Los Angeles Chapter — California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists


Log in

Los Angeles Chapter — CAMFT

Guest Article

03/31/2023 2:00 PM | Anonymous

Chellie Campbell,
Financial Stress
Reduction Expert

It’s Never Too Late to be What You Might Have Been!

“I think of life itself now as a wonderful play that I've written for myself, and so my purpose is to have the utmost fun playing my part.”

                           — Shirley MacLaine  

In the June 2014 issue of O magazine, Suze Orman wrote a column about making age-appropriate financial choices. She gave the example of Kimberly, 48, who wanted to leave her corporate job and start a business as a master cake decorator.

Although she had eight months of savings set aside to get her business up and running, Suze nixed her idea, saying, “If Kimberly were 22, I’d tell her to follow her dream no matter what.

“But at 48… No passion project should jeopardize your earning potential in your 40s and 50s—the make-or-break years when you should shore up your retirement savings.” 

Oh no. 

My little corner of the Facebook universe erupted over that. Marketing coach Kate Beeders wrote, “Too old to live your dream?? This advice seems to be coming from a place of fear—not power. This made me so mad. Thank goodness I didn’t listen to her!” 

Others chimed in with “I agree with you. I was 64 when I started my current company,” “Wow! If 40-something is too old, I’m in BIG trouble,” “Good lordy . . . I am about to go for my dream . . . 40 is still a babe wet behind the ears, I am starting out again at 74 . . . and I will succeed.” 

I loved it. There are so many examples of women becoming successful entrepreneurs after forty: Louise Hay started her publishing business Hay House when she was fifty-eight; Mary Kay Ash started Mary Kay Cosmetics when she was forty-five.

I started my workshop business when I was forty-two, published my first book when I was fifty-four, my second when I was fifty-eight, and my third at sixty-six. 

At 72, facing the Covid lockdowns, I started The Wealthy Spirit Group as a paid subscription group doing daily 10-minute videos from my book. And I’ve never been happier—I feel like I have my own TV show! 

Harry Bernstein, who published his first book at age ninety-six and then three more before passing away at 101, said, “My nineties were the most productive years of my life.” 

If it wasn’t too late for us, it’s not too late for you. 

Retirement is not a goal.

Retire to do what? Lie on the beach?

For how many days will that be interesting?

Ken Dychtwald, PhD, founding president and CEO of Age Wave, a consultancy focused on aging populations, reported that “a lot of people find that they are unhappy and retirement itself is a wasteland. 20 or 30 years of leisure being satisfying is a myth—the average retiree watched 49 hours of television a week last year.” 

What do you really want? Not what you think you should want, or what your parents said you should want, or what your spouse, partner, friend, magazines or television says would be a great thing to want. But what do you want your life to be like? 

Pick a goal. Any goal. Your best guess for today will do.

Don’t wait for the right goal or the perfect goal. It may be around the bend in the road and you can’t see it from where you stand today. Pick an interim goal that will get you in action, give you experience in achieving goals, and one day you’ll find yourself around that bend where your “perfect goal” is within reach after all.

Do you want a job, a career, a profession, or a calling? What moves you, motivates you, inspires you?

What gets you up in the morning with a smile and an “I can hardly wait”? 

Let’s play the Game of Life for all we’re worth. It’s the only game in town, and the only way to lose is not to play, crying, “I don’t know what I want.” 

You are the star of the movie of your life. You write the script and you direct it. You hire the supporting actors, you design the sets and the costumes, you gather the props. You do the location scouting, and you’re in charge of transportation. You are your agent and manager, too: Did you negotiate a big enough salary, bonus, perks?

Now, action! The camera is on you, baby! What do you want “The Story of Your Life” to be about?

Chellie Campbell, Financial Stress Reduction Expert, is the author of bestselling books The Wealthy Spirit, Zero to Zillionaire, and From Worry to Wealthy: A Woman’s Guide to Financial Success Without the Stress. She has been treating Money Disorders like Spending Bulimia and Income Anorexia in her Financial Stress Reduction® Workshops for over 25 years and is still speaking, writing, and teaching workshops—now as Zoom classes and The Wealthy Spirit Group on Facebook—with participants from all over the world. Website: www.chellie.com.

Upcoming Events

Join Our Mailing List









California Association of Marriage & Family Therapists
Los Angeles Chapter

Powered by Wild Apricot Membership Software