“[I was at] my gynecologist’s office,” says Kristin van Ogtrop, author (“Did I say that out loud? Midlife Indignities and How to Survive Them” (https://amzn.to/3effm1a), literary agent, and former Editor-in-Chief of Real Simple magazine. “My enthusiasm for daily life had diminished. I was having an annual exam and I said,’ I’m depressed or going through perimenopause or need a new job’. She said, ‘Maybe all three.’” Up until that point, van Ogtrop had been a high-flying editor in the magazine publishing world who had worked her way through some of the toniest jobs in the industry--beginning at Premiere, then to Vogue, Travel & Leisure, and then to running Real Simple for 13 years. “The reason I loved [Real Simple] was because it was the first time I’d worked for a magazine where I was the reader,” she says. “The demos were basically me: busy working mother[s]...who had great full lives and needed ways to run [them] smoother.” Since Van Ogtrop grew up with a mother who was a home economics major, she knew how to make a casserole and hem a skirt--valuable skills she imparted to her harried readers. What was not so fun: when Real Simple got caught up in corporate spin-offs and industry-driven down-sizings. “Time Inc. was a public company [and there] was great pressure,” Van Ogtrop says. “[‘For] creative people [like me] in the company…[it] felt like every day you died a little inside.” After she left, Van Ogtrop became a business Goldilocks, trying on various new careers, but struggling to find her path. “One benefit of reinventing in middle age,” she says, “is not to be embarrassed to be the dumbest person in the room. I know I’ve accomplished something...in my last life and in my mid-fifties I don’t care if I look like an idiot.” Tune in to see where she ended up and how she did it.
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#207 From Bartender to Social Media Maven (Stacey Birch)
#205 Reinvent Your Approach to Self Promotion In The Digital Age (Alice Draper)
#204 The Near-Death Experience That Forced My Reinvention (Geralyn Ritter)
#203 When a Health Crisis Becomes a Transformative Journey (Elena Sonnino)
#202 When Your Personal Reinvention Leads to Groundbreaking Change for Autism (Dr. Joan Fallon)
#201 Reinventing Your Mindset About Aging (Judy Katz)
#200 When Your Reinvention Leads You to Run for Political Office (But You Lose) (Claire Campos-O’Neal)
#199 Using Reinvention to Navigate Grief (Katty Douraghy)
#198 Reinventing Your Time Management Skills (Ashley Whillans)
#197 Reinventing Your Career Mindset After Decades in One Industry (Jackie MacDougall)
#196 Walking Away from the Golden Handcuffs that are Literally Killing You (Monica Froese)
#195 Reframing Your Career (After Burnout) to Make it New Again (Stephanie Smirnov)
#194 Reinventing Because You Can’t Walk Away from the Paycheck (Heather Frimmer)
#193 When You Don’t Fit Into the Corporate Box Because You Are Multi-Passionate (Sarabeth Berk)
#192 Ditching the Financial Security of the Legal World to Fight for Women’s Equality (Taina Bien-Aime)
#191 Reaching the Pinnacle of Corporate Success and Walking Away (Traci Schubert Barrett)
#190 How to Make Big, Bold Reinvention – Without Regrets (Diann Wingert)
#189 How to Cultivate Reinvention Support Systems – and Ditch the Nay-Sayers (Elizabeth Rosenberg)
#188 From Technical Writer for Railroads to Stand-Up Comic (Jennifer Turbo)
#187 Reinventing in Pursuit of the Work You Love (Jill Granoff)
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