Forties Stories

Michelle Wright and I talk about how you can dive into your 40s, which is exactly what she did. We discuss the fit by 40s program she created for herself (and it’s not what you think it is!), about how to be more than a mother, how depression caused her to learn what she needed, and why laughter is so important to our well-being. 

This is the third in a 4-part finale for the show, and I’m so grateful to ...

Would you confront the friend who had publicly hurt you in middle school decades later? That’s just what my guest Skye Pillsbury did on an episode of the Heavyweight podcast. I had questions. This is the second in a 4-part finale for the show, and I’m so grateful to Skye for letting me share it with you since we recorded it right before the pandemic. I know you'll love this episode!

Skye and I talk about...

I’m popping in for an update about where I’ve been these last few years, and for a mini-episode on the art of quitting. I recently turned 50 and have created the show’s finale. Tune in tomorrow for a new interview with Skye Pillsbury and next week with Michelle Wright. After that I’ll do a final episode on what I learned in my 40s.

So often we reach our 40s and have t...

Today I’ve changed up my content calendar to bring you an episode that speaks more to where we all find ourselves today – dealing with the uncertainty of a global pandemic. I had this conversation last week with Kathleen McKitty Harris and feel this is an especially timely episode because she challenges us to see the wonder all around us, every day. That means even now while our autopilot has effectively been ground to a halt.

I ...

Today we’re talking about what a midlife crisis might teach us. I had a great, and uplifting, conversation with Jacqueline Kerr. We talk about conscious parenting, why the question “what do I want?” is so difficult, and how her relationships improved after a midlife crisis. We also talk about why it’s important that our kids see us struggle and the prevalence of gender bias, especially in academia. Jacqueline has some interesting a...

I had an interesting and insightful conversation with Catherine Schwikert. We talk about how your triumphs and traumas affect your health and body, the power of using your intuition, and how she felt a deeper calling in her 40s. She discusses her idea of pragmatic compassion and how we can practice it in our lives to heal our bodies and souls. Catherine also shares some wisdom about how to better work in partnership with medical pr...

What better way to ring in the new year (and decade!) then to discover your strengths and use them to create meaningful work and a fulfilling life. I wanted this conversation to go live on the last day of 2019 because it is more practical and action-oriented than my usual episodes. There’s a lot of excitement – and hype! – around 2020 and many of us are planning our year and even thinking more long term, so my guest, Hallely Azulay...

I hope that today’s conversation and past episodes on this show will leave you inspired to live out loud. By sharing our stories, we feel connected. We feel seen. We feel less alone. And that’s my mission.

Allison Hare and I talk about being multipassionate, how women too often suffer in silence, and how she regained her voice and power on the birth of her second child. Allison shares a very personal and poignant story about how ...

A special thanks to my friend Johanna Selth for joining me for an interview this week! Johanna and I talk about her career twists, how her mom’s death made her feel about aging, and why we should ask other women for help. We also talk about sacrifice and the myth of having it all.

Johanna is an Australian human rights lawyer who has lived and worked in Australia, Cambodia, Thailand, Afghanistan, China, and now the US. Her career ha...

Today we are talking about the insidious business of people pleasing. It’s something that so many of us do without even thinking. It’s become a habit that my guest Helen Snape gently reminds us that we can change. She’s been there herself.

Helen became a transformational relationship coach after 19 years in Human Resources and Development. She works with women on breaking free from people-pleasing, codependency, and bad relations...

What do you want? Manuela Powell asked herself that very question and then totally disrupted her life. We talk about how her life changed at 39 when her mom came to visit, a recent solo adventure she challenged herself to do, and how awareness is the first step toward shifting a spiraling mindset. She also shares what happened when she finally started making time for conscious decisions.

Manuela is a life coach who helps people c...

Are we telling ourselves the truth? Today we dive into the topic of honesty, which is the subject of Judi Ketteler’s forthcoming book, “Would I Lie To You? The Amazing Power of Being Honest in World That Lies.” Judi and I talk about the roots of lying in her own life, how honesty isn’t as simple as you might believe, and why in this fractured time in our history we should all question our decisions a...

I’ve been on the air for six months now and it’s been an incredible journey. However, find out why I’m moving the show to a biweekly one. I have a great episode for you next week with Jackie MacDougall of Forty Thrive, whose announcement on her show got me thinking of mine.   

I am looking for 6 women to provide some information on their listening habits, preferences, and feedback related to Forties Stories. If you have listened to...

Life is a journey. What a cliché, right? But as Jack Kerouac said, “all clichés are truisms, and truisms are true.” If we think of our lives in those terms though, we start to appreciate that where we are today, doesn’t mean that we’ll be in the same place tomorrow.

I love what my guest Lizbeth Ericka has to say about journeys. Lizbeth and I talk about her path to entrepreneurship, what she’s learned from her teens, and her spirt a...

Today is the final part in our special 3-part sisters’ series. The series includes episode 20 with Sandi Reinardy and episode 21 with her older sister Barb Dvoracek.

Sandi and Barb talk about their relationship, how they consider spending time with their sisters as self-care, and what they’re both working on in terms of self-development. They also talk about Sandi’s decision not to have children – the first time they really opened ...

Today’s episode is part 2 of 3 of a special sisters’ series. Part 3 is a bonus episode that will air this Thursday, September 5th.

My guest Barb Dvoracek and I talk about how she is balancing priorities as part of the sandwich generation, why we should get better at forgiving ourselves, and how she maintains her connection to family and to friends – old and new. We also talk about the happiness curve and how mid- to late-40s is a t...

Today’s episode is part 1 of a special sisters series. It will continue through next week and will include a bonus episode on Thursday, September 5th.

My guest Sandi Reinardy and I talk about her decision to not have children, about how she is using her voice, and how giving oneself a bit of space opens up the possibility of having genuine connection with others. Sandi shares why she prefers to use the term childless over childfree...