Episode 120

Sofa Series: More Passion, More Purpose

In the inaugural episode Sofa Series of Seasoned Women Serious Business, host Isabel Alexander and her partner Jackie Wszalek introduce their podcast aimed at entrepreneurs aged 45 to 75. They discuss their own journeys, the challenges of redefining purpose post-retirement, and the importance of finding passion and contributing to a legacy. The episode captures their candid conversation about the changes and opportunities in later life, featuring humor, wisdom, and a call for community collaboration. Sponsored by Crossroads Clarity Solution, the podcast promises to be a heartfelt exploration of life and business for seasoned women.

00:00 Welcome to Seasoned Women, Serious Business

01:58 Kicking Off the Sofa Series

04:31 Navigating Retirement and Legacy

11:31 Embracing Aging and Memory Lapses

18:04 Diversity, Inclusion, and Lifelong Learning

19:41 Join the Conversation

22:49 Wrapping Up and Staying Connected

Jackie Wszalek is a curious community activist, grandma, wife, yogi and peace seeker.  Seasoned business owners committed to sharing "lessons learned, lessons lived" while advocating for small business success.

About the Host:

 

Isabel Alexander

Your Next Business Strategist and Transformation Catalyst

 Isabel Alexander's journey from modest beginnings to global recognition epitomizes entrepreneurial resilience and innovation. With over five decades of experience spanning diverse industries, she has become a driving force in shaping economic landscapes worldwide. Noteworthy accomplishments include founding a multimillion-dollar global chemical wholesale business and earning accolades such as Canada's Top 100 Most Powerful Women.

As a mentor and advocate, Isabel empowers women entrepreneurs through initiatives like the Lift As You Climb Movement and podcasts, guiding them from startup to maturity. Serving as Chief Encore Officer of The Encore Catalyst, she dedicates herself to coaching and educating emerging entrepreneurs. Her involvement in organizations like RenegadesReinventing.com and Femme on Fire underscores her commitment to leadership and business development.

Additionally, Isabel's advisory roles with government bodies and trade associations, such as Chair of the Canadian Association of Importers & Exporters, highlight her influence in shaping trade policies and fostering international relations.

Driven by her mantra, "Lift As You Climb," Isabel embodies the ethos of mutual growth and empowerment. With dual citizenship in Canada and the United States, she values her extensive family and embraces global connections through travel and professional engagements. Isabel Alexander's narrative serves as a beacon of inspiration, illustrating how visionary leadership and strategic advising can drive global entrepreneurship and economic independence forward.


Founder:

The Encore Catalyst Facebook page ( https://www.facebook.com/TheEncoreCatalyst )

and

Chief Encore Officer, The Encore Catalyst (www.theencorecatalyst.com) – an accelerator for feminine wisdom, influence, and impact.

also

Author & Speaker ‘Who Am I Now? – Feminine Wisdom Unmasked Uncensored’ https://whoaminowbook.com/


LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/isabelannalexander/

 

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Crossroads Clarity Solution

Transcript
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Welcome to Seasoned Women, Serious Business, the podcast for entrepreneurs

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aged 45 to 75 and beyond who've changed lives, challenged status

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quo, who are wise enough to want more and gutsy enough to create it.

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Join me, your host, Isabel Alexander, a seasoned business owner, as I

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serve up the Knowledge and best practices for life and business,

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along with unfiltered wisdom from other women entrepreneurs and leaders.

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Whether you're looking to reignite your passion for your business,

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unlock new ones that build your legacy or simply shake your head at the

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folly of underestimating ourselves.

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You are in the right place.

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We're serious about business.

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And we're serious about loving the life that we've worked hard to create.

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Stay tuned and be part of a community built on collaboration and collective

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wisdom that dismisses old paradigms and celebrates vibrant women just like you

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and our limitless potential at every age.

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//web.descript.com/b961cf36-43d2-426c-b4dd-28f0d479279f

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: Are we ready to take off?

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Ready to take off.

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: Look it, for those that are watching this right

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now on YouTube, there is this beam of light radiating through our heads.

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We have no idea where it's coming from.

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We've been moving the furniture.

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We've been doing everything we can here.

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So we're just going to go with it.

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Just know that we are Brilliant.

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In every way, shape, and form.

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Totally legends in our own minds.

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Getting better every year.

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All right, everyone, welcome to the very, very first of what we

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hope will be a continuing series.

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We're going to call it the Sofa Series because that's what we're doing.

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We're sitting here on the sofa.

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As we do every once in a while and solve all the problems of the world.

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Absolutely.

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There's something about being on the sofa.

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Having my ass grounded on this couch.

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Welcome to Seasoned Women, Serious Business, Wise Enough to Want More.

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And my very special partner here, Jackie Wazalick, who has been the

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wind beneath my wings for a long time.

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: And every once in a while we switch.

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: We have a lot of names for each other.

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Some of those we will not share with you right now.

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Look, there's something going on with the lighting.

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I don't know.

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It's so crazy.

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Why are we here today?

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It's because I'm on the cusp of 70.

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By the time you watch this, I will be.

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Jackie's just slightly ahead of the curve of me.

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And we recognize through conversation between us and with other friends

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that there is a lot of being in isolation and feeling like we

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don't have it all figured out.

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fund,

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We will be right back after a brief message from our sponsors.

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This episode of Seasoned Women, Serious Business is brought to you

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by Crossroads Clarity Solution.

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If you're feeling overwhelmed and unsure of your next steps, whether

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it's maintaining the status quo, closing down, scaling up, Selling or

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transforming your role as a primary shareholder, Crossroads Clarity

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This program is uniquely designed to help female entrepreneurs navigate through

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critical decisions and align their business with their values and priorities.

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Find out why it works at CrossroadsClaritySolution.

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com and don't waste another minute of your future.

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As promised, we are back with this episode, because you

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are wise enough to want more.

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: true story.

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Everything changes, every sort of the decades bring us into a

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new awareness of what's going on.

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And we knew who we were raising kids.

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We knew who we were running businesses.

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We knew who we were volunteering, sitting on boards, whatever we did.

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But there comes a time when some of those things no longer light our fire.

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Sometimes those things no longer serve us in the way they served us in the past.

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And so our friends tended I speak for myself.

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My friends tended to be those that I met up with every

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month at association meetings.

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My friends tended to be my, some of my customers because it was just good doing

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business with people I liked, right?

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Retirement, a long Awaited retirement actually brought me into a space of,

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ah, all this time to explore now.

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And so I'm having fun exploring, but I would love to find something that just lit

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my soul up and got me up in the morning and make my life a legacy life, right?

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So that people are, and I say this sort of oddly, but I hope people

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are going to miss me when I'm gone.

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Thank God she's off this planet.

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I do want to make a contribution to the world.

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Continue to do that.

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Because I think the impact we have on the world is really the most important

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thing we can do while we're alive,

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: you touched on a whole lot of important themes

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for me because retirement, what the hell does that mean anymore?

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Knowing who we are now, because it sure as hell is a surprise to most of us.

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: Yeah, there's all kinds of things

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that show up that Wow, who knew?

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: Not welcome things and some other

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delightful bonus surprises, right?

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Because to your point, Jackie, when and so Just to explain for those who

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don't know her, Jackie has just recently sold her business, and that's how she

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and I reconnected talking about what it's like to be in that period of not

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having every moment of your day and every It's a very down to earth thought

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driven by the activities that your business demands of you, or that you

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have actually created for yourself.

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And you mentioned friendships and relationships, because that's the other

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thing, that if you are a seasoned woman, and when you sell your business or you

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start to prepare for that, oh my god!

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Our relationships, our community, is so

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: interwoven

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: into who we hang out with and who we show

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up for and who we don't show up for, is another factor which is.

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Absolutely.

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: There's also those who are like, huh, I tolerated

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that for quite a while, right?

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Oh my goodness.

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Yeah.

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Why?

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: Yeah.

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Therefore, shouldn't come as a big surprise to us that, holy fuck,

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there's a lot to figure out now, right?

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And I don't know if generally more people are smarter that

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they anticipated all of this.

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But I sure as hell didn't.

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: Yeah.

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: I was still living in the la fantasy land

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of life of leisure, sleeping in.

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going to the spa, hanging out for lunch with friends, catching up on all

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those things I said I was going to do.

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All of that takes about five minutes.

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: Yeah.

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And then you find this little chunk of time that's not dictated by

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what showed up on your phone today,

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: right?

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: Yeah.

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: And even how that just, it's not bad.

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We're not saying don't do this.

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We're saying, Just be prepared, be open, and have grace for yourself when

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suddenly you feel like you have fallen down the rabbit hole and Alice isn't

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even there to give you directions.

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And it's what the hell?

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Who am I?

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And what am I going to do with myself?

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And

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: how long can I have lunch, right?

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: Ladies do lunch.

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Only a very boring people.

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Yeah,

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: It, there really does need to be something that just

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fires us up and something that really

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contributes, right?

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: That brings us to the other point you

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brought up, and that is legacy.

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Yeah.

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Now, maybe, is the time where, instead of just being driven every day by other

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people's agendas and the chaos that we've created for ourselves, is that moment to

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pause and go, why will my life matter?

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Yeah.

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What have I been doing on this planet for the last 60 plus years that anybody

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will care at all about afterwards?

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Hopefully there are enough people that we have been, we have loved

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and created a relationship with that will miss us a little and

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say something maybe nice about us.

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But really in the end, once that's done and they all go

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back to their own lives, what.

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What are you leaving here?

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: And, Isabel and I attended an event on Friday

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that was really quite inspirational.

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And I see women younger than us doing some great things and making

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an impact on their community.

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And I think that's lovely.

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And I also know that we have so much to give back, yet we've given it so much

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over our lives, that there's also that, I don't even know if it's a fear, or a,

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maybe it's time to just relax and we are enough, we are, we've got enough And what

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can I share but also without again losing ourselves in that busyness and in that

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whole scope of why am I doing this sitting down at the end of the day instead of I'm

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doing this because I just love doing it.

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Oh

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: my gosh, Jackie, when you said that my heart took a little

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bit of a flip flop because I wondered is that part of the difficulty in this

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transition is if we stop being busy and visible and giving of ourselves,

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do we become invisible?

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: Yeah.

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And is that less of us?

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I don't, I don't know, figuring out these really deep questions

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of what does this look like?

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And

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: I go back to my concern is that there are millions

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of us just in this one little patch of the planet, millions of us in our 60s,

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70s, and beyond that are in this role.

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I think we're in isolation most of the time.

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These aren't conversations that I've had the opportunity to have often

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enough, and that's really why I started the podcast, was to be able

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to talk to women of a certain age.

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Oh, what a horrible expression that is.

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But seasoned women, because as business owners, we've got like

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appetite for life.

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: That's all I could say.

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That's a beautiful way to express it.

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: I am hungry

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: To learn and to be part of and to,

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: yeah,

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: experience more.

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: Yeah, so how do we still satisfy that appetite of

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curiosity, and having some influence and impact and feeling like we

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matter, we're relevant, without having to go sacrificing, again, health.

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personal time, growth, reflection.

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: And the ability to have fun and find

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humor and find joy again, right?

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That take ourselves really seriously and have.

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And so when I find that little bit of joy and that spark of humor and

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sitting down with people who can laugh about the same things, right?

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Because that's another piece of it.

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: For instance, memory.

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brain fog, forgetting why you walked into a room.

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Why have we allowed ourselves to be convinced that's something to be ashamed

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of and cover up or ridicule ourselves?

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Oh my god, my brain is so full, like I'm still cramming

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all this new stuff in there.

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Give me a break.

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Every once in a while I have to wait for the CD to come around again.

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: I was laughing when I had some conversations with

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some other women, and some older than me, and, it's more like playing a

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game of charades sometimes, right?

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Remember when, do you know who that is?

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Yes, I remember who she was.

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What was her name?

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And so we go back and forth and it isn't, I think, a matter of, As Isabel and I,

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one of my 80 year old friends one day at lunch, couldn't remember a name of a

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woman, and the other woman said to her, who was a dear friend of hers you D.

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O.

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B.?

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And she said, What do you mean?

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You demented old bitch?

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Can we laugh at those moments instead of feeling Oh, shit, we're

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going down the rabbit hole, man.

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I don't even want to be in public.

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We don't need to be ashamed of those moments.

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We need to embrace those moments and know that we have good friends

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that gotta have our backs, right?

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And we can laugh about it with.

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: Let's be honest, is there ever a time in your life

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that you feel that you could remember every single thing in the instant, the

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nanosecond, or the name of the person that you met once at a networking event?

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Why are we putting more emphasis on it now?

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And truly, I do believe that there is a, justification in that.

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Look how much our generation has learned and experienced, and that we're cramming

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it in there, cramming it in there.

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And so I feel like I never forget anything.

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It just takes a while to find it.

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Yeah.

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But why should we feel less than for that?

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The lights are just playing tricks again.

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I don't know.

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It's pretty cool.

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I think that this is a sign, okay?

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Everybody who's watching This you're witnessing some

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celestial aura that's going on.

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: Yeah,

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: That's because we are DOB and it doesn't have

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anything to do with light bulbs.

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And I love that expression.

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I'm so happy you shared that because that was yours to share.

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Originally, I thought DOB stood for date of birth, but I am having way much

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more fun with this version of DOB, and I am now, tempted to sign my credit card

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statements and everything else with that, because why not have fun, and that's

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That is the pact between Jackie and I.

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If it's not fun, we're not fucking doing it.

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That's

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: just doesn't make sense anymore, right?

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I love this.

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: And we are still, we are women.

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We are mothers, wives, grandchildren, grandmothers, friends, business owners,

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multiple business owners, careers, and

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Being involved and giving a hand up.

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That's another thing that j Jackie and I share the philosophy of lifting

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as you climb, becoming the best version of yourself in the moment.

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It is not work that is ever done

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. Jackie Wszalek, DOB: And good.

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It's really good.

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Yeah.

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And I think one of the other things that I really love

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about my life is I have people.

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in my sphere that are different ages, different races, different points of view,

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and they can be male also, honestly, I have no problems with Whoever shows up is

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welcome and let them share in this whole experience of being on the planet, right?

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But it's so much more fun.

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To me, that is

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: the ultimate in diversity and inclusion.

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The more diverse, the richer the circle around you.

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And, by the way, That doesn't happen accidentally.

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It has to be done purposefully.

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It's up to you to reach out and expand.

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I love that I can learn from people that are three generations younger than me and

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I can teach them a few things too, right?

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And together, it's Oh, wow.

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I didn't see it that way.

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That's pretty cool to see it differently, right?

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: Yeah.

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I'm grateful.

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: Grateful, absolutely.

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That's why travel.

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for me is so important because I'm continuing to see the world through

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different eyes, different cultures, different flavors, different

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colors, and it just, that's all part of that continuing life, right?

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: Absolutely.

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: So because we're sitting here doing all this

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talking, I'd really like to give you the opportunity Let us know,

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for you, was it like a slam dunk?

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You knew exactly who you were when you turned 60 or 65 or 70 or 75 or 105?

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Because if you knew who you were going to be then, did you feel like

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it was all that you wanted it to be?

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Oh my god, this lighting is crazy!

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It is absolutely insane!

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And there were swear, swear, no alcohol yet.

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Yeah.

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So that's the conversation we'd love to welcome you here into the living

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room with us and comment so that we may have some more conversations around

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the topics that you care about and the questions that you have, or the

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stories that you can share with us.

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That'd be awesome.

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That would be awesome, right Isabel?

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We're going to create a tapestry with you, and I believe that's what we're supposed

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to be doing now, at this age as seasoned women is that we've got a whole lot of

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threads in our lives that we can bring together and we can crochet whatever not

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to get you know too cute about it all but it's true it's by not being alone in our

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own perspective or self doubt or worry and maybe you got the coolest idea to be

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able to lift others as you are climbing.

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'cause I, that's the other part of what we talk about is that staying young at heart.

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Through laughter, through play, through curiosity, through meeting new people

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and new perspectives, trying new things.

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Oh my God, look at us sitting here on the couch.

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We couldn't get the mics, the lavaliers, we didn't work.

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So hopefully the sound quality is good enough for you.

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We are not in a professional studio.

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There are some professionals who would like to put us someplace,

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but we're not going

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: anywhere.

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: No, we are we're just going and growing,

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: yes, please share.

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Yeah, that would

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: be

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: really wonderful.

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: Please share.

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Invite your friends.

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Yeah.

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And if that is your colleague, your neighbor, your mother, your grandmother.

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your daughter your son.

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This is for everybody.

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It's not just for us.

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I guess if we're the old broads, then what are the guys?

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I don't know, but

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Jackie Wszalek, DOB: we know what

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Isabel Alexander, DOB: they are.

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We know what they are, whatever we tell them.

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Yes.

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Okay, so we're going to wrap this as the first.

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episode of the SOFA series and I really hope that you

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enjoyed it as much as we have.

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Absolutely.

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Yay!

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Bye for now.

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See ya.

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Thank you for spending your time with us today on Seasoned Women, Serious Business.

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We really value you and are thrilled to be part of your journey.

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If you enjoyed today's episode, please subscribe to the channel and then share it

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with other women who would receive value.

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Thanks to our sponsors, all episodes are available in audio, video, and

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transcribed format on all major platforms.

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Now, if you'd like to share your wisdom or become a co host or a

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show sponsor, please reach out to me at hello at theencorecatalyst.

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com or visit our website, seasonedwomenseriousbusiness.

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com.

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Also, I'd appreciate it if you submit questions and suggestions for future

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topics and guest experts to interview.

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Let's lift as we climb, magnify our impact, and create more

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for ourselves and others.

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Until next time, keep thriving, keep vibing, and keep living your legacy.

About the Podcast

Show artwork for Seasoned Women Serious Business
Seasoned Women Serious Business
Wise Enough to Want More

About your host

Profile picture for Isabel Alexander

Isabel Alexander

Dynamic, self-made entrepreneur who overcame obstacles with an unrelenting positive nature, a farm girl work ethic and a conscious choice to thrive rather than survive, Isabel Alexander Banerjee cultivated an award winning, $10 million+ global chemical wholesale business and grew it from dining room table to international boardrooms.

Isabel’s strengths include the ability to initiate & nurture strategic relationships, a love of lifelong learning and talents for helping others maximize their potential. An inspiring speaker within both industry and community, she is a driving force behind those with the courage to follow her example of thriving against the odds.

With 50+ years of business experience across diverse industries, Isabel is respected as an advisor, a coach, a mentor and a role model. She believes in sharing collective wisdom and empowering others to economic independence.

Isabel Alexander
Your Next Business Strategist and Transformation Catalyst