Her Next Chapters
This podcast is for moms with an empty nest on the horizon who are reclaiming & redefining their identity outside of motherhood, which might include a job search. On this show we’ll have raw conversations about our ever-changing roles as moms, hear from women who restarted their careers, and share tactical tips for a successful job search after a career break.
Her Next Chapters
62. Embracing Change and Confidence in Mid Life with Guest Shari Biery, Author of "It's Your Turn".
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
Picture this: standing at your spouse's military retirement ceremony, you're suddenly hit by a wave of burnout and realize the urgent need to reclaim your own identity. This was the pivotal moment for our remarkable guest, Shari Biery, author of "It's Your Turn" and founder of Alive With Purpose Coaching.
Join us as Shari shares her transformative journey from a life defined by frequent relocations and constant reinvention as a military spouse to stepping into her role as a nationally board-certified health and wellness coach. Her story is a testament to the power of acknowledging burnout and taking decisive steps toward personal fulfillment and purpose.
Shari and I discuss the importance of rediscovering personal dreams and passions, urging women to prioritize their own happiness and well-being amidst life's various responsibilities.
To learn more about Shari's coaching or her book, go to www.sharibiery.com or www.itsyourturnbook.com.
Free Resource
Grab the Strengths-First Resume Template - ideal for career transitions, whether you’re returning after a break, navigating a layoff, pivoting roles, or ready for a change.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
Work with Me
Want an HR expert’s eyes on your resume?
Book a 30-minute Resume Review with Christina - live on Zoom, recorded, and focused on one goal: getting you interviews.
Want to talk through your career goals and explore next steps?
Schedule a career consultation to see how I can support you.
Email me directly at christina@hernextchapters.com
Connect with me on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/kohlchristina
Reclaiming Identity and Purpose in Midlife
Christina KohlHi and welcome to Her Next Chapter's podcast . I'm your host , Christina Kohl . I'm a mom of three and soon to be an empty nester . I'm also a certified HR pro who restarted my career after being a stay-at-home mom for over a decade . I created this podcast to connect with moms who have an empty nest on the horizon and are wanting to redefine their identity outside of motherhood , which might include a job search . On this show we'll have raw conversations about our ever-changing roles as moms . We'll hear from women who restarted their careers and share tips for a job search after a career break . So if that's you , you're in the right place , friend , let's get started .
Christina KohlThis week we have a special guest on the podcast . I sat down a couple of weeks ago with author Shari Biery , and she is also the founder of Alive With Purpose Coaching , and Shari is a purpose and wellbeing coach who empowers midlife women with spouses with high achieving careers to reclaim their identities for a healthy next phase of life . Shari book , titled it's your Turn , brings a unique solution for midlife women rediscovering who they are , embracing their worth and confidently stepping into a life that prioritizes their own happiness and fulfillment . So Shari is joining us on the podcast . Her and I had a lovely conversation and I'm excited to share it with you . Welcome everyone to Her Next Chapters . I'm so excited that we have a guest with us , Shari Biery , and Shari is a new author , as I said in the introduction , and we're really excited to hear more about your book and hear about your journey , midlife transitions and what's next when it's your turn . So thank you so much for joining us , Shari , really excited to have you here .
Shari BieryThank you for having me . This is so fun to get a chance to help your audience and be able to have this great conversation . Well , I'd love to start if you need to help your audience and be able to have this great conversation .
Christina KohlWell , I'd love to start , if you need to share your story for those that don't know you . You know your , your career journey , your your journey as a military spouse and kind of what led you to writing this book .
Shari BieryYeah , well , I really started out as a respiratory therapist . My husband and I met in high school and then you know it was . He was in pharmacy school , I was working as a respiratory therapist and he was really looking at how could he further his education , so into medical school , and he looked into being in service and looking in different ways of how that might be fulfilled , and it was through the Navy's health promotion program . So we decided together to jump in all in and he joined the Navy , ended up going to medical school and then that just kind of took us off on this trajectory of a different pathway we never imagined . And so I was the military spouse for 20 years and even though my path started out as a respiratory therapist , I did multiple things , not always having some of the challenges . I guess you would say that comes with being a military spouse and moving . We did 10 moves and always being just really looking at . How could I re-identify myself in those moves ? In those moves it was never possible to work as a respiratory therapist in some of the positions or some of the duty stations we had . We lived in Guam , okinawa , some overseas , and so I had to lean on just using my skills at what it was , so I would throw myself into volunteering . I would end up I've done multiple things , I like to say I reinvented myself 10 different times and then with every move it was something new . It was I've been an admin assistant , I've been a financial analyst in the federal government , I work for a nonprofit as a project manager just multiple things .
Shari BieryAnd I got to the point where my husband retired from the military and we were at his military retirement ceremony and he handed me the American flag and said it's your turn .
Shari BieryAnd at that moment I was really dealing with a lot of different things as we do in midlife as women . I was dealing with kids launching , going to , you know , into their next chapter . I was really grappling with this I'm not really a military spouse anymore and re-identifying myself and kind of . Really I had the underlying resentment that had built from always giving up quote unquote , my thing every two to three years , getting settled somewhere and having to reestablish and so there were a lot of things in that piece and puzzle of re-identifying my next chapter , and so that was really . My highest level of burnout was when my husband retired from the military . I just realized you know the lifestyle of all these frequent moves and just had really taken a toll on my health , and so I really needed to take a pause . And that's where it kind of all began and how I fell into being a nationally board certified health and wellness coach and kind of landing in this space of purpose and wellness .
Christina KohlInteresting that you didn't notice the burnout until the end , and maybe because it's like you're running a marathon , like you got to keep going , got to keep going , got to keep going , that you just kind of it's easy to put that all in the back burner and live day to day and do what you need to do day to day . And then when you got that chance to pause and you're like , oh , I don't have anything left in the tank , I'm depleted . But you don't realize it until you come up for air right Of all these metaphors . But that's interesting to me that it didn't really hit you until the 20 years were done and that's , that's a lefty .
Shari BieryIt was you know what , and I talk about this in the book . It was that pivotal moment of getting handed that American flag and I felt the exhale . It was really . It was so noticeable to me because , as a military spouse and and I imagine , in many different services , you know whether your spouse is a first responder or a spouse that works for the State Department .
Shari BieryThere's many different jobs when we have these high intensity careers that you know , some of these jobs , you don't know whether they're coming home alive or you know . So I had that added pressure , but I really felt that exhale and then I realized I really need to do something different for myself and you know it was . I talk about the midlife kind of sandwich of being in the middle of kids launching and then having menopause really perimenopause and menopause and not feeling like I was really getting the support I needed from my own health care provider and being able to have a conversation rather than being handed an antidepressant and saying this is what you need . I didn't feel that was what I needed . It was purpose and well-being , and just being able to do things for me was really kind of a rebirth in that whole process too .
Christina KohlRight and probably a relearning , because it wasn't a lot of opportunity and whether and you were in a situation as a military spouse , like you said , you don't know if he's coming home and the stress and constantly moving , and even those like myself or maybe some listeners , we haven't . I've had the , the privilege , the choice , I guess , to stay in this house . My kids have been well , two of them came home from the hospital to this house . The oldest was a year and a half when we bought it and we're still here and they're young adults now , 19 to 24 . And you know , but even still , I have that sense of needing to redefine who I am as a person , as my kids .
Christina KohlThis is our first year without a kid in K through 12 . Is our first year without a kid in K through 12. ? And even though he was very independent last year , we still had the rhythm , the rhythm of , you know , okay , it's time to if someone's going off to school , okay , someone's coming home , oh , we've got back to school night , oh , we've got prom or whatever . And this it feels a little untethered not having that . And someone asked me a couple of weeks ago , even last week with the storm well , is Douglas County school . Are the schools closed ?
Christina KohlI'm like I don't know , it's not my thing , I'm not on their email list anymore for the first time in 22 years or something , and so it's it's not the same , but it's there's . But it's a similar life's change of this transitional season that you know , know people that are going through that , that you know . Like you said , your doctor's like , okay , here's a prescription . No , we don't need a prescription . We need time to to look inward and determine who we want to be , whether it's reclaiming our identity or inventing a new one for ourselves at this phase of our life . And what a beautiful gift that your husband gave to you yeah you know , just acknowledgement in his retirement ceremony .
Christina Kohlum , you know that it's your turn and I just I love that and I love what it is , um , what it's sparked in you yeah , I mean , that's the name of your book , it's and it's just so meaningful and powerful .
Shari BieryAnyway , yeah , I think you know I want to add to that point too of recognizing . What I recognized is that I didn't need his permission to take my turn . I needed to give myself that permission and just like what you're saying is , we really don't have to rush it , it's okay . It's okay to take the time . We get so much value in our society and everything . Our value a lot of times , especially as women , is how busy we are and how much we can do and what we do for others , and it's okay to stop and recognize that .
Shari BieryYou know , I think in the busyness sometimes we don't want to feel things and I know that was true in my situation and as I work with clients too , I find that comes up a lot is I'll have to deal with something I don't want to deal with , whether it's that feeling of loneliness or grief or what you know when your kids go off , you're so proud of them to be do that , but there is kind of an emptiness a little bit and just acknowledging that to say how you feel or something is going on , it's different , it doesn't feel like you said , feel a little untethered , yeah , because it's something new for you . It's after we've been patterned to be in our kids lives and really help foster that you know they are able to be launched out into the world . That's quite an accomplishment , if you will , to do that and then just redefining yourself and being able to take the time that you need to do that and claim your own self-worth is really important .
Christina KohlAnd I know both from people I know in my personal life as well , especially what I see on social media for some women , moms in particular , that it's just a really almost traumatic experience , because when you're so invested in your children's lives and you want them to fly , you want them to be independent , and what I read somewhere that your greatest the , your greatest success is you know your kids not needing you anymore and but the hardest part of that is if success is accepting it or something along those lines . Um , but it's also the other side of that coin . Yeah , we miss them and it's there's a um , a grief of the loss of that life and that time in our lives . But it's also this beautiful opportunity , not only for the kids to grow and develop but for us as moms to grow into ourselves and our new chapter and that's just really exciting and it's holding both at the same time .
Christina KohlBoth things can be true . You can be sad because you miss the grief , you miss the day-to-day interaction or the way that your kids were when they're little and you can cuddle and all that , and that's not here anymore . But there's a beautiful new chapter here and I'm wondering just in general chapter here , and I'm wondering just in general what advice would you give to women who are feeling overwhelmed and they've lost their sense of identity after years , like you and I are talking about , after years of probably impressing others ? What advice do you have for them ?
Shari BieryYeah , I think you really do . You know , in my own personal life and I see this with clients is being able to put the work in , of slowing down and getting clear at what it is you want . Looking at this time as kind of a celebratory time to have , like this is your time now , like it is your turn , and being able to take that and so you know . I always say you know , who do you want to be and what do you want in life , is just like resetting . We have to look at this re , this moment , as kind of read of a time to redefine ourselves . So I think that's the first thing of this you do do . Like you mentioned too , you get to go inward and look at that and then you know , really looking at what is stopping you from doing that , because usually there's something that comes up that blocks us from feeling like we can do that .
Shari BieryYou know there's a lot of labels that get put on . You know self-care or anything like that , and I'm not talking like paying for massages and all that stuff , but just taking time for yourself . Usually it comes with some sort of permission for yourself . So I would say what is the permission you need to give yourself . What is the permission you need to give yourself ? What is it that you need to give yourself permission to do or to be for yourself ? So those are like the two things , and I think the third thing really is I know I've found it too is don't do this alone .
Shari BieryIt too is don't do this alone , you're not alone . We find when we get in community that's where we thrive the most , when we can relate to someone who maybe is going through similar things that we are . It really makes us feel like it normalizes some of the things and , I think , a lot of the things that women go through in midlife . We've may feel very lonely or alone in all of this and in fact , when we do get together , we're like , oh my gosh , that happened to me too , or I was feeling this way . Your shift in just that feeling of empowerment changes when you can get into a supportive community .
Christina KohlYeah
Discovering Personal Joy and Community
Christina KohlWith that . I'm wondering if you have suggestions for a woman that maybe a listener , who you know is very involved with their kids and you know knew a bunch of parents on the sporting sidelines cheering on the kids together and volunteering at school and with the kids all grown up , those natural encounters of sense of community kind of evaporate . And if , if she's not already plugged in somewhere else , what suggestions would you have for someone who's starting , especially for someone who's starting fresh , but especially with your experience every couple of years ? If you're moving 10 times in 20 years , you became a master at plugging into new communities , so tell us the secrets .
Shari BieryYeah , I think , really finding what brings you joy , what kind of activities that you love or you enjoy or you're willing to try . So , with that being said , it's like you know , as you mentioned , you know our kids give us a lot of opportunity to have these friendships or develop this tribe , if you will , that kind of we surround ourselves and plug ourselves in . Our spouses may provide that too , when it comes to maybe their job or their communities that they are in . For women , I think it's really looking at what are the things that you love to do and what are some opportunities maybe you'll look at in getting involved . I just recently , over the last few months , started going to a Pilates class and like putting ourselves in community where we know we have like-minded people in that sense , but yet we have people who see things differently too , but that you have some kind of crossing of just these paths , that kind of cross and you're able to .
Shari BieryWe always leaned into every time we moved . We had a pretty strong faith community and so for us it was always . I grew up Catholic and so for us it was always about finding the church , and finding church for us wasn't necessarily a building , it was about the people and how it really goes back to the feeling . What is the feeling that you want and where can you really create that feeling ? In a community somewhere , so , whether it's book , clubs , and it doesn't have to be in person too .
Shari BieryThat's what I really think that was kind of this birth out of COVID is yes , we need that one on one time , we need that in person stuff . But there are so many things that we can get involved with , even in a virtual community , just you and I meeting on a social platform and connecting and starting kind of forging that friendships . I've had many friendships like this and my clients have done this , where they maybe got involved in a group and pretty soon you know they're meeting up somewhere and you know traveling different things like that . So I think interest is what ? What do you really enjoy ? That could maybe bring something like that in .
Christina KohlYeah , that's all great , great . And as you're talking , I'm like , yeah , I've met a lot of people this last year that I feel like we're good friends and we are good friends , but they live in England or Texas or again I'm in Colorado . So the the relationships are very real . And I remember when my kids were younger it's like , well , these are my online friends . I'm like , oh really , who's your ? You know , get , get out there and be in person . But it is a different .
Christina KohlWe've , I think , as a society , as a world culture , have developed that skill over this past few years to be able to foster real connection in a virtual environment , which is kind of a nice gift . And then for me , I was just thinking , as I was like , how would I answer that question that I asked you ? I put I have a vision board . I've never created a full vision board before , but it's this whole big thing , and on it there's a picture of a horse , because I grew up riding horses , and there's also a picture of a kayak and a picture of skiing . Those are my like . They're all bundled in my little health activity section . And when we were going to baseball , I was watching my son and I loved I miss it . And when I was in it , when it's a tournament weekend and it's all weekend long and okay , we want them to win , but you know if they lose we get to go home . When I was in it , I you know you get the dual side but I miss that part of it .
Christina KohlBut now , because I'm not at baseball tournaments all weekend , I can go kayaking in the summer and it's you know , it's three or four hours for us to go on a kayaking . My husband and I go together . I've ridden a horse three times so far this year . I don't own horse anymore , but I grew up riding and I found a horse that I could lease on a per ride basis and it was . It just feeds my energy , feels my soul to reconnect into myself in that way . It's like kayaking is . I've only been doing it maybe three years now , but it's just so peaceful and it's . And it's because because he was driving and then because baseball ended , that I was able to embrace something new that that didn't have anything to do with my kids . They come along sometimes but but it's not dependent upon them . Yeah , that's nice to be able to do that and it has nothing to do with work or identity . It's just a , it's for me and it's energizing .
Shari BieryYeah , I love what you're saying here , because the one thing I had a client say this and I really ask women this have are you ready to dream again ?
Shari BieryBecause a client said to me I forgotten what it's like to dream . Said to me I've forgotten what it's like to dream when you're so focused on everybody else . We do that as women . We put ourselves kind of at the bottom of the list and , yeah , we'll get to when you know in the book I talked about procrastination to answering our own , really what we want , and that's something just recognizing and becoming aware of it and saying what is it that does fuel me , what gives me joy ? And when we do those kind of things for ourselves , we actually show up so much better , so much happier . We become a better mom , we become a better partner , we become a better business owner or employee , and just being able to do that , really giving yourself the permission to just explore and have fun with it . If you could wave a magic wand and do anything , what would it be Like ? That's an exciting question to really kick off and just think about that and then see where it goes .
Christina KohlYeah , with that , I'd like to actually switch gears a little bit , if that's okay with
Empowering Career Pivots and Confidence
Christina Kohlyou .
Christina KohlYou had mentioned during your 20 years of military service contributing that service to you as well that you had a lot of different jobs , that you couldn't work as a respiratory therapist , which is what you were trained in , but because of where you were located , there just wasn't a need or you weren't able to , but you named all these other jobs . So there's a lot of career pivots and a lot of the people in my audience are either stay-at-home moms that are coming back to work so that's a career pivot in and of itself or maybe they're just you know whether they're working now and they're trying to want to do something different now that they're in a new chapter of life . Um , and for the state-owned mom that's coming back , she might be like I was an accountant before , but that's not who I am anymore . I I want to be a social worker now or whatever it is . But I'm just curious if you can kind of speak to some of your pivots and what learnings you have from that to help people to know how to make those changes for themselves .
Shari BieryYeah , yeah , I think you know , giving yourself credit for a lot of the things that maybe you did as either a stay-at-home mom or , like I mentioned , volunteering , is like really putting those like you do too is highlight that on your resume as you speak about is like those are important , key factors and roles that you had and skills that you had . That was one thing that really stood out for me when I worked with a recruiter basically at one of the military bases . I went into the we call it the MWR office , the I've forgotten the name of it , so I'll stop here for a minute .
Christina KohlAll the acronyms of the military . I'm trying to guess what that one is . Yeah .
Shari BieryAnd .
Shari BieryBut what it is really is being able to look at all the skills that you have done in your lifetime here to be able to really make that presentable on a resume , because that's one thing .
Shari BieryThe other thing is being able to celebrate all those different roles , if you have had different roles .
Shari BieryFor me , I found at the end of John's service , time was like I had a lot of resentment in my whole , feeling of like I wasn't able to keep continuing in the career path that I did and I felt like I never was able to get traction on maybe in a new career path .
Shari BieryAnd what I realized really over time is all of those pieces have really added to my skill set and so being able to highlight those two , even if you're feeling like , oh , but I was just a , you use those words just you are diminishing everything that you've done , and so it is a kind of a word swap , if you will , about looking at some of those key pieces and , I think , just acknowledging that this is a time for you to discover what is it that you would like to do ? Like you mentioned , maybe you have been an accountant all your life and you're like I'm up for something new and being able to work with someone like you , where they can go ahead and explore . What is it that career wise , what would really fulfill you and what does that look like for you is a is really a great thing to highlight .
Christina KohlYeah , and all those transferable skills , and you hit on that , that word just , I have a whole podcast episode on that just as a four letter word or well , it's the I think the title was the four letter word that moms just need to stop saying yes , because I know there was countless times I'd introduced myself , you know whether it's at my husband John's , you know work , social events , you know the holiday party at the end of the year . Oh , what do you do ? Oh , I'm just a stay-at-home mom . Or , you know , I want to hear .
Christina KohlI was at a dinner party with our neighbors , we were meeting new neighbors and we were going around the table and I was back at work at that point and this mom , you know , you could just see her whole body kind of shrink , you know , oh , I just stay home with the girls . And I just looked at her across the table . I'm like I was a stay-at-home mom for 13 years . Tell me more . You know , I was just trying to like , like , what did you do before and how was it going with the girls ? I just was engaging her questions but then she , those shoulders came back up . Yeah , we have that , just because you know everyone else has a title and we think of our identity being our current job title , and we are so much more than that and it's an easy trap to fall into . I don't know if that's just the US culture , but I think it's beyond yeah . So anyway , identity shifts .
Shari BieryYeah , I think it's a key piece in realizing as you go along too . Is that , looking at the language that you're using , if you have had a break in your career , maybe you've taken care of parents or maybe you have been supporting that spouse all along and your family is being able to look at the language that you're using ? And who's making you feel that way too ? Is it just yourself , just yourself , or are there other people and players that are contributing to making you feel that way ? And where can you put yourself in a community where you can feel empowered and build your confidence up , because that's really it's self-worth does affect your confidence up , because that's really it's self-worth , does affect your confidence and all of that . And so I'm sure people working with you , to women working with you , they feel better about themselves , and that's such a key point in coaching too , is to feel empowered and to believe in yourself .
Christina KohlYeah , the confidence piece is huge and that is that is woven through probably your work as well , but through all the different components of what I do with my clients , that confidence piece is embedded in all of it and it is neat to see people see themselves differently , to be that mirror , to like , allow them to see what I see before they can see it for themselves . And then that confidence piece there was a coach that I worked with . This is around the time like right around the time in 2018 , 2016 , when I went back to work and she was telling me you only need one person to believe in you . And I'm thinking , I know I just need one hiring manager to give me a chance . And she's like no , you're that person . Yeah , once that happens , everything else changes . And it's so true and even my , my boss , my manager , that that did hire me .
Christina KohlUm , because I was telling her I want to go help other women , I want to make this journey back to work easier for others . Because I was telling her I want to go help other women , I want to make this journey back to work easier for others . And that was her immediate thing was
Unleashing Confidence and Empowerment
Christina Kohlconfidence . So many stay-at-home moms don't have confidence . If they come in with confidence , it's going to show and they're going to be an easy person to hire . But if they're coming in not feeling confident , I don't feel confident in them either . It has to happen from within , but coaching can help you get there .
Shari BieryYeah , yeah , it's definitely a tool in the toolbox to use with that and I think you know that's going back to kind of your question earlier about how did you invest in yourself . I was investing in my confidence and the the payback to that was , you know , a higher wage , a higher , you know payment for my business , a higher , you know . It just trickles through everything and when you can do that like you believe in yourself , you believe in your program , you believe in what you're doing in this world , it just there's no amount of money you can put on that price tag Right and when you put it out there . So I think it is one of those things of really looking how confidence is affecting you in your job search , in the way you're living your life , and just knowing that you can have something different , it's you're not stuck . It's one of those things of how you're thinking and believing in yourself .
Christina KohlYeah , and this phase of life is the perfect time to to do that inner work I hate to call it that , I don't know the right words but to have a fresh beginning for yourself . So it's an exciting time and we're living longer and healthier lives . That midlife is not end of life , right , like we have a whole lot in front of us . But , with that being said , we don't know when end of life is . So stop putting it off . Go ride the horse , go do the kayaking , go to Paris , go do the thing , because why not ? So I'm curious , um , how the book came about and obviously the message that you , that is , you know the primary messages within the book to share those . And then , for those that might want , might have that aspiration , okay , and then , for those that might want , might have that aspiration , okay . Shari , you've convinced me . I'm dreaming big again . I've opened up my dream and I want to be an author . How do I do what you did ? So kind of a two multi-long question there .
Shari BieryWell , first of all , book was never on my bucket list . I mean , I like to say I really didn't start reading books again until I was in my 40s , because it was always , you know everything else that was happening . Yeah , the book really came about as my own coach at the time . She had a guest speaker come into the group and this particular woman said do you have a book inside you ? And I was like what ? No , absolutely not . And then she said she started telling her story about how , you know , a book saved her life . And it was the story inside the book of the woman that helped save her life . And you know she went through a bunch of stuff of what had happened with her in her period of life . And she said is there something that you could share with people that would help them and see things maybe in a better way or a different way , or learn something from what you've learned , kind of thing .
Shari BieryAnd I thought , well , being a military spouse hasn't been all easy and there's a lot of things . I probably yeah , you know I want to . I've always been a helper and I've always been a cheerleader and wanting to inspire people , and so I ended up going to this kind of got invited to an author retreat is what it was , and it was just kind of an exploration . It was a women's event of kind of a women's empowerment session , kind of thing of a couple of days being together and talking about how you could take your mission and really make it more on a scale for you know , whether it's to start a business or whether it be a speaking career . And so when I was there I stood up and I said I'm here to really help women , especially military spouses , who do so much for everyone in our world and don't always put ourselves as a priority . But I'm just tired , I'm just really tired , I'm exhausted and I just feel like there's got to be a better way and I can share that wisdom of what I've learned to get out of the burnout and the exhaustion and overwhelm . And at that moment , at our next break , I had this woman her name is Tracy came up to me there with tears down her face and said my husband works for the State Department . We're stationed overseas right now . I made a commitment to come to this retreat because I want to write a book and I don't know how to do it . So I'm in this group and she said please write the book , I am so tired and exhausted and I need help , kind of thing . And so that was Tracy became and we are dear friends now . We get on Zoom , she's halfway around the world , that kind of thing . So it sparked it there .
Shari BieryBut the other thing that sparked it was my doctor's appointment . After John had handed me the American flag , I went to my doctor because I was in this midlife storm . I wasn't sleeping , I had heart palpitations , I had all kinds of stuff going on and I walked out of that doctor's appointment not feeling really seen or heard , but just kind of nudged on the shoulder this is midlife , welcome to midlife . And I sat in my car after and I cried and I thought I feel so alone and I just knew in that moment too . So it was kind of these two stories that were intertwined , that were happening at pretty much the same time , and so that's the introduction of the book is really talking about sitting in that car , feeling so alone and I don't want it when any women to feel alone and then john handing me the American flag , it was like that worthiness piece that was all time to exhale .
Shari BieryAnd so becoming an author was , like I said , was not on my bucket list . There have been so many things that have happened that I could have put myself , you know , just said forget it , I'm not doing it . It took me three years . It doesn't always take everybody three years , it doesn't always take some people . I always am envious when people say I wrote a book in a weekend . I'm like you had a lot of clarity before that . That's great , and it came in timing .
Shari BieryI found out it was so cathartic for me to write this book . I really there were a lot of stories put in this book . There were a lot of stories that were pulled out . You know it was like , okay , let's make that the next book , kind of thing . And being in a supportive group , that was really the accountability piece , the saying I'm going to get chapter one done , next I'm going to meet with my editors that that was really a piece in it .
Shari BierySo if you have a book brewing inside of you and you just don't know where to start , is just like think about the first step . What's the first step for you ? And that might be getting support , but it also might be what would you write a book about ? What would you share with someone . What would you like that book to have an impact on the world ? And that's really what I see . The it's your Turn mission is really about empowering women to say it's never too late , you can take your turn , no matter what comes in . You know , roadblocks that get thrown up in front of you is you have choices in this . You get to choose .
Christina KohlYeah , well , it's a great book and very needed and I'm sure a lot of women are going to get a lot of value from it . And if they want to go deeper , I saw that there's a QR code in the book , like , if you want to know more about this , click here and so tell us more about that . And then also , if someone wants to connect with you and work with you , tell us how they can do that .
Shari BieryYeah , so , I did put a QR code in the book that goes to a book portal . It's a private book portal and in that portal I put a couple different things . I put a visualization in there , a visualization practice that really helps you step into the future version of yourself . Who do you want to be and what do you want in your life ? Who do you want to be and what do you want in your life , and just you know . A lot of things we activate on are from those feelings . So when we can feel empowered , we feel confident , we're more likely to like really see a vision for that . So that's in there .
Shari BieryThere's some podcast episodes that I've done . There is a book club guide that if you want to grab your friends and do the book together , that's an option . I've written out a book club guide with you know , ideas for ice breakers , ideas for discussion questions and all kinds of different things in there , and then I put I created from this . I have a program it's your Turn program , and so I took the first piece of each of those modules from my call . Method is I put that into creating like an it's your Turn jumpstart . So they're short little videos that are inside the book portal , along with a workbook that I created to kind of be your guide to just starting to take a little more action , if that's what you're needing a little bit more support and there's other stuff in there , but those are just kind of some of the highlights .
Christina KohlYeah , some great extra gifts and bonuses .
Shari BieryYeah , and then you asked you know where can people find it ? It's I have . My website is Shari , or you can find the book . You can go to , it's your turn , bookcom .
Christina KohlAnd I'm pretty sure I bought mine on Amazon .
Shari BieryYes , it'll go directly . Yeah , so there's an Amazon link there . Yeah , so it's on Amazon . It's hit seven different bestseller categories . I'm really excited about and then just getting the word out about it and being able to speak . Thank you for having me on your podcast , being able to just share this . I really want women to know you know you can take your turn . I know we all get stuck in that . I'll do it when and not necessarily jump into it , but I really want to be your help , be a guide , and the book is the way to do that . So , yeah , really get to that future version of yourself that you want to be .
Christina KohlWell , congratulations on the book . It's amazing . And then are you still doing workshops and one-on-one clients .
Shari BieryYeah , so I have a little bit of different things that I've done . So I tend to work with clients one-on-one , or I do have a group coaching program , the it's your Turn program , and that I run certain times of the year and then I hold workshops . Those type of things you can find out I have on all my social media platforms . It goes to my Linktree account and that has a listing of different events there . So if you're , you join any of the email lists or any of the . I have different resources on my website that you can sign up for . You become part of the community and you'll get informed that way too .
Christina KohlWonderful . I'll be sure to include that in the show notes so people have easy access .
Shari BieryThank you for having me as a guest . This has been so fun to have the conversation . I just really appreciate the time we had together .
Christina KohlAbsolutely .
Christina KohlAll right , friends . Well , that was my conversation with Shari . I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did and I want to share . This will be the last episode for 2024 . I'm going to take a couple weeks off and I will talk to you again in 2025 . Weeks off and I will talk to you again in 2025 . Thank you so much for listening today . I hope this episode hit home for you and , if you haven't already , be sure to connect with me on LinkedIn and say hello so I can personally thank you for listening . Until next time , remember , your story is uniquely your own and your next chapters are ready to begin .