She Chose Herself at 63: Sable Ryan's Bold Move to Panama

What happens when you finally decide to choose yourself?

At 63, Sable Ryan made a bold decision that changed everything. After losing her government job, she packed up her life and moved to Panama sight unseen, trusting her instincts and her resilience to guide her forward.

What began as a personal leap toward freedom eventually became a powerful mission. Today, Sable helps Black women over 40 explore life abroad, build financial stability, and create community beyond borders.

In this inspiring conversation, we explore what it really takes to bet on yourself, face fear, and pursue a life that aligns with who you truly are.

Sable’s story is a reminder that reinvention doesn’t require certainty. It requires action.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

🌍 Why Sable moved to Panama sight unseen at age 63 and how she trusted herself enough to make the leap

💡 How losing her job unexpectedly became the catalyst for a powerful reinvention

💬 Why understanding your “why” is essential before making any big life change

🤝 The role of community and support when stepping into a brand new chapter

💰 Why financial clarity and cash flow are critical for women considering life abroad

🔥 How Sable helps Black women create freedom, possibility, and global community

Memorable Quote

“You don’t need to be 100% sure. You don’t need to have all your I’s dotted and all your T’s crossed. What you need is action. You can’t have courage sitting in the same place.”
 — Sable Ryan

Connect with Sable

YouTube: The Bougie Expats
Website: yourelevatedexperiences.com
Relocation Readiness Test: take it here

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Transcript

She Chose Herself at 63: Sable Ryan's Bold Move to Panama

Sable Ryan:

"Courage has taught me that the things you’re good at will carry you through the things you’re not sure about. 

You don’t have to be 100 percent certain. 

You don’t need every detail figured out. 

 You don’t need to be 100% sure. You don’t need to have all your I’s dotted and all your T’s crossed. What you need is action. You can’t have courage sitting in the same place."

— Sable Ryan

Wendy Battles:
Hey everybody, welcome back to the Reinvention Rebels podcast. I’m your host, Wendy, and I’m so excited you’re here today.

I want to extend a special welcome to anyone tuning in for the first time. I’m so glad you’re here.

This season we’re exploring one of my favorite themes: how I bet on myself and never looked back. Every conversation is a reminder that reinvention isn’t just possible. It’s powerful, it’s personal, and it’s beautifully unique to each of us.

If you're new to this community, I’ve got a little something to help you start your own reinvention journey. At the end of the episode, I’ll share how you can grab one of my favorite free resources to help spark your next bold step. Make sure to stay tuned for that.

Today’s guest embodies courage, freedom, and what happens when you trust yourself enough to leap into the unknown.

Her story is truly a masterclass in betting on yourself.

Let me tell you a little bit about Sable Ryan.

Meet Sable Ryan

Sable is a seasoned international strategist who has lived and worked in seven countries across four continents, bringing more than two decades of cross-cultural expertise to her clients and communities.

She has supported organizations in scaling their missions by attracting and relocating top expatriate talent and building agile teams.

In addition to her corporate work, Sable has empowered business owners to grow and expand their ventures internationally, helping them navigate market entry, cultural alignment, and infrastructure strategy with clarity and confidence.

Today she leads Your Elevated Experiences, where she guides clients—especially Black women over 40—through bold lifestyle transitions using her signature Bougie Relocation Blueprint.

Through personalized strategy, community support, and soul-aligned tools, she helps her clients relocate with intention, ease, and elevated purpose.

Her mission is simple and powerful:
 to help women stop dreaming about freedom and start living it, globally and in community.

Sable Ryan, welcome to the Reinvention Rebels guest chair.

Sable Ryan:
Thank you so much for having me.

And I love what this season of your show is about because the idea of making a decision and not looking back is not easy.

Encouraging people to take those big leaps and steps in their lives is powerful. When you do that, you don’t want to be like Lot’s wife and look back.

Wendy Battles:
Exactly. I want to be forward-looking. I want to live with no regrets. I want to feel good about the decisions I’m making and the bold leaps I’m taking.

This is such a perfect theme, especially as we start a new year and think about what’s possible.

I’m so excited you’re helping me kick off the year with this conversation.

So let’s go back to the moment when everything shifted for you.

You experienced a major change in your career when the government agency you worked for shut down. And then you made a bold decision to start over in Panama.

What fascinates me is that you did this sight unseen.

It’s one thing to plan everything out and research every detail. But to say, “I’m going to move to a country I’ve never been to,” takes courage.

What was happening inside you emotionally and mentally that allowed you to choose reinvention instead of fear?

The Bold Move to Panama

Sable Ryan:
You mentioned something earlier that really resonated with me: betting on yourself.

Living in another country wasn’t new for me. I had already lived and worked in other countries before.

My original plan was to retire in about five years and move to Panama after taking a scouting trip.

But when I lost my job unexpectedly, something shifted inside me.

It made me realize that organizations will do what they’re going to do. They don’t necessarily think about how those decisions impact you personally.

And I started thinking about how, as Black women, we’re often on missions that aren’t truly ours.

We’re taught how to be a good daughter.
 A good wife.
 A good mother.
 A good church member.

All those expectations can suffocate what we actually want for ourselves.

So I made a decision.

For once in my life, I was going to choose me.

At first I thought I would take a scouting trip to Panama.

But time kept passing. I kept taking care of other responsibilities.

Eventually I realized months had gone by and I still hadn’t taken that trip.

Finally I asked myself a simple question:

Why not just go?

So I packed up my house and stored my belongings in a garage at another property I owned.

A friend reminded me about her 60th birthday party, so I told her I’d move the day after.

I went to Jamaica on vacation, flew back for her party, and the next day I flew to Panama.

I packed as much as I could into my suitcase, including one of my golf clubs because I knew I’d want to play.

And I moved.

I kept asking myself:

What’s the worst thing that could happen?

Maybe I wouldn’t like it.

If that happened, I could always move somewhere else. There’s no rule that says once you move somewhere you must stay forever.

Why Panama?

Wendy Battles:
I love that you listened to that inner voice guiding you.

But I’m curious—why Panama specifically? There are so many places you could have chosen.

Sable Ryan:
A few things stood out.

First, I knew the healthcare system was strong, which is important at this stage of life.

I also knew Medicare would be accepted when I reach that age.

Another factor was that there’s a Black expat community here. That meant I wouldn’t be completely alone.

I also had some Spanish language skills, and I always knew I didn’t want to retire somewhere cold.

For years my retirement vision was sisterlocks, flip-flops, and tank tops.

And because I had lived in places with much less infrastructure before, I knew Panama would be an easier transition for me.

Reinventing Her Career

Wendy Battles:
Not only did you move to another country, you also reinvented your career.

You went from being an HR strategist to becoming a relocation strategist helping other Black women create freedom abroad.

How did that shift happen?

Sable Ryan:
Relocation was actually already part of my HR career.

When I had my own HR firm, some of my clients brought in staff from other countries. I helped relocate them—housing, visas, schools for their children, relocation packages.

So I already had that background.

But when I moved to Panama, I wasn’t planning to build a business helping women relocate.

I simply noticed gaps in the information people were receiving.

I also realized that Black women are the fastest-growing group migrating out of the United States, yet most of the advice available wasn’t speaking directly to us.

For example, on my YouTube channel I talk about practical things like packing edge control in your suitcase.

But the bigger issues are cash flow and community.

The average Black woman retires with about $30,000 in the bank. So we spend a lot of time helping women figure out how they will continue generating income.

And we focus on building community.

Because when you live abroad, there’s something powerful about meeting someone who understands your culture and experience.

You want someone who can say, “Hey girl, hey,” and immediately get it.

The Power of Community

I wanted Black women to have community before they moved.

I wanted them to have clarity about why they were relocating and a plan for their finances.

Because when you have community supporting you, it’s easier to keep moving forward.

Without that support, people often try to pull you back to who you used to be.

They’ll say things like, “Girl, you didn’t do that last year.”

And the answer is simple:

Yes. I’m brand new now.

We need communities that welcome that version of ourselves.

Courage as a Muscle

Wendy Battles:
A theme I keep hearing in your story is courage.

It takes courage to question your life, leave everything familiar, and build something new.

What has courage taught you about who you are today?

Sable Ryan:
People often say the way you do one thing is the way you do everything.

Courage has taught me that isn’t always true.

There are things I’m brave about, and there are other things that still scare me.

But courage has taught me that the things you’re good at will carry you through the things you’re not sure about.

You don’t have to be 100 percent certain.

You don’t need every detail figured out.

“You don’t need to be 100% sure. You don’t need to have all your I’s dotted and all your T’s crossed. What you need is action. You can’t have courage sitting in the same place.”
— Sable Ryan

Courage is something you build. It’s a muscle.

Sometimes you take a leap and it doesn’t work out the way you expected.

But you keep moving.

For me, courage now means being okay with choosing myself, even when other people don’t understand.

Sometimes that means standing alone in your decision.

But the reward is becoming the person you were meant to be.

Where to Find Sable

Wendy Battles:
Sable, this has been such a powerful conversation.

For listeners who want to learn more about your work, where can they find you?

Sable Ryan:
Our YouTube channel is The Bougie Expats, where we share consistent content about preparing financially and emotionally for relocating abroad.

You can also visit bougieexpats.com, where we offer a readiness test to help people determine if relocating to another country might be right for them.

Wendy Battles:
All of those links are in the show notes, so you can easily find Sable and learn more about the amazing work she’s doing.

Sable, thank you so much for joining me today and sharing your wisdom and your story.

Sable Ryan:
Thank you for having me. I love what you’re doing with this platform.

Women need conversations like this right now.