A number of years ago, I started noticing that many of the women I know in their 50s, 60s, and beyond were experiencing a significant shift in how they wanted to show up in the world.
For some of them this shift was a gradual process of coming to terms with a life lived by other people’s rules; for others, it was a single moment in time – a single incident or experience – that was the catalyst for their desire to change or eliminate what was no longer working in their lives.
Either way, these women came to realize that they wanted more: to be more, to do more, and even to have more of what was important to them.
I’m certain the reason I was noticing this shift in other women was that I, too, was going through a transformation of my own, primarily fueled by an increasingly toxic workplace.
The career I thought I would enjoy until my retirement (and I did enjoy it immensely for the first 20 years or so!) had become just a job that no longer lit me up.
And I made the mistake so many of us make of thinking that things would change, that somebody in a position to do something about the problems would take action to restore what had once been a highly supportive and collegial organization.
HOW WRONG I WAS!
The truth is I had known deep inside for longer than I was willing to admit that my soul was being called to make a change in my life.
When I looked back over the previous 10 years or so I saw many signs, some small and some not-so-small, that I was going to have to make significant changes if I wanted to feel fulfilled in my life again.
So what is it about this time in women’s lives – these “middle years” – that prove to be a time of awakening for so many of us? And what does this awakening look like anyway?
It may be a calling to live more authentically, to rediscover what’s truly important and truly aligned with our values. It may be an urge to shed the people and practices that restrict us or prevent us from thriving.
Or it may be an uneasiness with the way things are currently in our personal or professional lives, even if we don’t yet see clearly what could be.
Sometimes we know only what we don’t want, rather than what we do.
If you find yourself in this situation of feeling an uneasiness, a restlessness, or even an absolutely knowing that there’s something more meant for you, take heart.
YOU ARE DEFINITELY NOT ALONE!
I encourage you to take some focused time to look closely at all the elements of your life and identify any of them that no longer serve you.
I promise if you are able to sit with the question What do I really want? with an open heart and an unshakeable desire to discover the answer, the answer will arise. And if there’s one thing i know, it’s this:
We women in our middle years have so much to offer the world!
Our decades of wisdom acquired through love and loss, joys and sorrows, failure and triumph – in short, our experiences – have all contributed to who we are, and who we are is marvellous!
We women, we Wild & Wise ones, are finding new and fabulous ways to express our authentic selves.
Follow this call. There are no “rules” to be followed apart from your own.
So the only question to ask yourself now is this:
How do I want to create my life in this beautiful new phase?
Unleash your imagination, let your hair down, and let’s have some fun with it!
