MIKAYLA NOGUEIRA EXCLUSIVE: The Story She’s Finally Ready to Tell
Episode of On Purpose with Jay Shetty · October 5, 2026 · 2 h 8 min
Beauty creator Mikayla Nogueira tells Jay Shetty about her rise from Ulta makeup artist to viral TikTok star, her addiction-strained marriage and divorce, new love, and her brand POV.
Summary
Jay Shetty interviewed beauty creator Mikayla Nogueira, who said she was at a turning point approaching 30 and ready to share her story. Nogueira described growing up in an artistic household in a small Massachusetts town, being bullied for wearing full makeup from age 10, starting a YouTube channel and beauty blog as a young teenager, and winning a DECA competition with a 50-page business plan for becoming an influencer. She recounted briefly giving up on beauty in college, being hired as a floor makeup artist at Ulta by a manager named Lindsay, and losing her Ulta job, a bank HR position and her master's program in a single day when COVID-19 shut the country down.
Nogueira explained that she downloaded TikTok to help her mother, a school counselor, teach students remotely, noticed the algorithm could make videos from accounts with no followers go viral, and then posted an acne-coverage tutorial that drew 15 million views in a day. She discussed her first cancellation over filter accusations, the backlash to her 'try being an influencer for a day' clip and a 2023 L'Oréal lash controversy, the mental health toll of rapid growth, coping strategies such as blocking her own name on TikTok, and her view that influencer fatigue stems from inauthentic content. Shetty offered his own view that people near the top of any field tend to polarize audiences.
The longest segment covered her marriage to Cody, whom she met on Tinder as he left rehab. Nogueira described repeated relapses, a night she found him unconscious and called 911, his mental health decline, and her own admission that she put her career above him. She said they decided to divorce while he was in rehab in December 2024, attempted reconciliation, and finalized the divorce over Zoom after about eight months, celebrating afterward. She then described reconnecting with her high school first love, Zach, an Air Force veteran, and explained why she launched her skin-prep-focused brand POV with Sephora rather than Ulta, citing Sephora's record with founder-led brands. The episode ended with Shetty's 'final five' questions.
Chapters
- 0:01
Why now and who Mikayla is
Nogueira explains why she chose to tell her story and describes her outspoken, creative identity rooted in an artistic family.
- 2:57
Childhood, bullying and discovering makeup
She recalls handmade outfits, bullying for wearing makeup, an Avon catalog at eight, early YouTube videos and a DECA-winning influencer business plan.
- 18:20
Giving up and getting hired at Ulta
Nogueira describes deleting her channels in college, finding hope through Instagram, and an Ulta manager who made her a floor makeup artist.
- 28:19
Losing everything to COVID
She recounts losing her Ulta job, HR offer and master's program in one day as the pandemic hit.
- 31:58
TikTok and the viral acne video
Helping her mother teach on TikTok led her to post an acne transition and tutorial that drew 15 million views, launching her career.
- 41:45
Cancellations and mental health
Nogueira discusses filter accusations, the 'try being an influencer' backlash, coping with hate, influencer fatigue and her accent.
- 57:29
Meeting Cody
She describes meeting her ex-husband on Tinder as he left rehab and how both struggled with her sudden fame.
- 1:06:30
Marriage through relapse
Nogueira recounts an early engagement, repeated relapses on drugs and alcohol, and the strain of balancing his addiction with her career.
- 1:15:14
A late-night emergency and decline
She describes finding Cody unconscious, calling 911, his mental health decline, and acknowledging she put her career above him.
- 1:34:48
The path to divorce
Nogueira explains deciding on divorce in rehab, a failed reconciliation, asking for a divorce, and celebrating its finalization over Zoom.
- 1:47:34
Reconnecting with Zach
She tells the story of her high school first love, an Air Force veteran who supported her through the divorce and became her partner.
- 1:53:17
Building POV and choosing Sephora
Nogueira traces POV's skin-prep concept to her Ulta days and explains choosing Sephora for its founder-brand support.
- 2:00:11
Final five
She answers Shetty's closing questions on advice, friendship, marriage and a law to ban cyberbullying.
Key points
What was said, by whom, with the exact words. Timestamps jump to the moment.
- Mikayla Nogueira
Nogueira says she is deeply aware of her insecurities and low self-esteem, which paradoxically gives her confidence in who she is.
“But I'm very self-aware of my insecurities, self-aware of how low my self-esteem is, self-aware of my mental health”
- Mikayla Nogueira
Nogueira recounts that at 16 she won a DECA business competition with a 50-page plan for becoming a successful influencer.
“I wrote a 50-page business plan on how I could be successful as an influencer, having no idea that this would be my life now”
- Mikayla Nogueira
Nogueira says she quickly noticed that TikTok's algorithm let accounts with no followers go viral, which she saw as an opportunity after losing her job.
“You could have no followers and you could have a video blow up. And that could be a turning point”
- Mikayla Nogueira
Nogueira denies using filters, saying her first cancellation stemmed from false filter accusations.
“I don't use filters, but I get accused of it a lot”
- Jay Shetty
Shetty argues that people nearing the top 1% of their field tend to be loved or hated by about half the public.
“the closer you get to the top 1%, the more likely you have a 50% love or hate relationship”
- Mikayla Nogueira
Nogueira says she knew her 'try being an influencer for a day' remark was wrong and deleted it immediately, though it resurfaced years later.
“Now, I knew in that moment that what I said was wrong, and I actually deleted that video within seconds of posting it”
- Mikayla Nogueira
Nogueira says she protects her mental health by keeping her phone out of the bedroom and blocking her own name on TikTok.
“So I blocked my name and that way videos about me don't come up”
- Mikayla Nogueira
Nogueira argues that influencer fatigue comes from creating content inauthentically and advises stepping back rather than pushing harder.
“I think influencer fatigue comes from when you're creating from a place that lacks authenticity”
- Mikayla Nogueira
Nogueira advises partners of addicts that they cannot make a relapsing partner sober; the addict must want it.
“You have to realize that if, say, they relapse, you can't be the one to get them sober”
- Mikayla Nogueira
Nogueira says relapses are common and normal, especially early in sobriety.
“Relapses are very common and normal as you're going through a sobriety journey, especially when you're just getting sober”
- Mikayla Nogueira
Nogueira acknowledges she prioritized her career over her husband and says this was unfair to him and part of why she left.
“the problem with that, though, is I was putting my career above Cody. And that wasn't fair to Cody”
Linked moment · 1:27:36Skip to 1:27:36 using a listen link in the info box.
Mikayla NogueiraNogueira says her career both contributed to the breakdown of her marriage and served as an escape from her husband's addiction.
“my career is the thing that played a massive role in the destruction of my marriage, but also what saved me from the destruction”
- Jay Shetty
Shetty argues that creators being simultaneously CEO, brand and public face is historically unprecedented.
“And this is really the first time in history that that's actually happening”
- Mikayla Nogueira
Nogueira expresses deep respect for partners who stay with addicts, saying their struggle is often overlooked.
“I just have to give so much respect to the people who are with an addict, who are married to an addict”
- Mikayla Nogueira
Nogueira says that having no children and a short marriage allowed her divorce to be completed in about eight months.
“we were able to get divorced within eight months, which I'm really, really grateful for”
- Mikayla Nogueira
Nogueira says she rejected investors' pre-made brand concepts and insisted on her own long-held skin-prep idea for POV.
“I've had this idea for so many years and this is what I'm going to do”
- Mikayla Nogueira
Nogueira says she chose Sephora over Ulta because Sephora's top brands are founder-led and it helps founders realize their visions.
“if you look at Sephora's top brands, you're going to notice that they're founder brands”
- Mikayla Nogueira
Nogueira says the one law she would create would be a ban on cyberbullying.
“Ban cyberbullying. Like, I don't know how they would do that”
People
In the conversation
- Jay ShettyBritish author, podcast host and former monk who hosts On Purpose
- Mikayla NogueiraBeauty influencer and founder of POV Beauty
Discussed
- CodyNogueira's ex-husband, a recovering addict she met on Tinder; their divorce was finalized in 2026
- ZachNewest Pardon My Take staff member, Knicks fan
- LindsayUlta store manager who hired Nogueira as a makeup artist
- Jeffree StarBeauty YouTuber Nogueira watched growing up
- Kim KardashianReality star and businesswoman pursuing a law license
- Dana RoseBeauty influencer and college acquaintance who inspired Nogueira to return to makeup content
Topics
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From the publisher
Jay sits down with beauty creator Mikayla Nogueira to go beyond the online persona and share the real story behind her rise. Mikayla opens up about the struggles that shaped her before finding success, the viral moment that changed her life overnight, and the painful reality of a marriage impacted by addiction and divorce. She also shares how she found her way forward, reconnected with her high school first love, and launched her own beauty brand with Sephora. With Love and Gratitude, Jay Shetty Built-in protections for teens. JAY'S DAILY WISDOM DELIVERED STRAIGHT TO YOUR INBOX Join 900,000+ readers discovering how small daily shifts create big life change with my free newsletter. Subscribe here: https://news.jayshetty.me/subscribe Check out our Apple subscription to unlock bonus content of On Purpose! https://lnk.to/JayShettyPodcast What We Discuss: 00:00 Introduction 00:45 Why Share Your Story Now? 01:31 Beyond The Influencer Persona 02:46 Childhood Memories That Shaped Her 03:45 Bullying & Discovering Makeup At Age 10 05:24 The Insecurities Behind the Confidence 06:48 Expressing Her True Self Online 08:55 The Origin Of Her Passion For Makeup 11:18 Work Ethic And Thinking Big 12:37 Creating Her Very First YouTube Video 13:58 Presenting A 50-Page Business Plan 16:30 Returning To Her Hometown & Donating Makeup 18:00 Getting Hired At Ulta Beauty 23:52 Letting Go of the Future She Planned 28:10 Losing Her Job and Finding a New Path 31:34 The First Viral Video 37:08 Manifesting Success & Building A Content Engine 41:53 Experiencing Her First Cancellation 45:25 Reflecting on Past Controversies 48:56 The Mental Health Toll of Rapid Growth 52:54 The Boston Accent 56:48 Meeting Her Ex-Husband Cody 59:41 Navigating Addiction In A Relationship 01:04:08 Dating An Influencer & Dating An Addict 01:05:56 Marriage Through Addiction and Relapse 01:13:00 A Harrowing Late-Night Emergency 01:18:11 Making the Decision to Divorce 01:33:53 The Path To Divorce 01:40:46 Finally A Fresh S…
Summary, chapters and key points were generated from the episode transcript on October 31, 2026. Quotes are checked word for word against the transcript.