When was the last time you gave yourself permission to let go of urgency and stop trying to fix yourself?

So many women move through midlife carrying the exhausting belief that they should already have it all figured out. That they should be more healed, more disciplined, more confident, or further along than they are.

That constant pressure steals our freedom, joy, and peace.

In this episode, I'm sharing one of the most important messages at the heart of my work: there is no finish line. You are not behind, and you don't need to become someone else before you can fully live your life.

I'll share honestly about my own journey with anxiety, depression, perfectionism, grief, and fear, and why learning to question my thoughts, let go of shame, and practice self-compassion has changed my life.

You'll also learn the simple framework I return to again and again:

Look Back. Look Forward. Live Present.

When we learn to mine our past for wisdom, hold a hopeful vision for the future, and come back to the choices available today, we build deep self-trust and create lives rooted in freedom instead of fear.

✨ Why the belief that you need to fix yourself keeps you trapped in shame and urgency

✨ The difference between managing your struggles and believing they define you

✨ How to question the thoughts that quietly shape your life

✨ Why self-trust is built through thousands of small, everyday choices

✨ How looking back helps you uncover your wisdom, strengths, and resilience

✨ Why looking forward creates hope without comparing yourself to an imaginary future version of you

✨ A simple daily practice that helps you live with more freedom, health, joy, and self-compassion

You don't have to wait until you're more healed, more confident, or more certain to begin living fully.

There is no race.

There is no finish line.

There is only today's commitment to the messy practice of becoming... and you don't have to walk it alone.

Resources

Join me inside the Brave + Beautiful Community (for growth-minded midlife women): https://www.alifeinprogress.ca/community/

Watch the replay of the Get to Know Yourself Workshop: https://www.alifeinprogress.ca/get-to-know-yourself/

You get to keep writing your story. You have the privilege and the responsibility to take ownership for who you are being and what you truly want for your life.

I want to keep growing in freedom and I want to help you do the same.

This includes making the conscious choice to "live forward" and "thrive forward" in each new season.

In this episode I'm sharing a short clip from my Get to Know Yourself Workshop.

A few key takeaways from this clip:

1. Your past does not define you. You're still becoming. Your life is still unfolding. You get to keep choosing for yourself.
2. You can't grow forward while living one foot in the past, or while holding tightly to a past season of your life or to who you used to be.
3. You have blind spots and defense mechanisms that make it hard for you to see through the story you're living. This is why having support is so important. An outside observer, someone to witness, gently challenge, and reflect truth back to you.
4. Just because a thought/judgment/expectation is offered to you, or someone hands you something, doesn't mean you to have receive it, believe it, or reinforce it. And I share a recent personal example that was very interesting to experience.

If you are a growth-minded woman who wants to live fully in every season, who wants to grow into your True Self and not live limited by an old story, who wants to live with joy amid the messiness of life - I invite you to join me inside the Brave + Beautiful Community.

Resources

You can listen and learn from the full workshop replay: https://www.alifeinprogress.ca/get-to-know-yourself/

Join the Brave + Beautiful Community (today is the final day to save an extra $200 off your registration): https://www.alifeinprogress.ca/community/

Around the age of 33-34 I went through a significant life shift. Maybe you can look back and witness a big shift around the same time of your life.

I started waking up to my old unconscious patterns and seeing that I had power of choice in ways that did not occur to me before that.

In my Old Self - New Self - True Self Framework, I was in my Old Self Identity but around 34/35 shifted into the growth phase that prepared me to transition into New Self Identity.

In this episode, I share 5 things I learned about myself that radically changed my life for the better. And I invite you to look back and see if you can recall a handful of your own experiences or things you learned that changed your relationship with yourself and how you viewed life.

Resources

Doors open tomorrow to the Brave + Beautiful Community!

For 3 days only, June 23, 24, 25, as a new member you'll receive additional savings when you sign up for 6 months, 12 months, or on a monthly payment plan. Learn more or join the community: https://www.alifeinprogress.ca/community/

Seasonal Mindfulness Journals: take a look

Get to Know Yourself In Midlife Workshop: register for free

🎉 Episode 100! A significant milestone:)

Thank you for being here with me. Nearly three years ago, I started this podcast before I felt ready, before I could see the whole path ahead, and before I knew exactly where it would lead. One hundred episodes later, I'm deeply grateful that I trusted the nudge to begin.

In this episode, we're continuing the conversation about getting to know yourself in midlife and why that work matters so much.

The truth is, it's difficult to trust yourself if you don't truly know yourself.

When we learn to understand our wiring, our creative process, our patterns, our strengths, and the ways we move through the world, we reduce anxiety, loosen self-judgment, and cultivate deeper self-trust.

One of the most powerful ways to do this is by looking back. Not to dwell on the past, but to mine it for wisdom.

I share several personal stories of moments when I experienced a deep inner knowing and chose to trust it:

• Knowing within two weeks of meeting my husband that he would be my husband
• Purchasing both of our homes despite uncertainty and complications along the way
• Returning to school and beginning my business at age 40
• Opening The Brave and Beautiful community just weeks before a serious car accident and the devastating loss of our son
• Starting this podcast after years of longing, despite not feeling fully ready

Along the way, I explore an important truth: hearing your inner voice doesn't guarantee that the path will be quick, easy, or logical. Often, we must grow into the very things we're called to create.

In this episode, you'll learn:

✨ Why self-knowledge is foundational to freedom, joy, and self-trust

✨ How looking back can reveal wisdom about your wiring, needs, and unique path

✨ Why inner knowing rarely comes with a complete roadmap

✨ The difference between mining your past for wisdom and getting stuck in old stories

✨ How understanding your creative process can reduce anxiety and self-judgment

✨ Why we don't wait until we're ready; we take the next right step and grow as we go

✨ A simple practice for capturing personal wisdom and building self-trust over time

We find our way in action, not before.

If you're ready to deepen your relationship with yourself and uncover the wisdom hidden in your own story, I'd love to invite you to my free Get to Know Yourself Workshop on June 23 & 24.

Resources

Rest by Alex Soojung-Kim Pang

I also talk about the 4 stages of creative process in this blog post: https://www.alifeinprogress.ca/trust-yourself-and-your-unique-creative-process/

Get to Know Yourself Workshop June 23 + 24- register for free: https://www.alifeinprogress.ca/get-to-know-yourself/

Connect with Krista

• Instagram: @a_life_in_progress
• Facebook: @alifeinprogressca and @rebrandingmiddleage
• YouTube: @ALifeinProgress
• Website: alifeinprogress.ca

Midlife is messy. It involves many life transitions and includes a lot of growth and change. A common experience for midlife women is that they feel like they don't know who they are anymore.

But since midlife women are chronically hard on themselves, I want you to know that this is a natural part of the growth process. Part and parcel of living long enough to arrive at this season of life.

The discomfort you're feeling pushes you toward your next stage of growth and freedom.

In this episode, I introduce my Old Self, New Self, True Self framework. You can also think of this as getting to know your past self, present self, and future self.

This three-stage process guides you through mining wisdom from your past, strengthening your present self-relationship, and then intentionally mapping out a path to your future growth.

It helps you step back and witness the arc of your story. And allows you to understand that no single experience or event defines you and your life. And that YOU are not your experiences.

So the hard, painful parts of your life are not who you are. They are simply parts of your full story. You get to keep writing your story.

Getting to know yourself includes getting to know your inner voice and trusting it. And I have found that everyone can develop this skill - even if at first, it feels impossible.

I said that it's common and natural at some point in midlife to feel like you don't know who you are anymore. But there are costs of avoiding or delaying this work, including:

• Chronic self-doubt and anxiety
• Constant comparison to others
• Feeling stuck or lost
• Increased relationship tension and conflict
• Division within yourself/misalignment between inner truth and outer behavior
• General unhappiness and life dissatisfaction
• Inability to articulate what's wrong, just knowing something is off

Join me in June for my free "Get to Know Yourself" workshop. Come learn and have fun reconnecting with your authentic self again.

Resources

Get to Know Yourself Workshop June 23 + 24- register for free: https://www.alifeinprogress.ca/get-to-know-yourself/

Connect with Krista:

• Instagram: @a_life_in_progress
• Facebook: @alifeinprogressca and @rebrandingmiddleage
• YouTube: @ALifeinProgress
• Website: alifeinprogress.ca

I want you to know who you are (your True Self) and learn how to be on your own side, always, no matter what.

In this episode of The Rebranding Middle Age podcast, I’m sharing 12 soul-honouring practices that will help you know, love, and trust yourself more deeply — starting today.

This is not about self-improvement. It's about becoming someone who loves and values herself and knows how to be on her own side, slow and steady. Be kind to yourself always - including as you listen.

You're not a self-improvement project. You are a growth-minded woman ready to let go of judgment and being hard on yourself so that you live with ever-increasing freedom and joy (right?).

I recommend choosing 1 or 2 of these practices to test out that feel most useful or life-giving to you in this season. If you'd appreciate advice about where to start, I tell you the 2 places that I recommend focusing on (numbers 5 +7 in the resource).

Don't worry about taking notes, I have a resource for you that includes all 12 practices and reflection prompts so you can just listen and notice which 1-3 ideas jump out at you. And then review the resource later.

Resources

I updated numbers 10-12. Find the latest version in this post: https://www.alifeinprogress.ca/12-practices-to-help-you-get-to-know-yourself/

Printable list of 12 practices: Know, Love, and Trust Yourself More Deeply - free resource.

Loved this episode?

If this conversation resonated, I’d love for you to subscribe, leave a review, or share it with a woman in midlife who’s ready to reconnect with herself too.

After years of personal healing and practice, I started to notice 4 key recurring themes or practices that were driving my healing and growth.

So, over the past 11 years, I've woven these into my work with other midlife women, watching, testing, and iterating. And I observed that these principles and practices were key in supporting positive transformation or growth for them as well.

You can begin to use what you learn here, in this episode, and in the free resource, to foster healthy change in your relationship with yourself and in your life, starting today.

👉 The four essential and empowering skills are:

1. The skill of self-awareness (get to know and trust yourself)
2. The skill of self-compassion (be on your own side, always, no matter what)
3. The skill of imperfect action (practice a kinder way of being in your body and life)
4. The skill of reclaiming your agency (be your True Self in every area of your life)

You can start anywhere but there is a clockwise flow to developing these four skills. Each skill must be strengthened and practiced for you to truly befriend yourself and feel at home in your body and life.

Life is messy. But when you know who you are and how to be on your own side, not only will you experience so much more freedom and joy. Your relationships, work or sense of purpose, health, and every other area of your life will also feel radically simpler and easier.

Resources

4 Essential Skills You Need To Befriend Yourself: https://www.alifeinprogress.ca/4-essential-skills/

If you want to create a soul-honouring life, one that is an expression of your True Self and helps you thrive forward in every season, you need to check out the Life Visioning Course: https://www.alifeinprogress.ca/life-visioning-course/

Join the waitlist for the Brave and Beautiful Community for growth-minded midlife women: https://www.alifeinprogress.ca/community/

Connect with Krista:

• Instagram: @a_life_in_progress
• Facebook: @alifeinprogressca and @rebrandingmiddleage
• YouTube: @ALifeinProgress
• Website: alifeinprogress.ca

In a soul-honouring life, we look back to witness and celebrate our progress and to mine for wisdom.

We look forward to cast a vision, set goals, and reimagine who we are becoming.

But then, we must pull our hearts and minds back so we can live fully willing and present in each moment and each day. Even the super messy, deeply challenging, or pretty wonderful yet not perfect days.

In this episode, I share a recent example from my life when I did not get everything checked off my to-do list and fear and urgency crept in. Nothing was truly wrong in the moment, but if I believed the story that fear was spinning, my future was doomed;)

Thankfully, my Wise Self spoke up and gently offered the anxious part of me a different thought.

“This too is what it means to trust yourself and your seasonal rhythms. The rhythms and practices you build into your life are there to serve YOU. You are not subservient to them. And when consistency turns into rigidity, it is no longer serving you."

Life is messy. It has always been messy. But each messy day is a gift - and each imperfect day IS our real life.

And the quality of my life is not determined by perfect accounting. Or perfection of any kind. Never has been.

Resources

If you want to create a soul-honouring life, one that is an expression of your True Self and helps you thrive forward in every season, you need to check out the Life Visioning Course: https://www.alifeinprogress.ca/life-visioning-course/

Join the waitlist for the Brave and Beautiful Community for growth-minded midlife women: https://www.alifeinprogress.ca/community/

Connect with Krista:

• Instagram: @a_life_in_progress
• Facebook: @alifeinprogressca and @rebrandingmiddleage
• YouTube: @ALifeinProgress
• Website: alifeinprogress.ca

Over the past few episodes I've been talking about elements of a soul-honouring life.

Today I'm focusing on the freedom you can experience when you recognize that your capacity shifts in new life seasons. And how honouring your wiring and capacity in different seasons of life is an important way that you can befriend yourself and also create a sustainable and soul-honouring life for yourself.

Key ideas you'll learn about in this episode:

1. What it means to honour your wiring and capacity.
2. Why this matters to you as a midlife woman. And why this likely feels challenging or counter-intuitive to you.
3. The reasons that learning to do this not only helps you rest and restore but also helps you EXPAND your capacity for the fullness of life.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month.

Learning to fully love and respect who you are and how you are wired supports your mental, emotional, and physical wellbeing.

Constantly judging yourself as bad, wrong, or broken because you cannot keep up with a societal expectations or your conditioned expectations on yourself is harmful.

Giving yourself permission to be your True Self, unravelling all the old beliefs about how you "should" be or all the ways you learned to perform or prove yourself is freeing and hopeful.

This is one of the kindest and wisest things you can do for yourself. I know that bills still need to paid and this doesn't magically fix hard circumstances in this season of your life.

But if you can be on your own side, and lay down shame and judgment, life will feel a whole lot simpler and kinder.

Resources

Free Life Visioning Class: https://www.alifeinprogress.ca/life-visioning-exercise/

If you want to create a soul-honouring life, one that is an expression of your True Self and helps you thrive forward in every season, you need to check out the Life Visioning Course: https://www.alifeinprogress.ca/life-visioning-course/

Join the waitlist for the Brave and Beautiful Community for growth-minded midlife women: https://www.alifeinprogress.ca/community/

Connect with Krista:

• Instagram: @a_life_in_progress
• Facebook: @alifeinprogressca and @rebrandingmiddleage
• YouTube: @ALifeinProgress
• Website: alifeinprogress.ca

In this episode I share one of my favourite empowering and life-giving practices. It offers a huge ROI in my life. And I've seen the change that happens for others when I teach them this practice.

A soul-honouring life is an expression of True Self in the world. Last episode I focused on how knowing your Core Values helps you be your True Self and make decisions aligned with what truly matters to you.

It takes a bit of time to not only identify your Core Values but also to learn how to use them in practical ways - or how to live them in concrete ways. And some people feel overwhelmed by figuring out their core values at first.

So today I'm sharing how you can receive most of the same benefits in an easier to access, and even less-threatening (or activating) way. Which brings us to my favourite practice of choosing 3-5 Mind-Body-Spirit Intentions each year.

Mind-Body-Spirit Intentions (or MBSIs) are words that reflect your current growth edge and how you want to feel in your body and life. They paint a vivid mental and emotional picture of who you want to be in your life.

MBSIs are not magic fairy dust or wishful thinking. When you name your Mind-Body-Spirit Intentions for the year, you are simply naming (or claiming) what you are committed to practicing.

In this episode you'll learn;

1. The 3 key filters for my life.
2. What distinguishes a core value from an MBSI.
3. The difference between an outward orientation and an inner orientation (and why it matters to you).
4. How our experience of life can shift even radically depending on how we show up to it.
5. And why the most important thing to remember is that every day you get to ask ourself "will I practice, or will I not?"

NEW Free Resource

Name what you want + Bridge the gap between current reality and what you desire: https://www.alifeinprogress.ca/life-visioning-exercise/

If you want to create a soul-honouring life, one that is an expression of your True Self and helps you thrive forward in every season, you need to check out the Life Visioning Course: https://www.alifeinprogress.ca/life-visioning-course/

Join the waitlist for the Brave and Beautiful Community for growth-minded midlife women: https://www.alifeinprogress.ca/community/

Connect with Krista:

• Instagram: @a_life_in_progress
• Facebook: @alifeinprogressca and @rebrandingmiddleage
• YouTube: @ALifeinProgress
• Website: alifeinprogress.ca