The Surprising Reinvention at Midlife
- Apr 7
- 3 min read
By Erin Harrigan
Founder and Head Coach Erin Harrigan LLC
When I graduated from college at 22 and imagined myself at midlife, it always involved me in my mid-40's, wearing a classy business suit in my C-suite role for a thriving company with a prime salary, benefits, and stock options. Perhaps I'd watched too many 80's movies about big business, which limited my vision of what was possible. My early 20's vision of midlife hadn't included entrepreneurship, much less hosting a podcast and writing books!
Turning Tides
The tide turned for me at 42 when I started a side business with a multi-level marketing company. I leveraged my sales and networking experience to sell vegan skin and wellness products and built a team of others to do the same. Whether you call it "network marketing," "social selling," or "residual or passive income," it was the side gig that started as a way to get products at a discount and became a Plan B to escape the corporate life that my 22-year-old self swore she wanted. Seeing the possibilities through the lens of this business opportunity had me rethinking how to build success beyond the salaried life. It was this business that cushioned our family when I was let go from my corporate job and led me to fully embrace entrepreneurship for the first time.
However, this was just a hint of the reinvention to come. Four years later, a new path emerged from my decision to begin living my life with Christ at the center. That one decision not only made me a new creation (from 2 Corinthians 5:17 in the Bible), it produced the most surprising reinvention of all: the launch of my coaching, speaking, and writing business. This path was not on my radar, and though I'd been leading and coaching teams most of my career, I definitely never imagined coaching women, hosting an award-winning podcast, or being a bestselling author. Those possibilities weren't modeled for me at home or even in all those movies I watched.
Advice to Younger Me
While I wouldn't change a thing about my journey and the valuable lessons I've learned, there is clear advice I'd give my younger self (and I wish someone had given me).
First, be open to all the possibilities of what a career could be, and don't hold so tightly to the one path you think will lead you to the big titles, high income, etc. Embrace the adventure!
Second, try different things, explore new avenues, and soak up all the knowledge along the way. You're not going to know everything your first year, five years, or even 20 years after college. Enjoy the journey!
But most importantly, give your life to Christ and let Him direct your steps because who better to lead you than the One who created you. His ways are always the best and most fruitful.
Today, I work and lead differently because I live by the advice I would have given my younger self. I lead with more grace, intention, and perspective. Not because of my own maturity, but because of the Holy Spirit leading and empowering me.
I have learned that I can't carry it all, get it all done, or control it all by myself (and I wasn't made to do it that way). I always say: "God made me ambitious, but He didn't make me for business as usual," and while I have no regrets, I do wish I'd realized this and given my life to Christ sooner. Still, I'm grateful for the surprising reinvention at midlife. It's made the rest of life so much richer!
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