School of Midlife

The difference between real choice, and expectations, validation and approval masquerading as choice.

This episode wasn't planned.

Laurie Reynoldson was out on a hike when something clicked — an idea she'd never quite heard articulated before, about the nature of the choices we think we've been making. She scrapped the scheduled guest episode and recorded this one instead. And it might be one of the most honest things she's put...

What if everything you thought you knew about menopause was either wrong, incomplete, or decades behind the science?

Tammy Hadfield has been a women's health nurse practitioner for over 35 years — 25 of those as a hormone specialist. She was in the field in 2001 when the Women's Health Initiative scared an entire generation of women away from hormone therapy. Instead of backing down, she leaned in. She spent years being called...

What if the real midlife crisis isn't running out of time — it's living like you have more time than you actually do?

In this episode, Laurie gets personal. She shares the story of her dad, who spent decades saying "someday when I retire" — only to die five months after his retirement at 66, having collected exactly five social security checks after a 46-year career. That story cracked everything open for her. And it's t...

Hillary Dater came to a BEST LIFE Retreat a few years ago -- not because she was in crisis, but because her work brought her there. She had what looked like everything: a dream job in the nonprofit sector, family, community, a life that rang all the bells.

And still, something wasn't quite right. She just hadn't stopped long enough to notice.

What followed the retreat was a series of genuinely bold moves: a move to the mountains, lea...

15 weekends of summer. How are you spending them?

Laurie counted them. There are 15 summer weekends this year — and the moment she did that, something shifted. Not because it changed anything. Because finite time does something very particular to high-achieving women: it turns enjoyment into management.

This episode started as a thought on a walk and became something much bigger: an honest look at busyness as a drug, the habit ...

Guest: Allison Dunn, Executive Business Coach, Founder of Deliberate Directions, Host of the Deliberate Leaders Podcast, Author of Think First: Stop Being the Bottleneck. Start Building Thinkers.

Episode summary

Allison Dunn has spent thirty years coaching entrepreneurs and executives — over a thousand of them — and has just written her first book. But this conversation is about so much more than a business framework.

Alli...

Laurie opens this episode mid-story -- crossing a street, spotting someone she admires, and doing what she's done her whole life: looking away.

What follows is one of the most personal episodes she's recorded. It's the story of her relationship with Ellen Yin — media company founder, host of the Cubicle to CEO podcast, keynote speaker, and one of the most gracious humans Laurie has encountered in six years of building this bus...

What would you do differently if you actually trusted yourself?

Laurie is recording from the mountains this week, which means no studio microphone, slightly different audio, and zero apology about it. Some things you just roll with.

What she did bring: a piece of paper with four transformations that become possible when a woman finally stops deferring to everyone else and starts trusting herself. Not the problem; we talk about the pr...

Time to do something just for you.

When is the last time you made a decision, chose a direction, or said "yes" to something that was entirely, completely just for you? Not for your family, not for your career advancement, and not because it fulfilled a decades-old obligation—but purely for yourself? 

In this powerful episode, host Laurie Reynoldson challenges high-achieving women to step off the hamster wheel of external v...

The guilt that so many midlife women feel during graduation season

It is officially graduation season! Across the country, high-achieving women are hosting big open houses, packing up dorm rooms, and celebrating incredible milestones. But beneath the festive surface and the proud smiles, many mothers are quietly navigating a profound, silent struggle: the bittersweet realization that their kids are moving on, and they are being left...

Have you ever noticed how we almost work twice as hard to get ready to leave for vacation? We pack our schedules with an endless to-do list, run ourselves ragged, and then carry the office right along with us in our pockets.

In this rejuvenating episode, Laurie Reynoldson shares her reflections after returning from a completely offline, computer-closed "ass-sitting vacation" on a tropical beach. She explores the immense pressure hig...

What happens when a successful business owner makes a bold decision to change, but the community she serves isn't ready to let go?

In this raw and deeply cathartic conversation, Laurie Reynoldson welcomes back Annie Tevelin, founder of Skin Owl, Daybreak Colour, and Gem Jolie.

Annie recently announced the closure of her brick-and-mortar Skin Owl store in Boise, Idaho—a decision made from a place of vision and growth. However, t...

The coaching industry has failed high-achieving women. It's time to change that.

Have you ever felt like you’re living a double life? Like the "badass" CEO or high-performer at the office has to shape-shift into a completely different person the moment she pulls into her garage?

In this breakthrough episode, Laurie Reynoldson reveals why the coaching industry has done high-achieving women a massive disservice by forcing them to...

Cracking the Code on Post-Retreat Momentum

Have you ever returned from an incredible vacation or a work conference feeling completely inspired, only to have that "glow" evaporate the moment you hit the reality of traffic, laundry, and a jam-packed calendar? In this episode, Laurie Reynoldson gets raw about a "bananas" week that served as a major wake-up call. 

Laurie explores the common trap of the "retreat high" and why three a...

You're not the only feeling this way.

Host Laurie Reynoldson returns from the latest Best Life Retreat at the Civana Wellness Resort and Spa in Carefree, Arizona, still "basking in that post-retreat glow". In this episode, she pulls back the curtain on why getting away from your everyday life is the only way to truly focus on living it. From the vulnerability of a shared circle to the profound transformation that happens in just a f...

Claiming what you want in midlife

Have you ever felt like you’re an "Olympic level performer" at checking boxes and meeting everyone else’s expectations, yet still feel deeply restless? In this episode, Laurie Reynoldson explores a powerful "intuitive nudge" that changed the trajectory of her week: the necessity of claiming what you want in midlife. 

Laurie unpacks why high-achieving women often feel guilty or "selfi...

Q2 can be your most important quarter in life + business!

Most people treat the second quarter of the year as a time to simply "sail through," coasting on the fumes of their January resolutions. But according to Laurie Reynoldson, Q2 is your secret weapon for finishing the year strong. 

In this episode, Laurie breaks down the seasonal psychology of the year—from the "shot out of the gate" energy of Q1 to the "balls to the ...

The business of midlife.

In this special three-year anniversary episode, Laurie Reynoldson pulls back the curtain on the "business of podcasting" before diving deep into a concept every high-achieving woman needs to hear: The Business of Midlife. 

If you’ve spent decades advocating for your team at work and your family at home, while leaving your own dreams for "someday," this episode is your wake-up call. Laurie explores ...

First it was Me Too. Then it was Time’s Up. Now it’s time for something new: Me First.

In this episode, Laurie introduces what she calls the Me First Movement—a powerful mindset shift for high-achieving midlife women who have spent decades putting everyone else’s needs ahead of their own.

After years of conditioning to be helpful, accommodating, and endlessly available, many women in midlife find themselves ex...