If you’ve ever wondered, “Is it too late for me to...” the answer’s NO and The Uplifters are about to show you why. This space is for purpose-driven women who want to do big, brave things in the second half of their lives. I’m your host, Aransas Savas, and I’ve spent the last 20 years at the intersection of behavior change research and coaching.
Month-at-a-Glance
This month we’re sharing stories about four different types of permission:
Last week, Sofia Kavlin, the visionary behind the Unsent Letter Mailbox, gave herself permission to ASK for support, and in walked her creative soulmate, Bonnie Blue Edwards. Listen HERE
Coming up, Sarah Nelson of Sexual Empowerment in Midlife spent 30 years believing it was her job to keep everyone else happy. In midlife, she gave herself permission to DESIRE. Sarah Kauss took S’well from $30k in savings to over $100 million, then sold it. In midlife she gave herself permission to SLOW DOWN.
And this week, Laura LeBleu!
“I am just hitting my stride as a human at age 54.”
Laura LeBleu spent decades as a creative director in advertising and then a tech industry writer, all while being the primary earner, caretaker, and support system for her family. She was good at being good for everyone else.
Then she turned 50. She ended her marriage, burned her AARP card, and one day, in the shower, she had a vision: a print magazine for Gen Xers who are kicking ass in the second half and have exactly zero interest in being told where to retire. She would call it Geezer.
Like so many of us, Laura spent most of her life with a voice in the back of her head saying she was good but not good enough. Reliable, but not capital-C Creative. That voice kept her in the back seat of her own creative life for decades, making things for other people because it was safer than tossing her innards out and asking, “Is this okay? Am I all right?”
Founding Geezer was the first time she dared to come out as the badass creative force she always was. She didn’t hedge her bets, either. She took all of her stock options, laid them on the table, and Geezer mag was born. The result is a lushly printed quarterly by and for Gen X. It’s grand in scale, its stories and art are wildly ambitious, and you can get a copy of every issue by subscribing to her Substack, so go do that now!)
5 Ways Laura LeBleu Shows Us How to Build Our Courage Capital:
Start with the resources you’ve already earned. Laura didn’t start from zero. She brought thirty years of creative experience, business knowledge, and yes, stock options to the table.
Name the limiting beliefs and move anyway. The “good but not great enough” voice didn’t disappear when Laura launched Geezer. She just stopped letting it make the decisions.
Lead with “I don’t know what I’m doing.” It sounds counterintuitive, but Laura’s greatest community-building tool was radical honesty about her knowledge gaps. People want to help. Let them.
Have a strong POV. Geezer is polarizing by design. Some people love the name; some hate it. A strong point of view repels the wrong people and magnetizes the right ones. You can’t make something true enough to move people while also trying to please everyone.
Ask yourself: if not now, when? This was Laura’s throughline. Life is short. Do the big, brave things.
Lift Her Up:
Go subscribe to Geezer Magazine at geezermagazine.com. Use code UPLIFT15 for 15% off your first subscription.
