I was honored to be photographed and interviewed for a story on Goodhousekeeping.com about "why 50+ is #theperfectage," along with a lot of stylish, interesting and accomplished women. L'Oreal Paris sponsored the event. One by one, we were asked to name the best thing about being our current age -- and many of us gave similar responses: confidence, less stress, more free time. This may come as a surprise to those who are younger, but it didn't surprise me at all. In fact, studies have verified this finding.
Nevertheless, popular culture often portrays getting older as something to dread.
We hear promises of "age-defying" skincare and ways to "turn back the clock." Countless bloggers and magazine editors hold forth on how to look younger. Then, there's that actual company called Forever 21--as if that's a good thing.
My 89-year-old mother and I talk almost every day, and as we discuss what's happening with my daughter and nieces, we often share a common refrain: Our teens and 20s, honestly, weren't that great. They were pretty stressful and not always beautiful, despite our glossy hair, dewy complexions and lithe figures.
Oh, I had a lot of fun in high school and college and made some very valuable, life-long friendships. But, in addition to those happy memories, I recall being anxious a lot of the time. When my senior year of college drew to an end, I felt completely unmoored. For all the commencement speeches about following your dreams, I wasn't sure what mine were. I had been successful academically because the parameters in college were clear. What was to come next was a scary open-ended question, followed by more questions: Where should I go? Will I find a job I like and be able to support myself? Will I fall in love? Will I ever get married?
As some of those questions got answered in my 30s, new ones kept popping up. Will my marriage be a happy one? Can we afford to buy a house? Will I be able to conceive? Will I get promoted? Will my baby be okay? The list goes on and on... I won't even touch on my 40s or the challenges of parenting teenagers! That's a book in and of itself. At one point, a good friend (mother of three) and I (mother of two) discussed writing a self-help manual called What To Do When the Cops Call/A Parent's Guide. I'm not kidding. Those decades are kind of a blur. Perhaps due to my increasing wine consumption--but also because it felt like I never had time for myself, between a full-time job and a full-time family.
Then, a funny thing happened. My children survived, got into college, and flourished. (Well, they both graduated and have jobs, so that's where we are at.) The empty nest turned out to be a very pleasant interlude for me and my husband, in which we got to go out to dinner on the spur of the moment, walk around the house half-dressed, watch whatever we wanted on TV, plan vacations that didn't coincide with school breaks and, blessedly, not have to be constantly driving someone somewhere or picking them up. Yes, we missed our kids! But we also got back to being us.
When I started developing the idea for Apprécier and met my future business partner, Stephanie, a year ago, I had always been employed by large magazine publishers and she had held top jobs at a number of big companies. It was a leap of faith for both of us to start a business at this stage, but you know what? I wasn't really scared. The worst that could happen is not that bad--and the upside could be fantastic! In the interim, I will learn a lot skills and meet some truly fabulous women.
One place I met just such a group of women was the Hearst Corporation luncheon to celebrate "50 Over 50," following the goodhousekeeping.com story last month. At my table, I talked to a skydiver, an artistic director for Dance Theater of Harlem, a former model and runway coach, a successful publicist and a fashion designer.
Know what? We're having a blast! And as I continue to meet such accomplished and inspiring women, I know I'm going to keep having a blast.
Read more at Apprécier