The Second Chapter

This week I’m talking with brand new graduate (in her 40s), Jen Roehrig. Jen was pursuing her first second chapter when a freak occurance left her unable to walk. After struggling with her mental health and feelings of fragility for nearly a decade, Jen decided at 40 that it was time to pursue her long-term dream of acting. With an integrated masters degree in drama performance and touring theatre...

This week, Kristin speaks with She's on Top founders, Jessica Wright and Tracy Hornik. Jessica and Tracy have been friends nearly their entire lives. Despite life taking them in different directions for nearly two decades, they reunited several years ago and now run She's on Top. She’s on Top is a highly engaged membership community, where women unlock exclusive access to expert workshops, brainst...

This week Kristin chats with Jennifer Baker, who studied as an artist but found herself on a mountaintop in Italy, raising a family and living without her art. A successful translation business took her even further away from her original passion until Covid forced her to ask herself some tough questions. Once she stopped hiding and started saying yes, the magic started happening... My paintings a...

Welcome to Season 4! In this season opener, Kristin speaks with Carol Drinkwater. Carol began her working life as an actress, a career which quickly showed her to be a rising star, marked for Hollywood. Abuse by a famous director changed her path but she has remained an actor and has gone on to add successful novelist, olive farmer, environmentalist and more to her career story. ** We do talk abou...

Welcome to The Second Chapter Season 3 finale! This week Kristin is joined by Taiwo Dayo-Payne. After speaking with Taiwo, we knew her story and her message had to end season 3. Taiwo started out as an actor, but in a rare twist, found success to be less satisfying than she hoped and accidentally discovered her next steps through volunteering. Her latest chapter, The New 5ifty, finds her working w...

This week, Kristin is speaking with Pam Munter who proudly calls herself ‘an outspoken advocate of living an unconventional life’. In a time when it wasn’t encouraged, Pam wanted to be something other than a teacher or nurse. She has spent her life exploring a wide array of different careers, including clinical psychologist, a singer/recording artist and author and an award-winning playwright. Cur...

This week Kristin talks everything from Scrabble to the state of the world with guest Marcia Ledford. Marcia worked as a civil rights attorney for over 30 years, including as an ACLU cooperating attorney on constitutional matters, prior to her ordination. In her forties when a higher calling wouldn't stop "bugging her", she decided it was finally time to take the leap, though she certainly ha...

Pam Moore doesn't do everything... but she's close. This week, Kristin talks with Pam who went from being an Occupational Therapist to writing for some of the world's biggest publications, running Ironman triathlons, coaching other women on body positivity, hosting Real Fit podcast and raising a family. Pam shares a lot of great stories, including the very romantic way a gift from her husband help...

For the first time ever on The Second Chapter, Kristin has a guest back for an update. Back in season one, you loved the story of Melissa Davey, who left corporate life at 65 to become a filmmaker.  Melissa’s film has been officially released, so Kristin jumped at the chance to speak with her again. Today, we talk about the film, our shared loved of ensuring women of all ages have a platform...

This week, Kristin chats with teacher and lawyer turned psychologist, Julia Bueno. As regular listeners will know, there are several female-centric topics that Kristin feels don’t get enough attention or open discussion, one being pregnancy loss.  Julia has taught and practiced law, but following her own painful experience with miscarriage, became a psychologist. Her first book, The Brink of...

Ever had your womb massaged? You might be tempted to after listening to this week's episode with Louise Pitman. Louise went to university at 35, despite having young children and a rocky marriage. She spent years as a probation officer before finding a new calling helping women through the various cycles of their life, using yoga, menopause support and... you guessed it... womb massage. For more i...

This week, Kristin is chatting with Kate MacDougall who has worked as an actor, for Sotheby's, has owned a dog-walking company and more. Now, Kate writes things, mainly about dogs and the countryside and interiors but also the odd bit of children’s homework or reminders to worm the Jack Russell. Her first book, ‘London’s Number One Dog Walking Agency’ has been published by Bonnier in the UK (relea...

Imagine the best brownie you've ever tasted... this week Kristin chats with brownie (and cake and biscuit and more) bespoke baker, Lynsey Bleakley of Bumble and Goose. Lynsey found her calling as a health visitor with the NHS until events in her life made the job too painful to continue. When she turned to baking for therapy, it became more than a distraction, it became a business. You can find (a...

Welcome to Season 3! This week, Kristin chats with Lora Kelley, a singer-songwriter who saw how her life and perspective changed once she was in her 30s and wanted to sing about it. Starting out as a make-up artist, Lora now explores the "middle space" between ingénue and retiree on her new album, Domystique- what happens between youth and old age and what comes with it. Lora also has a lot to say...

This short bonus episode is a re-cap of where we’ve been so far and a preview of what's to come for Season 3. A great episode if you haven't listened yet (what are you waiting for?!) and are wondering where to start! All the love to you- and we look forward to being back in your ears on 11th May for Season 3. --- Subscribe, review and share The Second Chapter- wherever you listen to your favourit...

This week, Kristin talks with Jane Porter who, despite several job trajectories, felt that she didn't "get started" in life until a horticulture course led her to start her own business.  Now happily self-employed, Jane makes her living helping people live in beautiful outdoor spaces... and inspires people on Instagram as "Planty Jane". You can find Jane on Instagram @plantyjane For garden co...

This week, Kristin chats with Jane Shepperd, who left a high-level nursing career at 34 to go to drama school. After several years of success in acting, including performing in the West End and stints on successful TV programmes like The Office , Jane changed her focus once again towards helping other actors land their dream roles as an agent. --- Subscribe, review and share The Second Chapter- w...

This week, Kristin chats with Lynn Keddie, who was born with a paintbrush in her heart, but worked in a management consultancy company and as a publisher for ELLE DECORATION before finally following her life calling. Her calling led her to not one, but two, forms of art after 35. If you'd like to see Lynn's work or learn more, you can find her here: https://www.lynnkeddie.com/ https://www.instagra...

Kristin chats with Jo Robbens, who went from international horse groom (and a varied career) to family photographer, after 35. Jo left home at 16 to become a horse groomer on the international circuit and kept running- away from home, relationships and commitment- until love and a family of her own helped her to find her true calling and stop running. To see Jo's work, visit: www.jorobbensphotogra...

Kristin chats with Shelley F. Knight, a once upon a time nurse turned published author, podcaster and community builder, who provides expertise in positive change, spirituality and grief.  She is author of  Positive Changes: A Self-Kick Book  (November 2018), host of  Positive Changes: A Self-Kick Podcast , and is a freelance writer for international magazines. Her own losses,...

Laura went from physics to geology to journalism, with a Rhodes scholarship along the way, but finally found that she was ready to make trumpet her full-time career at the age of 52. In this episode, we hear about how serendipity led Laura to science journalism and why a life event made her realise that it was finally time to take her trumpet more seriously. --- Subscribe, review and share Th...

This week, Kristin talks with Laura Garwin, who turned professional trumpet player at the age of 52. Laura went from physics to geology to journalism, with a Rhodes scholarship along the way, but finally found that she was ready to make trumpet her full-time career. In this episode, we hear about her humble musical beginnings, her resistance to study physics in the footsteps of her famous father,...

On this week's episode, Kristin talks with Gillian Broderick, who went from teaching to actor's training at the age of 50. Now 58, Gill has since gone on to act in several films (and we haven't even mentioned her athletics coaching yet!) Gillian's film roles include Madame Web in Spiderverse fan film, Spider-Man 2: Another World, which has received over 1.3 million views on YouTube:  https://...

In this week's episode, Kristin chats with Hannah Mary KcKinnon, whose second chapter is pretty literal!  After a transatlantic move and business start-up failure left her questioning what was next, Hannah Mary went from a successful CEO to suspense novelist. Since making the leap, Hannah has written four best-selling novels (with the fifth scheduled to release in May 2021 and a sixth on the...

This week on The Second Chapter podcast, Kristin talks with Tracie Root, who left corporate life in Silicon Valley and found her new calling after a personal family tragedy in her early 40s. A weight loss transformation led her to think more seriously about empowering others while making more time for her family and her own fulfillment, adventure, and joy. Now Tracie is a coach, community builder...