What Hayley Honeyman Taught Me About Neurodivergence, Sustainable YouTube Income, and Redefining Success
“The biggest driving force was just seeking creators like myself and not finding any. And so I’ll be that person for myself and for other people.”
Some conversations stay with me because they articulate something I see happening quietly across YouTube. My interview with Hayley Honeyman was one of those. Not because of explosive growth or viral numbers, but because of how intentionally she has built a career that works with her brain, not against it.
Hayley creates content through a neurodivergent lens, openly talking about ADHD, autism, productivity, and burnout. When she started, there were very few creators sharing lived, relatable experiences around neurodivergence on YouTube. Most of the content was clinical or educational. She wanted something different. She wanted to see herself on the platform, and when she couldn’t find it, she became it.
Starting With Short Form — and Going the Opposite Direction
One thing I found especially interesting about Hayley’s journey is that she didn’t start with YouTube. She built an audience on short-form platforms first, growing to around 100,000 followers before ever committing to long-form content. When her short-form audience asked for longer videos, she listened.
That transition wasn’t easy. Views were lower. The dopamine hit of short-form performance disappeared. But she stuck with it, treating YouTube as a creative outlet rather than a metric-driven experiment. Over time, that decision paid off in a way many creators don’t expect.
How a Smaller Channel Became a Sustainable Business
Hayley’s YouTube channel doesn’t rely heavily on AdSense. Instead, her income comes primarily from brand partnerships, affiliates, and a small number of coaching clients. What stood out to me was not the amount she makes, but how selective she is about how she makes it.
She turns down most sponsorships. She tests every product for months. She prioritizes companies that are genuinely neurodivergent-friendly, flexible, communicative, and aligned with her values. And she has walked away from high-paying deals when something felt off — even early in her career.
That level of integrity is rare, and it’s a big reason her community trusts her.
Community Over Clout Always Wins
One of the strongest themes in our conversation was community. Hayley’s audience may not be massive, but it is deeply engaged. Brands care about that. Views matter, but engagement matters more. A smaller, highly connected audience consistently outperforms larger, disengaged ones.
This is something I see over and over again with YouTube. The platform rewards depth. It rewards trust. And it rewards creators who are actually building relationships instead of chasing numbers.
The Burnout That Forced a Reset
At one point, Hayley was working twelve-hour days, chasing growth, revenue, and productivity. On paper, things looked great. In reality, she was dysregulated, exhausted, and unhappy. That season forced a hard reckoning.
She made a conscious decision to stop tying her worth to output. She reduced her workload. She created boundaries around coaching. She delegated brand logistics. And she started prioritizing her life outside of work — relationships, hobbies, rest, and recovery.
Interestingly, her content improved when she slowed down.
Freedom as the Real Goal
One of the most powerful takeaways from this conversation was how clearly Hayley defines success. Her goal is not constant growth. It’s freedom. The freedom to rest when her disability requires it. The freedom to say no to brands. The freedom to change careers someday if that feels right.
YouTube gave her that option.
Even now, recovering from major surgery, YouTube is the one thing she can sustain weekly — not because she forces it, but because it fits her energy and her life in this season.
What Creators Can Learn From Her Story
Hayley’s journey reinforces a few lessons I think more creators need to hear:
- You do not need explosive growth to build a sustainable income.
- You do not need to say yes to every opportunity.
- You do not need to sacrifice your mental health for momentum.
You do need boundaries.
You do need self-awareness.
And you do need to build something that works for your actual life.
Neurodivergent or not, that lesson applies to all of us.
“I feel morally obligated to look after my community, especially because so much of my community is autistic. We are so easily manipulated and we are so easily taken advantage of that I don’t want to put that in front of my audience.”
FREE RESOURCES
- Register for my FREE Masterclass
- Download my FREE 32 Page Video Ideas E-Book!
YOUTUBE COURSES AND COACHING
- CLICK HERE to get the Audience Attraction System Mini Course
- YOUTUBE BOOTCAMP FOR WOMEN: Are you looking for support, coaching, community and proven systems that will help you achieve your YouTube goals? Join a unique, comprehensive YouTube growth bootcamp that will help you 10x your growth on YouTube and bring you the financial and creative freedom you want. Add your name to the YouTube Bootcamp waitlist so you are notified when space becomes available!
- 1:1 YOUTUBE COACHING: Are you wanting to go full time on YouTube within 3 months or are already full time and are wanting to invest in 1:1 coaching for your YouTube channel for rapid growth? Click here to apply!
- STRATEGIC CHANNEL MANAGEMENT: Are you a business looking for strategic channel management? Please email my team at support@erikavieira.net with Strategic Channel Management in the subject.
TRUSTED YOUTUBE TOOLS
- Poppy AI: my new favorite AI tool for YouTube creators! Click here to get Poppy and use code ErikaV for $25 off plus theres a 30 day money back guarantee!
- TubeBuddy: Click here to get TubeBuddy and use the code ErikasBuddy to get 20% off
- Kajabi: All-in-one course creation platform I use and LOVE! Click here to get Kajabi.
RECOMMENDED YOUTUBE/PODCASTING EQUIPMENT:
- Click here for my Amazon storefront to see my favorite products for YouTube creators
*Links include affiliate links
**Erika Vieira is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to www.amazon.com.
***Disclaimers: all opinions are my own, sponsors are acknowledged. Links in the description are typically affiliate links that let you help support the podcast at no extra cost.
