Courageous Women: Betty Reid Soskin
Doubt and fear have become uninvited guests as I’m pursuing my coaching dream.
They often bring along “head trash.” You know, those unhelpful phrases of discouragement like:
“You’re too old.”
“This will never work.”
“You’re too fat.”
“Who do you think you are?”
“There are already 1 million coaches out there.”
“Who is going to hire you?”
… and on and on and on.
To counter this b.s., I needed evidence of other women in midlife and beyond who made Courageous Leaps and started new lives and businesses for themselves. I was having serious doubts about my own ability to make the kind of leaps I wanted to make as a 52-year-old single mom of a teenager. Among my immediate friends and family, I didn’t see a lot of examples or role models.
So I started to seek them out. And let me tell you, there are some incredibly inspiring women who have done some pretty amazing things in their 40s, 50s, 60s and beyond.
Courageous Women is a blog post series where you’ll meet some of these inspiring women. I started highlighting them on my Instagram page, but telling their stories in just 60 seconds and a caption didn’t do them – or their Courageous Leaps – enough justice.
So say hello to my first “guest,” Ranger Betty.
At the tender age of 85, Betty Reid Soskin, was hired by the National Park Service as a Park Ranger for the Rosie the Riveter/WWII Home Front National Historical Park in Richmond, Calif. She served for 15 years until retiring as the oldest U.S. Park Ranger in 2022 at the age of 100.
She’s led a remarkable life as a business owner, mother, activist and singer. A new documentary “Sign My Name to Freedom” is in the works to tell Betty’s story through her own unreleased music. Songwriting and singing was a source of healing for her after a mental break which she attributes to the traumas of the civil rights movement and her struggles raising children as the only Black family in a white suburb in the 1960s.
“I have been so many women at so many different times,” she said in a 2023 interview on PBS NewsHour. “Being 101 is really something, because you feel as if you’re starting all over again. I don’t know what comes next, but I do know I’m ready for it.”
Her interview is chock full of wisdom from someone who has lived many lives. I encourage you to watch it. Her curiosity and wonder is an inspiring way to show up in the world.
“I grew up jumping out of bed every morning wondering what life was going to be like. And I still am. I’m still jumping out of bed wondering what life is like,” she said in an interview on PBS Weekend Spotlight.
So here’s my challenge to you. If you’re pondering a Courageous Leap, but are feeling sidelined by head trash, look to Ranger Betty for inspiration. If she could take a Courageous Leap into a new career at 85, and release her once-hidden music at 102, you can do it at 40, 50, 60 and beyond.
Your dreams are waiting.
Ready to unearth your dreams and make them a reality? Book a free 30-minute clarity call to get started.