be Prepared: No Theory, Just What Works With Tim Cook

Tim Cook brings boots-on-the-ground know-how, decades of experience, and a practical approach to self-reliance, preparedness, and building a sustainable life. Whether he’s getting rid of wasps with a homemade bee vacuum,  or showing you how to outthink a supply chain failure, Tim shows you what it really means to be prepared—not just for tomorrow, but for the decades ahead.

What you’ll learn:

  • Real-world skills you can use now to build resilience and prosperity no matter what happens
  • Where most folks waste time and energy in preparedness—and how to avoid it
  • How to create systems that work even when things go sideways

I caught up with Tim and asked him a few things”

  • If duct tape didn’t exist, what would be your ride-or-die fix-it material?
    I hope this isn’t a cheat but I would use what we call tuck tape up here in canada it is the red/blue/white tape that is used to seal vapor barrier.  Its basically like a strong stickier version of packing tape its easy to cut its light weight but it holds like a bugger.  I honestly use this more than anything as long as you don’t want it to let go.  One warning is it is damn near impossible to remove so expect whatever it is on to have some red residue if you try to remove it.
  • What’s the weirdest barter deal you’ve ever made?
    I have traded a summer of lawn care for a brand new push mower,  built a set of shelves for a 1/10 ounce of gold, but the oddest barter I did was I did a winters worth of snow removal in trade for three soviet made 1940’s tokarev hand guns, which was totally legal which I had then planned on trading for a glock but there was an admin problem with the registration which delayed the sale until after the latest ban on handguns so unless something changes I am stuck with those three tokarevs for the rest of my days lol.

Catch Tim at SRF! Get your tickets now:

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The System Is Lying to You: What Real Freedom Actually Looks Like With Tag From Life Done Free

Tag from Life Done Free is not here to sugarcoat anything. His talk at Self-Reliance Festival will pull back the curtain on the illusion of freedom we’ve been sold and lay out what it actually takes to live free in today’s world.

Drawing from his off-grid life, debt-free homesteading experience, and the community he helped build, Tag will challenge you to question the rules, break out of dependency systems, and design a life on your own terms.

What you’ll learn:

  • How modern systems trap you with false choices
  • What real freedom looks like when you stop asking permission
  • The mindset shift required to start living life done free
  • Practical steps to break free from debt, utilities, and fear

More about Tag:
Tag and his wife, B, run the Life Done Free YouTube channel, where they share real-world insights from their homestead. They’ve built a lifestyle rooted in self-reliance, personal responsibility, and community collaboration. Tag is also a driving force behind Freesteading.com, a platform for doers who want to build a resilient life together.

Off-the-wall questions for Tag:

What’s the most unexpected freedom-related hill you’re willing to die on?

What a great question. This has evolved over time for me. The freedom to control what I put in my body was never that important to me. In fact, I was pro vaccine and I encourage people to get the flu shot. I was for the better good right? Well, this was a hill I did stand on and you know the rest of the story.

If your homestead had a theme song that played every morning, what would it be?

There are so many great songs that perfectly describe life on my homestead. I am such a staunch advocate for attitude is reality. I will go with Unstoppable by the Score. This song is about remaining optimistic amid challenges. The suck will always be with us but I get to choose how a react to it.

Catch Tag at SRF!

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Like Father, Like Son: Homeschool Your Boys With Sonny Puzikas

In today’s world, raising strong, capable, and independent young men requires a deliberate approach. Sonny Puzikas, a former Soviet special forces operative turned educator, is bringing a powerful session to Self-Reliance Festival 2025 on the why and how of homeschooling boys.

With a background that blends discipline, real-world experience, and a commitment to personal freedom, Sonny will share his perspective on breaking free from the modern education system and raising sons who are self-reliant, skilled, spiritually sound, and mentally tough.

What you’ll learn:

  • Why homeschooling is a critical tool for raising strong young men
  • Practical skills and mindset training to prepare boys for the real world
  • How to foster discipline, critical thinking, and adaptability
  • Creating an education plan that aligns with freedom, responsibility, and resilience

More about Sonny

I caught up with Sonny and asked him two off-the-wall questions:

If you could time travel to any point in history to train alongside a legendary warrior or strategist, who would it be and why?

To some answer could be surprising. But it would be so due to emotional and manipulative power of history as it was taught in modern days.

I would like to spend a few days at the table with Joseph Stalin and Adolf Hitler. At the same time. Legendary strategists, 2 people who have arguably shaped the history of the world more than just about anyone in the past 100 years.

I’d like to understand not just ideological nuances of these 2 and their worldviews, but how they used cold, raw logic, how they perceived and projected responses from the opposing sides.

Knowing the mental traits, the metrics of logic, psychological projections and how they viewed their enemies/opponents would be invaluable with these 2 “monsters”. 

If you had to survive an entire year with only three books for knowledge and entertainment, which ones would you choose?

Easy. Since I don’t do entertainment.
1. Scriptures (aka Bible)
2. Crime and Punishment. Fyodor Dostoyevsky
3. Empty huge folder of blank pages to write the third book, based on reading 1 and 2.

Sonny Puzikas has spent decades training individuals and groups in personal defense, situational awareness, and survival. He takes students through a multitude of training experiences through his training center, Forward Training Concepts and we recommend that you grab a copy of his book, Don’t Be A Shitty Student for best training results. His approach challenges conventional thinking and empowers people to take control of their own education and development. Connect with Sonny at SonnyPuzikas.com and on Facebook.

Catch Sonny at SRF!

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Raw Land to Rural Freedom: Building a Homestead Life One Step At A Time with Brooke Whipple

Ever dreamed of escaping the grind and building a life on your own terms? Brooke Whipple has done just that—turning raw land into a thriving homestead, one smart and frugal decision at a time.

Known for her resilience and self-reliant lifestyle, Brooke is an adventurer, homesteader, and two-time contestant on Alone. She’s been building a sustainable life from the ground up, even when resources are limited. She is the master of using progress on one step to fund the next step.

At Self-Reliance Festival 2025, Brooke will share lessons, practical strategies, and no-nonsense advice for creating freedom through homesteading—without mountains of debt. Whether you’re just getting started or looking to refine your approach, this session will inspire and equip you for the journey ahead.

What you’ll learn:

  • Smart land-buying strategies
  • Essential skills to build your homestead on a budget
  • How to maximize resources and minimize waste
  • The mindset shift needed to embrace true independence

More about Brooke

I caught up with Brooke and asked her a few off-the-wall questions:

  1. What is the weirdest thing you have ever cooked over an open fire?
    Weirdest thing on a campfire- Oregon hairy triton (giant predatory sea snail). Tasted like bile. Apparently has a pathogen in its salivary glands that can be fatal to humans if consumed. Good thing it tasted like crap!
  2. What is your favorite band or piece of music?
    Favorite band or piece of music- that really depends on my mood, but I’m all over the place. I like country- Chris Stapleton, Brothers Osborne, Lainey Wilson, Miranda Lambert, Parker McCollum, good ol’ country gold (Don Williams, Dolly, etc.), to 80’s pop, to artists like Gregory Alan Isakov, Jewel, Daughtry, Shawn Colvin, Rob Thomas, Hozier, John Mayer, Miley Cyrus, and Fleetwood Mac. All. Over. The. Place.

When Brooke is not off-grid building cabins or surviving in the the wild, you’ll find her sharing her journey on YouTube (@GirlInTheWoods), inspiring thousands to take control of their own freedom. Connect with Brooke at her website.

Catch Brooke at SRF!

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Fortress Mindset: Real-World Family Defense With Joel Ryals of FortressK9

Our first speaker announcement this year is Joel Ryals, a man who knows exactly what it takes to protect his family—and yours. His session, “Fortress Mindset: Real-World Family Defense,” is straight talk about practical security. No fluff, no paranoia—just solid strategies to keep your home and loved ones safe.

Self-Reliance Festival isn’t about theory—it’s about real skills, real solutions, and people who walk the walk.

To keep things fin, I hit him with two off-the-wall questions:

🚗 If the only parking spot left was next to a Tesla Charging Station, would you take it or hike from the lot next door?

I would park my diesel truck in the charging station spot. If I can’t do that, I would probably park in the next lot and walk. 😀

🎬 What’s your all-time favorite movie?

My favorite comedy is Space Balls and my favorite Sci-Fi is Terminator with The Matrix as a close second.

What else will you learn about Joel? Stay tuned to find out! SRF 2025 is just getting started.

Connect with Joel

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