Reinventing My 50s: From Midlife Crisis to Midlife Courage with Bettina Peets

In this inspiring episode, I speak with Bettina Peets about her transformative reinvention journey from midlife crisis to midlife courage. Through the creation of Adventures For the Soul in her 50s, Bettina exemplifies how embracing change and leveraging our passions can lead to a bold and kickass new chapter. It's a journey from self-doubt to self-discovery.

Episode highlights:

🥰 Self-Worth and Midlife Reinvention: We delve into the challenges Bettina faced, and how she recognized her own self-worth to ignite her midlife reinvention.

🔥From Exhaustion to Empowerment: Bettina shares how she moved beyond burnout to build a company that helps other women find rejuvenation and empowerment through outdoor retreats.

🌱 The Healing Power of Nature: Bettina’s story underscores the role of hiking and the outdoors in her own transformation, and we discuss the broader impact of nature on personal growth and healing.

💝 Turning Passion into Purpose: The journey of how a love for the outdoors fueled her reinvention, one that has evolved into a thriving business.

💪🏾 Inner Strength and Wisdom: Bettina’s experiences reflect the significance of drawing upon her inner resources to navigate life’s challenges.

🧘🏾‍♀️Creating Equal Space: We discuss the need for safe spaces where women can share their stories, be vulnerable, and embark on journeys of self-discovery without judgment.

Bettina’s story is the story of so many of us on a reinvention journey. It often starts with our fears and limiting beliefs. But when we move past them, as she illustrates, there are endless opportunities for us to thrive in midlife beyond our wildest dreams.

I can’t wait for you to listen to this beautiful and empowering episode. Let’s get inspired to keep going on our midlife reinvention journey!

Connect with Bettina:

Website: adventuresforthesoul.org
Email: bettina@adventuresforthesoul.org
Instagram: @adventures_for_the_soul
TikTok: @adventures_for_the_soul
Facebook: Adventures for the Soul

Mentioned in this Episode: My Midlife Reinvention in Spain: From Academia to the Oprah of Menopause with Lori Tharps

Kick your midlife fears and uncertainty to the curb and start your Reinvention Rebels journey today. Learn about my audio program, Midlife Reinvention From The Inside Out: 8 Essentials to Greenlight Your Life.

Chapters

• 0:00 Adventures for the Soul
• 9:11 Finding Purpose Through Reinvention
• 16:11 Owning Your Awesome

Transcript

Bettina

I have done, I think, some really cool and awesome things, but I have had a difficult time with self worth. Right? And creating adventures for the soul has definitely helped me do this, like, really step into that, owning who I am and accepting who I am. But what does that mean to own your awesomeness? I just think, especially for women this at this age, it is so important to write down every little, small, medium accomplishment. So when you have those days where you don't feel so awesome, you can go back and look at documentation. And when you can't even think of awesome things, asking those dear friends in your circle to remind you and write those down because it's so easy to overlook it.

Wendy

Welcome to reinvention rebels, stories of brave and unapologetic women 50 to 90 years young who have boldly reinvented life on their own terms to find new purpose and possibilities. I'm your host, Wendy Battles. I need to kick your fears to the curb, do it scared, and step into who you are meant to be in midlife and beyond? These amazing women, these reinvention rebels can help light your reinvention path. Come join us, and let's get inspired together. Hey, everybody. Welcome to another episode of the Reinvention Rebels podcast.

I'm your host Wendy. I am so glad you're here. Whether you're a first- time listener and perhaps stumbled upon reinvention rebels or it was recommended by a friend or you're one of my regulars. I'm excited you're joining me for this ride, for inspiration, for possibilities. And this season, our theme is own your awesome. So all of my guests are talking about their journey to owning their awesome, to stepping into the light, to beginning to shine in new ways in midlife.

And it's like a puzzle. We're all trying to figure it out. Sometimes the pieces fit together. Sometimes they don't quite line up. And we are gonna talk a lot more about that today with my guest, Bettina. But before we get there, I wanna do a quick check-in. Make sure you had a chance to listen to the most recent episode with my guest, Kim Duff Selby, who is amazing.

I loved her reinvention about kick starting an acting career in her sixties, doing commercials, sometimes in her underwear, dealing with the rejection of being an actor, all that comes with that, and how she created this reinvention mindset. So if you didn't have a chance to listen to the episode, really juicy, lots of empowering and insightful discussions that we had, I'll link into it in the show notes so it's easy to find. So let me introduce you to someone who I know you are going to love.

My friend, Bettina Peets. She's pretty awesome. I Adore the woman you're going to meet today Bettina Peetz at 54. She has reinvented herself in bold and adventurous ways and helps others do the same. Bettina is a passionate wellness advocate and founder of Adventures For the Soul. A retreat company dedicated to introducing women to the benefits and joy of outdoor adventure. Her mission is to provide the woman who consistently gives the best of herself to work and family.

A place to renew, revive, and discover her best, joyous self. Doesn't that already sound amazing? Bettina has hosted countless hikes, camping retreats and whitewater rafting adventures for 100 of women. Every event provides the opportunity to connect with nature and to experience active sisterhood. She's also an accomplished international dance teacher, certified yoga and mindfulness instructor. Bettina teaches virtual yoga and meditation classes once a week as a way to contribute and give back to her community. I love her mission to be of service to others as they emerge as their best selves.

And I can't wait to dig into how she embarked on her reinvention rebel journey. Bettina Peets, welcome to the reinvention rebels guest chair.

Bettina

Thank you, Wendy. I'm so happy to be here. So thank you for inviting me and having me.

Wendy

I am really excited you're here. And before I start asking you like a 100 questions, I do wanna tell our audience about how we met.

Bettina

Oh, yeah.

Wendy

It was back in October. We were both on a panel together at the Life in the Paws Festival which was a festival. There was really a one-day conference about menopause and all the things that go with it but really how we can thrive during menopause or perimenopause and menopause. And we just connected and then, Bettina, then I saw what you do and I said, if that is an amazing reinvention story, I don't know what is. So I was really excited to have you join me. So I want to begin by asking you about your story. Just reading your bio, you have this fascinating story.

So I'd love for you to share what the circumstances were that led you to reinvent yourself in your fifties and to start adventures for the soul.

Bettina

Well, the story really started in my forties. Right? Been a single mom, divorced single mom, and my daughter went off to college. And after dropping her off and coming home after a couple weeks, I really felt maybe a little lost.

I felt exhausted. I felt taxed, and I didn't feel alive. That I knew for sure. And I had given so much energy as a dance teacher to my students. My students are on Broadway and doing fabulous things, but I realized I gave all of my energy to my daughter, of course. Right? And to all of these students, into my job, and I really had not poured into myself, and it left me feeling depleted.

So now that my little one's at Hampton University, I had time to really reflect, and I had not done that. I really had not processed my own thoughts probably ever. So

Wendy

I love that. So it's the beginning. It was a beginning.

Bettina

Right. So that was the beginning, and I wanted to do things that made me feel alive. So I started joining random hiking groups in white water raft groups. Why? I don't know because I thought it would make me feel because I thought that it would make me feel alive, and I was right. Right.

Wendy

Which makes sense, especially the white water rafting. Hello.

Bettina

Yes. And it did. It was exhilarating. So and I remember going hiking for the first time. I didn't know that there were special shoes and hiking pants. I just threw on some cutoff jeans and some Timberlands, and the people were like, oh, you know you can go to REI, right, and get some hiking boots? Okay. So I learned really quick.

But I had so much fun, and I started bringing my friends with me because I wanted them to experience what I was experiencing. They started coming, and it was just amazing. Like, our friendships got deeper. I started looking forward to the weekends instead of just, well, let me just lay on a couch and watch television. And so the friend groups got bigger coming with me, and I was like, I am going to make this a thing. And one of the reasons I say that this is because, 1, going hiking with all these random groups, I was always, like, the only African American woman, sometimes the only woman. And I was like, there's a secret.

There's a secret that we don't know about. You know what? And I don't want these African American women like me to have these experiences. I want them to incorporate this into their toolbox of wellness. I gotta let the secret out. So I created Adventures for the Soul very soon after of just going hiking with random people because I loved it that much.

Wendy

I think it's really fascinating your story on a couple different levels. 1, this idea that you leaned into what you're curious about. You had no idea what was gonna happen. You didn't have expectations. You just said, I'm gonna try some things and see what is of interest to me. And I think that's one of the key things of reinventing yourself. It is that open mindedness, the curiosity, the willingness to try different things.

Some of them are gonna work, some of them may not, but that's how we get more clarity about ourselves. So I hear you saying that and I also love what you said about getting your friends together and getting them outside because I was thinking about when Oprah was in her 25th anniversary season, her goodbye season and she and Gail.

Bettina

Oh, yes.

Wendy

Right? Remember they went to Yosemite Park? Mhmm. And people are like, wow. Black people go to parks and they, like, they go camping. And I think both outside our community and even within our community For lots of different reasons where maybe we didn't have a chance to access things or the outdoors or, you know, get outside in the same way that people aren't always as familiar with it. Yet what you said that when you got your friends together and you all went outside that it led to self discoveries and seeing new things.

Bettina

Seeing new things and deeper connections between us. Because I had this one friend who used to now she's a hiker. And when she realized that I was hiking, she showed me some trails and things like that. She and I, we used to have the most special moments. We would literally go up and just chat, chat, chat, chat, chat about random things. And then on the way back, we said, on the way down the mountain, we're gonna take turns praying for each other. Wow. Yeah. And it was, you know beautiful. Right. Thank you for saying that because some people might think it's weird, but I looked like every other Saturday we would go.

And so we have these great conversations, and we actually pray for each other on the way down. So and I used to tell people all the time, like, this is active sisterhood. Yeah. This is really active sisterhood. It's one thing to say, well, I'm here for you, but there's another thing to, like, help your sister up a mountain.

It's just a different sensation.

Wendy

It really is. And that sense of connectedness that Mhmm. I think that for lots of different reasons, because we're busy, because we're isolated, because, you know, we're doing all the things we do, we don't always have the opportunity to have that level of active sisterhood as you said. But that it's life changing to me when I have that deep level of connection with my friends.

Bettina

Oh, absolutely. I mean, there is just something about, like especially when we get to the top and we're just sitting on top of a mountain. We don't have our work clothes on, probably no makeup, and I'm sitting next to another woman, another sister. The files aren't there. The computer isn't there, and you just open up. And I used to say all the time when we do our hikes, it is church in the wild. It really is.

Wendy

I love that church in the wild.

Bettina

Mhmm. I think I took that from Kanye. I think he has a song.

I love it. But that's a

Wendy

that's such a great description of what can unfold. And I think part of it is, again, that willingness to be open to something like that. Right? You don't you aren't necessarily gonna get that just being in the city, doing what you're doing and going to, you know, shopping and and, you know, having lunch at your favorite restaurant. And, yes, of course, some of that happens because these are our friends and, you know, we trust each other. But to get to that really much deeper level, I think there's something about being outside in the outdoors in fresh air that really lends itself to that so beautifully.

Bettina

It does in away from the busyness.

Wendy

That's it.

Bettina

Mhmm.

Wendy

Away from the busyness. And we say all the time, you know, with Reinvention Rebels that we can uncover what we're meant to do, our purpose, you know, the wisdom that's within when we get quiet, when we are more still. So I just feel like we're we're so aligned. We're so aligned in this idea. And that's really a great segue to ask you about the practical nature of this reinvention because you turned your passion being outdoors and joining the outdoors into a thriving business. And I say all the time, we have to find something that we love, which you have done, when we want to reinvent. That's like the first most important thing.

But of course just having a passion for something is one thing. Starting a business based on that passion is another. How did you change your mindset to be one of belief in your ability to both birth this idea and really sustain it?

Bettina

There are so many levels, to that answer. 1, there are some people out there who don't even have a passion. Right? So if you're gonna reinvent yourself, it is definitely time to get quiet like you say and and think about what makes you feel alive. And I'm one of those people, because I'm an artist by nature, a dance teacher, it's hard for me to do anything if I'm not passionate about it. Right? So I I I couldn't sell.

Although I'm sure people are passionate about insurance, but I couldn't sell insurance, you know, because it brings in a lot of money. I couldn't do real estate because it brings in a lot of money. It'd probably make a lot more sense. But once I started hiking and watching these women just come alive, there wasn't saying any no, and it wasn't turning any it there wasn't turning there wasn't any turning back. I just felt like I was compelled to do it. It feels like my soul's mission. It honestly does.

I I don't know. Did that answer your question?

Wendy

It does. And I I totally get that because that's how I feel about starting the Reinvention Rebels podcast. I heard those 2 words Reinvention Rebels in this tiny whisper when I was meditating. And if that isn't coming from my soul, I don't know what is. That deep listening and I didn't know what it meant. I didn't know that it wasn't like Reinvention Rebels, it's a podcast that you need to start. It's not like I heard that.

I just heard those two words. But in continuing to be quiet and leaning in, I uncovered that it was a podcast. And very similar to you, I just ran with it. I knew that's what I was meant to do. I knew that all these years of doing voice overs and that kind of thing and speaking was it was a way for me to take all of the talents that I have and put it into something that I'm truly passionate about in a way that's of service to other people. And

Bettina

Yes. And, you know, I had to I had to rethink a lot of things, because I had taught dance for so long. I almost felt guilty wanting to leave the classroom because everyone you know, oh, teachers, you know, you're our heroes, and although our paychecks don't represent that. Teachers, you are our heroes. You're leaving these babies. You're leaving, especially African American children. God has put you in a place to bless them, and I had to get really honest.

Before I could reinvent myself, I had to be honest with myself. Are you happy? Are you happy doing this? And then the other hard question I had to ask I'm a dance teacher. It's very physical. I teach ballet and modern dance. How long can your body sustain this?

And you have to start thinking that way. Do you want to be the dance teacher with knee surgeries at 65 years old with a stick sitting in a chair. I didn't want that. So before the reinvention started, I had to get very real. Like, do you like where your life is going? Like, the life you created as a dance teacher was beautiful, but is it going to serve you in the future? Is that what you want your future to look like?

And I had to give myself permission to let that chapter go. And that was a hard that was a hard thing because I identified myself as this dance teacher. That was hard. But almost like you, I never forget. When I first started playing around with this idea, I was doing a lot of things before the hikes. I would get classes together for women my age and do belly dance classes and stuff, and I called my company Adventure Goddess. Right? And some of my Christian friends, they were like, don't do that.

I was like, I I gave it some thoughts, meditated, and I swear it was like God spoke to me and said adventures for the soul. And that's when it took off, and that's when I started really incorporating and leaning into nature and hiking.

Wendy

Yeah. It's interesting. Again, that that sort of the parallels of our stories Mhmm. And this idea of permission, giving ourselves permission to think differently, to want different things, that it's okay, that it's just like sometimes with friendships. There's a season. You know, some of our friends are our friends for life. My best friend, we met when we were 3 in nursery school.

We've been best friends for, you know, 55 years.

Bettina

I love that.

Wendy

Right? That's like that's like my person. And then there are other friendships, you know, that we meet people in other parts of our life and some of them, again, become lifelong friends from wherever we meet them. And other people, they're their 1st season for whatever season we're in. You know, work friends you work with and then one of you leaves and then you live far away so you just don't stay connected Mhmm.

Bettina

In

Wendy

the same way. So I think that permission is so key and I really like what you said about stopping to ask yourself some really important questions. Because that really is true. We have to understand our why. Why do I want this? Why do I want my life to be different? Mhmm. What's really important to me?

What do I value? And sometimes it does mean letting some of the things go that were important to us and still may continue to be, but maybe in a different way.

Bettina

Oh, absolutely. Right? Right. So for me in a different way is I'm not gonna be a dance teacher, but I'll be a patron. I'll go to the ballet.

Wendy

Exactly. Exactly. Right? Yeah. So there's still ways that we can stay connected to whatever that thing is that we might be changing. I'm saying goodbye to you forever, but changing. So I really appreciate that.

In our pre interview chat, you mentioned that your biggest lesson learned about reinventing yourself is to never outsource your strength, wisdom, and courage. Can you tell us what that means?

Bettina

It's not possible for someone to want your dreams more than you. When things get tough, when things fall apart, so many times, you're gonna have to rely on your own strength, your own courage, because you're gonna have people who tell you, like, just go back to the job, keep working on that pension. So you can't look for outside people saying, no. Keep going. It's nice when they do, but you can't rely on that. You really, really can't rely on that. And then as far as the wisdom is concerned, like you and I both said, is in those silent moments where those answers really come.

The answers that we so desperately need to move forward, they're typically not gonna come from other

Wendy

Mhmm. So true.

And I think it's interesting what you're saying about other people because I've interviewed lots of people and and some of them have said I had to stop listening to the naysayers. You know, we have dreams and we have the people in our circle that are our cheerleaders, our encouragers, the people that believe in us, that if we tell them what we're thinking, we know they'll hold it close to the vest and that when we're having one of those wells, we can call them and they can sometimes talk us off the ledge. But conversely, we also have the people in our life for whatever reason that could be naysayers. And who knows? Maybe it's because they didn't achieve their dreams And they maybe have limited expectations about what they can do and they project that. They can project that onto us. So I think it's so important what you said that you have to find that inner strength.

You have to really see for yourself and know when you have that knowing. No matter what anybody says, I can always find a way. And

Bettina

the people around us, especially the people we know that there are people, and they love us, and they have the best intentions, they can only give you advice and guidance at the limits of their own courage.

Wendy

Oh, you put that so beautifully. They can only give us advice and courage at the limits of the what did you say? At the limits?

Bettina

They can only give us advice and wisdom at the limits of their own courage.

Wendy

Yeah. I I love that. Yes. That's so true. So sometimes we have to see that bigger picture or or be able to say, okay.

I know they mean well. I know this person means well because they want the best for me but that's what they can give me right now and that's okay. I can I can compartmentalize that and even thank them for that and say thank you very much? I appreciate your thoughts and just move on though.

Bettina

Well, absolutely. Because I'll give you a great example. I a few years ago before the pandemic, I wanted to put on the Women of Color Outdoor and Adventure Expo, where we had guest speaker keynote speakers about hiking in Mount Kilimanjaro, workshops on how to set up a campsite and so forth. And I had 4 months to do it. I was like, I I can do I can do this. Like, I got to school. I'm gonna write whatever.

And my friend said, I think you need to give yourself more time. And I was just, no. I'm gonna do it. I'm gonna do it. And I so respect her. I so respect her. And so she was like, okay.

So after I said I'm gonna do it, she helped me plan it. And the and the day out, she was there helping me set up. So she respected that I still wanted to do this.

Wendy

Yeah. And those are the kind of friends that we need. Right? That can share things with us or their opinion. We can take it in and do with it what we will, but still are there for us.

Bettina

Yeah. And it was an amazing expo, by the way. It was we had so much fun.

Wendy

That sounds so good. Like, I wanna go to an expo. Have another one.

Bettina

I am. I am. I'm definitely planning that because it was amazing to see all these women of color in one room who were interested in finding out how do I get into these outdoor sports, how do I outdoor adventures, how do I set up a campsite. And we had a woman in from Tanzania talking about traveling to Tanzania. No. Yeah.

Wendy

I love it. And I also think that since there are so few of us that are into sort of the outdoors and camping and that kind of thing, I think that when we bring people together like that, it reminds us we're not alone. Yes. Mhmm. And we all need that. Absolutely. So that's really interesting.

I also remember that one of the people I interviewed who was this really amazing woman, Laurie, who lived in Philadelphia. She was a tenured professor at Temple. She and her family decided to move to Spain. And so many people were telling her, well, why would you I mean, come on.

You've got tenure. How could you possibly give that up?

Are you crazy? You've got, like, this great job. People would kill for a job like that. And I think especially as a black woman, people like, come on. I mean, you have a stable income. What are you thinking? But she said she and her husband just decided that they were only going to surround themselves with positive people that believed in their dream, that they would just stay away from those people that were like, well, really?

Should you really do that? So she said every day they focused on something positive. They only listen to positive messages, listen to positive podcasts, things about, you know, making your dreams come true, and they did it. They I mean, they're living there now and are really living their best life. So it's always possible. There's always a way. It might not always be obvious to us at the beginning, but we can always find a way.

Bettina

Yeah. And I think that's key surrounding yourself with positive people and people who have whatever it is that we wanna do who have done it and done it well.

Wendy

Absolutely. Right? Because we can get wisdom from them and hopefully avoid some of the mistakes they make too

Bettina

Right. Which

Wendy

we all we can all fall into that that trap. I believe we are so much stronger, smarter and accomplished than we often give ourself credit for. And this season of the Reinvention Rebels podcast, the theme is own your awesome. What does that mean to you, Bettina, as it relates to reinventing yourself? That is such

Bettina

a big concept to hold for me because I will be completely honest and transparent and vulnerable with you. I have done, I think, some really cool and awesome things, but I have had a difficult time with self worth. Right? And creating a ventures for the soul has definitely helped me do this, like, really step into that, owning who I am and accepting who I am. But what does that mean to own your awesomeness? I just think, especially for women this at this age, it is so important to write down every little, small, medium accomplishment. So when you have those days where you don't feel so awesome, you can go back and look at documentation.

And when you can't even think of awesome things, asking those dear friends in your circle to remind you and write those down because it's so easy to overlook it. On those down days when, like, things just weren't working out and blah blah blah, I confide in a friend, and I'll never forget her, like, saying, Tina. Tina, I just wish you were just I wish you just saw how wonderful you are. And I almost cried. I almost cried because a lot of times I just didn't. And I'm learning. I'm learning to do that.

So I guess what I can say to that statement, to be honest with you, I'm still learning how to own my awesomeness. It's becoming a little easier than it used to be, but I'm still learning. And the thing that kinda helps me own it is when I'm on top of a mountain, I look at this awesome world and this view that god has created. And I think, well, if God created the the same God that created this created me, then I must be awesome.

Wendy

Girl, I love that. Yes. And I love being able to make that association basically by any means any means necessary, right, to be able to take that on.

Bettina

Mhmm.

Wendy

Like, if God made this mountain then and he also made me, like, that means I'm awesome. I love that idea of finding it. And I think you're right that I think for most of us it's an evolution. I don't think most women start out saying I am so awesome. Where I think men generally, you know, they might have done a few things. They're like, I am so great.

Bettina

They don't have a problem.

Wendy

They don't have a problem owning awesome even if they're not. Right? Even if they've been they've done anything.

I was like, really? Well, let me tell you about what I've done. Okay.

Bettina

Oh. So if

Wendy

they think they're awesome, then I must be like, you know. So I like this idea though that we're trying it on for size and we're we're getting more comfortable. Part of it is probably aging and more wisdom, more courage, more strength, the things that you talked about that are so key. And I like that it's unfolding for you.

Bettina

It really is. And the one thing that I think a lot of women can identify with. Right? So we have those days when you don't feel beautiful. Right?

Wendy

Yeah.

Bettina

And you're and when you when you are younger, especially, you're like, oh my god. I was so ugly. I was this and this and this. And then when you go back to those pictures, you're like, who's cute? I know. Right? So I'm like, you know what, Bettina?

For now on, like, we're not doing that anymore. You don't have time to waste to put yourself down. So you're a beautiful woman. So you don't wanna go you don't wanna be 80 looking back like, oh my god. 54 year old Bettina was so cute.

What was wrong with her? Right.

Wendy

Right. It's so true.

And I think so much of it is the lens, you know, and the program we programming we all basically are part of. It's almost like the matrix. Right? We have this programming that's so subconscious

Bettina

Mhmm. Mhmm.

Wendy

But defines so much of how we value ourselves.

Bettina

Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. Leah, I'll give you a very vulnerable point. So as far as, like, accepting myself and self worth or whatever, a lot of it comes from childhood. Right? So I had an amazing moment on one of my retreats. I always think I'm doing these retreats for these women, but a lot of times, it's for me.

I'll have one of these moments. So we were talking about something, probably self worth, that always comes up. And I was telling the ladies I had such a hard time with it because total vulnerability. I'm a product of an affair. So when you know that, and I knew that growing up, when you know that, that really colors the lens of your self worth. So this woman pulled me to the side away from everyone else, and she said, you know that God only God is the only source that can create life. Right? And I was just like, yeah.

She was like, nothing bad, nothing evil can ever create life. So whatever you thought was evil and bad has nothing to do with you.

God created you. And I was just like, oh, and it just made me stand a little taller. Yes.

Wendy

Yeah. And and I think that the way you're being vulnerable here, I'm sure is what happens on the retreat where people feel comfortable

Bettina

Oh, yeah.

Wendy

To be themselves because I think for so many of us, it's sometimes hard to be ourselves for whatever reason. Our childhood or whatever, you know. And so there's comfort and freedom to me in being able to go to a place where you feel like you can peel back the layers and you can share something. And instead of people standing in judgment, they're with supportive words.

Bettina

Do you know? And this is why I love doing it because we have women that come from all walks of life, lawyers, judges, teachers, lots of teachers, you name it, accountants, people work for the IRS. These women come because they're looking for that safe space where they can be vulnerable and talk about peeling off layers. So when we go camping, for example, and everyone is standing there in their little plaid pajamas like, we're all equal. Right? And it's a safe space, plaid pajamas, drinking champagne, and Cheetos.

Wendy

Girl, that sounds like so much fun. You know I gotta come on one of these retreats. Yes. I love it.

I love it. It's just so it feels like so much magic happens when you do these events in these retreats. And I know that your mission is all about helping women get curious and really show up for themselves in midlife and going on these adventures helps uncover that. If you had to give our listeners one piece of advice because some of them who are listening have not had the opportunity to go on retreat like this or maybe be in the company of other women. Other women are having that or have that feeling of being lifted up. What's one piece of advice that you would give someone listening about embarking on a reinvention journey and learning to show up for yourself? What's something that they could do?

Bettina

The first thing I would say is allow yourself to be curious. That is the most beautiful thing. Allow yourself to be curious. Keep a notebook with you and just start jotting down the things that kinda piqued your interest. Don't don't screenshot it or, flag it in your phone because you're never gonna go back to it. There's something about writing it in a journal. I called mine my everything journal.

Write those things down, and then after, like, maybe a couple weeks, go back and see what kinda piqued your piqued your interest and make a plan to do those things. And journal I mean, journaling, not about the sad I mean, yes. Journal about the sad things, but just journal how you feel. Right? And I think that will help clear the path to what eventually is gonna set your soul on fire.

Wendy

I love that. And I think you're right that both journaling about the things that we're curious about and taking notes. I love that idea of really observing, becoming very observant about your life and what you see and experience. But then also this this just broader notion of journaling because I feel like when I get all up in my head that when I actually write it down, it calms me down.

Bettina

Yes. It's very therapeutic and it is so easy, I think, for women to become very numb to our own wants and desires because we're doing, doing, doing, doing. We're at work. We are on this committee. We're on that committee, and we become numb to our own urges.

Wendy

We really do. We really do.

I love this conversation so much. I love I love the insights that you've shared. I love how vulnerable you were with sharing about yourself because I think that opens up this avenue to make it okay for other people to do that. I know that people listening are saying, where in the world can I find Bettina Peet? She is so cool. She is so interesting. I wanna know more about what she does.

Where can people connect with you?

Bettina

So, I'm all over social media, Facebook, Adventures For The Soul. I'm on I have a website www.adventuresforsoul.org. I'm on Instagram, adventures for the soul with the underscore between each word. I'm on TikTok, adventures for the soul. And you can connect directly with me if you would love for me to speak at some event or whatever, because I love sharing my adventures. You can always contact me at, contact me, betina@adventuresforsoul.org.

Wendy

I love it. Betina@adventuresforsoul.org. Perfect. And all of the things you just mentioned are in the show notes so people that are listening can tap and find out more and easily get connected to you. Bettina, I cannot thank you enough for gracing me with your presence, sharing your wisdom, telling us about your very dynamic reinvention rebel journey and your overall openness. I'm so grateful. Thank you.

Bettina

Oh, thank you likewise. I'm just when I met you at the, the Paws Festival, I was just like, oh my gosh. You're so much fun.

Wendy

We're gonna have to do some collaborating. We're gonna have to find some ways that we can collaborate and bring people together in really cool ways. I love it. I love it. So thank you so much.

Bettina

You're welcome.

Wendy

Oh, wasn't this good? Didn't you love what Bettina had to say?

I appreciate her vulnerability. I appreciate her sharing about her reinvention journey. And you see, it's fits and starts. It's not like we figure it all out and then we never revert back to feeling less confident or doubting ourselves.

You know how it goes. Some days you're on top of the world, some days not so much. We do our best, right, to build that resilient mindset and to help ourselves keep moving forward in midlife, to keep reinventing really in our terms. And I love that she's figuring it out for herself and she's helping other women do it too. And I really loved the whole concept of adventures for the soul that we are awakening to ourselves and getting outside in nature, it helps us with that journey. And I I know that for myself just because I like to hike, I like to be outside. There's something so calming to me about getting outside and experiencing nature.

And I just really appreciated our conversation. I hope you did too. And I hope that you will share this episode. If it sparked something in you or you're thinking about your friends that maybe feel a little less sure or they can just use some encouragement and inspiration about navigating midlife. Please do me a favor and share this episode with them. Let's encourage more women to tune into themselves, to begin to own their awesome and feel really good about where they are and where they're going in midlife. And just wanna mention, if you saw something or if you heard something in this episode that really tickled you and you thought, oh, I could see reinventing myself.

I want to invite you to check out my 8 part audio program, midlife reinvention from the inside out. 8 essentials to green light your life. I help you tap into your why. I help you build your courage muscle. I help you do things like lean into more curiosity and play. There are 8 essential ingredients that can help us start reinventing. And what I do is bring me along on this journey in a very fun, inspiring and empowering way.

And I encourage you to check out the details in the show notes. And let me tell you, coming up on our next episode, I have yet another amazing guest. You're going to love her. Her name is Guler Cordes. She lives in the UK and she's got such a vibrant, interesting, fun and really intriguing reinvention story about how she did this as inspiration for all of us. So until next time, keep shining your light, rebels. The world needs you and all that you have to offer.