At 75, Deborah Santana Proves It's Never Too Late to Choose Yourself

At 75, Deborah Santana Proves It's Never Too Late to Choose Yourself

Many people first came to know Deborah Santana through her 34-year marriage to legendary musician Carlos Santana. But as the former CEO of the Santana organization, a philanthropist, author, and lifelong advocate for women and girls, Deborah has built an extraordinary legacy of her own.

In this heartfelt conversation, Deborah shares what happened when she made the courageous decision to leave her marriage—not because it was easy, but because it was no longer authentic. 

What followed was a profound journey of healing, self-trust, freedom, and discovering who she was always meant to become.

At 75 years old, Deborah reminds us that it's never too late to choose yourself, trust your intuition, and create a life that feels deeply aligned with your values and purpose.

Whether you're navigating midlife, rebuilding after divorce, searching for greater purpose, or simply wondering what's next, this conversation will leave you feeling hopeful, inspired, and ready to take your own next step.

✨ In this episode, you'll discover:

💜 Why choosing yourself often means disappointing other people, and why that's okay.

🔥 What "walking through the fire" really means and how life's hardest seasons can transform you.

🧘 How meditation and learning to trust your intuition can help you navigate uncertainty with courage.

🕊️ Why true freedom begins in your mind long before your circumstances change.

🌱 The Four Cs Deborah lives by—Contemplation, Care, Community, and Creativity—and how they can help you create a more meaningful life.

🌟 How to stop living according to other people's fears and start living according to your own truth.

❤️ Why it's never too late to begin again—at 50, 60, 75, or beyond.

📚 Resources & Links

➡️ Deborah's website - deborahsantana.com

➡️ Buy Loving the Fire: Choosing Me, Finding Freedom

➡️ Deborah on Instagram: @dssantana

➡️ Learn more about Do A Little Foundation

🎧 Continue the Conversation

If today's episode resonated with you, you'll also enjoy my recent conversation on the Beyond Retirement podcast with my friend Jacqui Doucette, where she explores what it really means to reinvent yourself and create a meaningful next chapter.

🎙️ Listen here

💜 Ready to take your own next step?

Download my free guide: 100 Ways to Reinvent Yourself in Midlife

Inside you'll find 100 simple, practical ideas to help you reconnect with yourself, spark your curiosity, and begin creating a life that feels more like you—one small step at a time.

➡️ Download your free guide here

Loved today's episode? Please share it with your favorite women so they can be inspired by Deborah's story and what's possible when we choose ourselves.

Transcript

"They wanted what made them feel comfortable.Because I've meditated for so many years, I can sit with other people's discomfort.I believed enough in myself to know that what I wanted for my life was going to be beautiful.I just had to stay firm.I couldn't be swayed by other people's fears."

Wendy:

Welcome to Reinvention Rebels, stories of brave and unapologetic women, ages 50 to 90+, who have boldly reinvented life on their own terms to discover new purpose and possibilities.

I'm your host, Wendy Battles.

If you need a little encouragement to kick fear to the curb, do it scared, and step into who you're meant to be, these amazing women can help light your reinvention path.

Come join us, and let's get inspired together.

Episode Introduction

Hey, hey, hey, everybody!

Welcome back to the Reinvention Rebels podcast.

I'm so glad you're here.

Whether you're a longtime listener or you've just discovered the podcast, welcome.

Here on Reinvention Rebels, we celebrate women who remind us that reinvention doesn't have an expiration date.

Every episode is an invitation to awaken to yourself and to the possibilities waiting for you.

Because becoming more fully who you are isn't a destination.

It's a lifelong journey of growth, courage, and choosing yourself, one step at a time.

I'm your host, Wendy Battles, Midlife Reinvention Architect, and I have the privilege of sharing conversations with extraordinary women who are redefining what's possible after 50.

My hope is that each story sparks something in you—whether it's a new perspective, a little courage, or the inspiration to take your next step.

Today's conversation is a beautiful example of exactly that.

My guest is the remarkable Deborah Santana.

At 75, Deborah is living proof that reinvention isn't about starting over.

It's about becoming more fully yourself.

She's the author of Loving the Fire: Choosing Me, Finding Freedom, a deeply personal memoir about choosing authenticity, embracing healing, and creating a life rooted in purpose.

After making the courageous decision to choose herself, Deborah continued to reinvent herself in inspiring ways—earning her master's degree at 63, becoming a Reiki Master, deepening her lifelong meditation practice, and dedicating herself to supporting women and girls around the world through her nonprofit, Do A Little.

What I love most about Deborah's story isn't simply what she's accomplished.

It's the wisdom she's gained along the way.

Her journey reminds us that it's never too late to trust your intuition, choose yourself, and create a life that feels deeply aligned with who you truly are.

Deborah Santana, welcome to the Reinvention Rebels guest chair.

Deborah: Thank you so much, Wendy. It's an honor to be here with you.

Wendy: I am so excited about our conversation today.

I have, of course, a lot of questions because you've had such a fascinating journey. But before we talk about the many ways you've reinvented yourself over the years, I'd love to begin with the woman who's sitting in front of me today.

When you think about your life at 75, what brings you the most joy?

Deborah: Well, first of all, I can't believe I'm 75.

How did that happen?

What brings me the most joy is my family and friends, and connecting with women and people who want to create a healed world—people who want to support one another and grow together.

It brings me so much joy to visit museums and experience art.

It brings me joy to sit in a bookstore listening to an author read.

I love hearing people's stories.

That's really what brings me the most joy.

Wendy: I can feel that.

I sensed that while I was reading your book—that deep love of culture, the arts, connecting with people, and the beautiful way you've built community throughout your life.

One of the things I loved most about Loving the Fire: Choosing Me, Finding Freedom is that, to me, the title itself captures the essence of reinvention.

What do those words mean to you today?

Deborah: I think when we go through seasons of change and find the courage to move away from everything we've known, it's like walking through fire.

What we're ready to let go of begins to burn away.

And what we're walking toward keeps calling us forward, even though we can't yet see the outcome.

When I left my 34-year marriage, I felt alone because most people didn't want me to leave.

Friends and family wanted me to continue living in a way that was no longer authentic to me.

I felt like I was walking through this new land with flames all around me.

But it was beautiful because those flames incinerated everything I didn't want to be anymore.

That's what walking through the fire means.

On the other side, I wasn't reborn. I was simply stronger, more resilient, more certain of who I was, and ready to move forward in peace and light.

Wendy: I think it's so powerful to have those realizations because it's hard to go through the fire.

It's hard to move through those difficult seasons to get to the other side of what you want to create.

As someone who's in the middle of a divorce myself, I understand that feeling. There's so much stress. So many different dynamics.

But what I hear you saying is, I was holding space for myself.

I could see something over there, even though I was still here.

I just had to figure out how to get there.

So I understand this idea of walking through the fire to create the peace you knew was waiting on the other side.

I'm curious because you said people wanted you to stay. They wanted something different for your life than what you wanted for yourself.

Deborah: They wanted what made them feel comfortable.

Because I've meditated for so many years, I can sit with other people's discomfort.

I believed enough in myself to know that what I intended for my life was going to be beautiful.

I just had to stay firm.

I had to be strong and not be swayed by other people's fears.

Wendy: Yeah, because people project onto us all the time.

Deborah: We do it to each other all the time.

What other people do is about them. It's not about you.

What other people say is about them. It's not about you.

I read The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz years ago, and I understood that lesson right away: always do your best, and remember that what other people say and do is about them, not about you.

I knew deep inside that everyone wanted something. They wanted me to do something that would make them feel better.

I was not willing to do that.

Wendy: Yeah, and I think there’s something powerful about a woman choosing herself and saying, I matter. What I want matters.

So many of us spend so much time pleasing other people in one way or another.

Deborah: Absolutely.

And we’re influenced so much by the world around us. I often tell young people that I have such compassion for them because they’ve grown up in this world of influencer culture.

For almost two decades now, everyone has been looking outside themselves, trying to find what someone else is doing that might make them feel viable and valuable.

I’m so grateful for my meditation practice because I know I can sit down, get quiet, and my soul will rise up and tell me what is true for me.

I want that for other people.

I don’t want people to be so influenced by the world because the culture of our society, and of many societies, has become somewhat lost.

Wendy: It really has.

Especially now, times feel so chaotic. Things are changing from moment to moment and day to day, and there’s difficult news on almost every front.

What I hear you saying is that when we look within, find peace within, and ground ourselves, it helps us navigate everything unfolding around us that is beyond our control.

Deborah: I think the journey of life, in my humble experience, has been an interior journey.

I started meditating when I was 21, and I’ve meditated every day since then. There have been maybe four days in my whole life when I’ve missed sitting at my altar, or at another altar, because I have a portable one that I take with me when I travel.

That practice has grounded me in my essence.

It has grounded me in knowing that Spirit will bring me wisdom, people, books, and encounters that will continue to reinforce my journey.

I’ve now reached the point, and I’m sure you’ve experienced this too, where I can feel what isn’t right.

At the end of Loving the Fire, I talk about how, when we walk through the fire, we have to choose to be with people who bring us light and want to support us.

And we have to walk away from people who are toxic.

Wendy: One hundred percent.

I couldn’t agree more. That’s so aligned with my own life and with choosing myself, choosing the people and experiences that bring me light and joy.

We live in a world where life is fleeting and things can change so quickly. Nothing is guaranteed for any of us.

So why not move toward the light?

Why not embrace it and invite it in?

You also said something very powerful about the wisdom that bubbles up when you sit quietly, that divine guidance coming from your soul.

I feel something similar through my Buddhist practice. When I get quiet, or even when I’m simply walking outside, I can tune into myself.

I no longer walk while listening to podcasts or talking to people. I pay attention to what’s around me: the birds, my feet on the ground, the leaves.

But I know not everyone listening feels that same connection yet.

Your intuition has guided you in so many ways, from leaving your marriage to the many other things you’ve done and manifested.

How can someone begin to strengthen that intuition muscle? To me, so much of it is about self-trust and learning to trust ourselves.

Deborah: I think every person is different.

Just as you have a Buddhist practice and I have a meditation practice, each person has to discover where they feel most inspired and most elevated in their consciousness.

There are many teachers out there, not gurus, but teachers of different philosophies and ways of being who can serve as a compass for women or anyone looking for something to guide them.

I also think there are different stages of life.

When I was a householder, raising three children, traveling around the world, and running a corporation and a foundation, I was still meditating. But I didn’t have the same amount of time that I have now to devote to this interior journey.

Giving yourself time for yourself is so important because the world will spin us.

We will keep going.

I remember my children saying, “Mom, you were so intense when it was time to get ready for school. Get in the car!”

I was driving like a maniac.

Each stage of life offers us something unique to experience. But finding time for yourself, even within the demands of that particular season, is one of the most important things you can do.

Even when I was writing my first memoir, Space Between the Stars, I was running our family company. I would put an appointment on my calendar, but it wasn’t an appointment with someone else.

It was an appointment with myself.

I was working the system so that I would have time for me.

I think that, for most people, it’s a journey, and everyone is at a different stage.

Now I’m so grateful to be in this stage of life, where I have this lovely amount of time each day to devote to making collages, going to museums, reading, and writing.

That’s what retirement is. It’s a time to savor everything we’ve learned, bring out the nuggets that most inspire us, and pay attention to them.

I can’t say what that looks like for everyone.

I work with some young people now, and I’m in awe of their ability to live in this very confusing world. They are strong. They know so much, and they’re able to choose where they want to go.

Wendy: It’s so true. I’m sometimes baffled, quite honestly, by the world in which we live.

I wonder, How do young people do it?

Of course, they don’t know anything else. This is their experience, which I think has a lot to do with it.

I’m looking at it through the lens of, This world is absolutely crazy and out of control. How are they navigating it?

But they’re finding their way.

Deborah: I look to beautiful people from the past, people whose stories I love to revisit.

One of them is Wangari Maathai, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004. She was the founder of the Green Belt Movement in Kenya.

She was a political activist who wanted to restore Kenya’s forests. By working with communities, she helped plant 30,000 trees to save the land and ultimately received the Nobel Peace Prize.

At the same time, she was in an abusive marriage and working within a system that did not support women.

Everybody has a challenge, and everybody has a purpose.

To hold on to that purpose and accomplish what your soul was sent here to accomplish is a miracle.

I look at people like her and think, How did she do that while living with an abusive husband?

I also love John Lewis. One of the things he said was, “Anchor the eternity of love in your own soul.”

That’s deep.

There is something that rises above all the cacophony we live in. I believe it is the energy of love that will help us thrive and hold us steady during these times.

Wendy: I completely agree.

We can become so consumed by the confusion right in front of us, especially when so much of it seems intentionally designed to throw us off and get us riled up.

But when we’re able to look within, we can become steadier and calmer. We can approach whatever is happening from a place of love and self-love.

I know that’s easier said than done. It has taken me 61 years to figure out so many things.

As you said, we evolve over time. It’s not as though we knew all of this at 29. Sometimes I think, If only I had known then what I know now.

But this is our journey.

Deborah: Absolutely.

We do the best we can in each moment with what we know at that time.

When I published Space Between the Stars, I was so nervous. It was my first memoir, released in 2005 before my divorce.

I had spent seven years writing about my childhood, growing up biracial, the experiences that shaped me, and life in the Bay Area during the 1960s.

It was a beautiful journey, but I also wrote about having abortions. I was afraid people were going to condemn me.

I was so nervous to publish that book, and yet it was my truth.

When it came out, I was blessed by the way people received my story. They identified with me falling in love with Sly Stone when I was 19 and being in that crazy relationship for a while.

No one condemned me.

No one criticized me.

No one said what I had feared they might say: What a dummy. Why did she make those choices?

No one said that to me.

That was such a gift because I think many people are afraid to choose themselves because they fear other people will criticize them.

We can’t let that fear stop us.

We did the best we could at the time, before we knew what we know now.

Wendy: Exactly. We gain wisdom, and then we do better, make different choices, or change direction.

You’re so right about working through those fears so we can reach the point where we choose ourselves.

It’s a journey for all of us, especially for women. We’re socialized to be the peacekeepers, to please everyone, and to put other people first. On so many levels, that’s what we’ve learned to do.

So it’s a big deal for me, Deborah, to choose myself.

It’s a big deal for me to say, This isn’t working. I deserve more. I want something different, and I envision a different life for myself.

That applies to all of us. Whatever the situation may be, fill in the blank.

We all have something that makes us ask, How do I choose myself? How do I decide that I’m important enough and that what I want and need matters?

That’s why I love your story so much. You illustrate that so beautifully.

And I think that when we create something from a place of authenticity, people receive it that way.

They read your story, recognized your truth, and found something in it they could relate to.

That makes such a difference.

Deborah: Yes, and I think we have to find our purpose.

We have to find our purpose, and we have to live intentionally.

Even when I was running our company, I held goal-setting meetings where everyone could participate because I believe in circular management.

I don’t believe in a strictly hierarchical system, although I do understand that someone ultimately has to have the final say and take responsibility.

But I think it’s incredibly wise to work as a team, to invite everyone’s input, and to try to reach consensus. That reflects Indigenous ways of thinking, which I deeply value: being in circle and drawing out the wisdom everyone can agree on.

I remember being in meetings where we were setting goals and asking, Are these goals for everyone? Are they for one department? How do we navigate this?

I also think each person needs to set their own goals. Otherwise, we’re simply walking aimlessly.

Even if we don’t reach every goal, at least we know what we’re attempting. There is something powerful about naming our intentions and allowing that energy to work with us.

Wendy: I feel like the way you led that organization, engaging people and really listening to understand what mattered to them, echoes through all the other work you’ve done.

I see those same themes in your foundation work and in the many boards you’ve served on.

Deborah: I am so lucky.

I began working with the Smithsonian in 2014. I was first involved with the Folklife Festival on the National Mall, and then I began serving as a national board member.

Later, I became involved with the National Museum of African American History and Culture, where I now serve on the advisory council.

I also serve with the Under Secretary for Education on the National Education Outreach Committee.

I get to sit at the table with so many brilliant thought leaders and hear about the work they’re doing around the world.

The mission of the Smithsonian is the diffusion of knowledge and education. What a beautiful place to be.

I’m also deeply grateful for the other organizations I’ve been involved with over the years.

I fund domestic violence organizations because I want people to know they do not have to accept abuse or any kind of cruel treatment.

And I’m so fortunate to be part of the upcoming Courage Museum in the Bay Area. It will be an interactive museum designed largely for high school students because we want to challenge the idea that violence is an inevitable part of society.

I’m able to participate in all these life-affirming projects with thought leaders and activists who understand how to change the systems that hold us back.

Wendy: It’s amazing what happens when we live on purpose.

I can see you glowing as you talk about this mission-driven work.

It reminds me that, as we said earlier, we all have a mission. We all came to this earth for a reason.

It has taken me a long time to understand mine, but when we gain clarity and act on it, I believe each one of us can help change the world.

Deborah: Yes.

And so much of that begins with becoming our best selves.

I’m a Reiki Master, but I also receive Reiki, which is a form of energetic healing, a transfer of positive energy or chi.

I live by four Cs:

Contemplation, which is my meditation practice.

Care, especially self-care.

Community.

And Creativity.

There are so many ways to understand our purpose and how we move through the world.

Life should remain in flux because we continue changing and growing as we live and learn more.

The Four Cs are a guide for me, a way to stay soulfully engaged and bring my highest self to the consciousness of the world.

What I notice is that when people are consumed by anger or by being against others, whether it’s racism, ableism, or any other “ism” that tries to elevate one person above another, that energy operates at a very low level. It doesn’t help the world thrive.

I want to bring myself, my interests, and the communities I’m part of into a place where we are celebrating rather than constantly mourning.

Of course, there is so much to mourn in this world.

But how can we also celebrate the good?

Wendy: Celebrating the good, yes. We need more of that.

And I appreciate that, at 75, you’re not stopping.

You’re doing these remarkable things. You’re using the Four Cs as both a grounding practice and a framework for continuing to live with purpose.

Each of us gets to choose our own path and decide what retirement looks like.

I’m such an engaged person in the world. I’m interested in so many things and in continuing to have new adventures.

So I really appreciate the way you bring that special Deborah Santana magic to everything you do and continue showing up as your best self.

When we do that, so much becomes possible, even in this dark-ish world.

Okay, this very dark world. But I’m trying to stay positive.

Deborah: It’s true.

If I focus only on what the people in the news are doing to our country and to other countries, it can feel unabashedly shameful and horrific.

But if I look at what people on my block are doing, what people in my community are doing, and what people at the library are doing, I see people supporting and celebrating one another.

So that is where I try to keep my focus.

I don’t know how much I can change the people who are in charge. Probably not much at all.

But if I can work alongside people who are creating change on the ground, then I can make a difference.

Wendy: And then I can move toward the light.

One of the people I like to follow on Instagram is Senator Cory Booker. I love what he shares because it’s rooted in hope, kindness, possibility, and moving toward the light.

That’s what I need. It helps me keep going, live in my mission, and move forward in a positive way.

And I hear you saying the same thing. Those are the things that really light you up.

One of the themes you explore throughout Loving the Fire is freedom.

Freedom is such a powerful idea. Sometime last year, I had this realization, maybe it was that wisdom bubbling up inside me: Wendy, freedom is your number one value. That is what matters most to you.

I had been feeling trapped and thinking, This isn’t what I want. I want to feel free.

So what does freedom mean to you?

Deborah: In 2006, I had the extraordinary opportunity to travel to South Africa with Artists for a New South Africa for Archbishop Desmond Tutu’s 75th birthday.

We had the privilege of sitting at Nelson Mandela’s feet.

We also toured Robben Island, where Mandela and others had been imprisoned for more than 26 years, and we saw the conditions they endured.

Under apartheid, Black prisoners were given shorts, sandals, and one teaspoon of sugar a day. Indian prisoners were given long pants and two teaspoons of sugar.

Who creates these kinds of cruel and absurd restrictions?

And yet, while visiting Robben Island, I was struck by what Mandela and the other prisoners accomplished.

Ahmed Kathrada earned two bachelor’s degrees while incarcerated.

Nelson Mandela helped broker peace with the South African government from prison.

That is freedom.

Our daughter Angelica was about 14 at the time. The prisoners had not even been given cots in their tiny cells. They slept on wool mats for 16 years.

She was stunned that these brilliant intellectuals, activists, and leaders had been held under those conditions for her entire lifetime.

They were physically imprisoned, but they were mentally free.

I learned so much from the anti-apartheid movement and from those warriors. There was tremendous loss, but they never stopped.

To me, that is freedom.

Freedom begins in the mind. It is the condition of being free in your spirit and refusing to be held back by the atrocities happening around you.

Even in today’s world, I don’t know how people are surviving in Gaza or Iran. I don’t know how those warriors are enduring what they’re facing.

But I listen to their accounts, and I hear people who remain free in their minds.

Wendy: To be free in your mind while being physically imprisoned almost seems impossible.

And yet these are such beautiful examples of the human spirit and of what becomes possible when we make that choice.

I may be physically constrained by my circumstances, but I can still choose a mindset that lifts me up.

Reading your book and learning about your experience in South Africa was incredibly powerful. You shared so many details I didn’t know, and the reality of what happened was horrific.

At the same time, for people living under those conditions to still find joy and see possibility says so much about the human spirit and what may be possible for all of us.

Deborah: Yes.

There will always be suffering. We can count on that.

But we can also count on finding a glimmer of light and hope within ourselves and in other people.

That light can sustain us and help us continue with faith and freedom.

Wendy: Anything is possible.

As we wrap up, Deborah, I want to ask one final question for the woman listening today.

And of course, men listen too, so hello to the men. But especially for women, because this podcast is about awakening to ourselves and choosing ourselves at any age.

Whether we’re 40, 65, or 85, we all have the ability to find the kind of freedom we’ve been talking about today.

Someone may be listening and thinking, Deborah is amazing, but I can’t do that. I’m still back here at step one.

What would you want that woman to know if she’s struggling to take even the first small step toward choosing herself?

Deborah: I would encourage everyone to sit in silence and ask themselves:

Am I living my best life?

Am I happy?

Am I compromising my values?

Am I flourishing?

Am I making choices that will help me grow and move toward more of what I desire?

Those are simple questions, but sitting with them can be difficult.

Many people avoid silence because it brings up pain.

I would encourage them to take out a journal, or simply a piece of paper, sit with themselves, and write down: What is my best life?

If I didn’t have all the mental constraints and systems telling me what I can’t be, who would I become?

It begins with imagining, visioning, and believing.

Start there.

And as I’ve said, one of the most important things is to move away from people who are toxic. Don’t allow them to remain in your life and drain your energy.

Find a group that will support you.

When I first left my marriage, I spent two years attending Al-Anon, which supports friends and families of alcoholics.

I needed to understand why I had accepted unacceptable behavior.

I listened to the stories of people who were still living with partners and compromising their entire lives. I had moved on, but I needed that community to help me understand my own experience.

Find a church group, a meditation group, or another community where you can sit in the presence of people who share the same intention: to be free.

Wendy: So it begins with getting quiet, asking ourselves honest questions, finding community, and surrounding ourselves with people who want that same kind of growth.

We may each want different things specifically, but we share the desire to become our best selves.

I know listeners will want to learn more about your book, follow your work, and find you online. Can you share those details?

Deborah: Yes.

My website, DeborahSantana.com, is where you can find everything about me.

I’m on Instagram at @DSSantana, and I’m also on Facebook. But everything is linked through my website.

You’ll also find information there about my book, Loving the Fire: Choosing Me, Finding Freedom.

And if your local bookstore doesn’t carry it, please ask them to order it.

I’m still traveling and planning more book events, and I would also love to host women’s circles.

I love being in healing circles, and I want the spirit of Loving the Fire to continue.

Wendy: I want it to continue too.

I could imagine starting a book group just to talk about this book and unpack all of its powerful themes.

I truly appreciate you.

I appreciate the journey you’ve been on and the way you’ve shared so openly and eloquently about how you’ve evolved.

That gives us hope.

We’re all seeking hope, and when we read someone’s words or witness another person’s experience, it reminds us that we may be able to find that same possibility within ourselves.

That is so powerful.

And I want to tell everyone: please read this book.

It is fantastic.

Loving the Fire: Choosing Me, Finding Freedom is deeply powerful and self-affirming, no matter where you are on your journey.

We’ll include Deborah’s website and all of the relevant links in the show notes so you can easily find her and her work.

Deborah, I cannot thank you enough.

Deborah: Thank you so much.

Thank you for this special time with a like soul.

And I’m so grateful that you have chosen yourself and that you’re inspiring others.

Wendy: Thank you.

Outro

Wow.

That’s what I want to say: wow.

What a beautiful conversation with Deborah Santana. There were so many nuggets of wisdom.

One of the things that stayed with me most was Deborah’s reminder that reinvention isn’t about becoming someone new.

It’s about having the courage to become more fully ourselves.

I see myself on that journey right now, so her words resonate with me deeply.

Whether you’re standing at the edge of your own fire or you’ve already taken that next brave step, I hope today’s conversation reminds you that it is never too late to trust yourself.

It does not matter how old or young you are.

It is never too late to choose yourself and create a life that feels aligned with who you are.

And I’m not saying that’s easy.

It has taken me many years to reach the point where I am choosing myself and taking brave steps that have been incredibly difficult.

At first, I didn’t trust myself.

Now I do.

That’s the evolution, y’all.

It’s okay if it takes time.

It’s okay if you’re not ready on day one to do all the things.

You get to do it in your own time.

If Deborah’s story resonated with you the way it resonated with me, I hope you’ll read her beautiful book, Loving the Fire: Choosing Me, Finding Freedom.

I loved it. It is so powerful.

You’ll find a link in the show notes, along with Deborah’s website and information about where to follow her online.

And if you’re wondering what your own next step might look like, be sure to download my free guide, 100 Ways to Reinvent Yourself in Midlife.

It is filled with simple ideas to help you begin creating a life that feels more like you, one small step at a time.

You’ll find that link in the show notes as well.

If you enjoyed this episode, I would be so grateful if you would subscribe, leave a review, and share it with a friend who could use this message today.

And if you’re looking for another inspiring conversation, I highly recommend my friend Jackie’s podcast, Beyond Retirement, where she explores what it means to reinvent yourself and create a meaningful next chapter.

What is possible?

Almost anything.

Her podcast will remind you of that.

I’ve included a link in the show notes for easy access.

Until next time, remember: it is never too late to bet on yourself.

You came to this earth for a unique and meaningful purpose.

Let’s start living on purpose.

Let’s deepen our connection to ourselves.

And Rebels, you know I always have to say it:

Keep shining your light.

This world needs you.

It desperately needs you and all that you have to offer.