Midlife is a transformative phase where women often seek new meaning and direction in their lives. Today, our guest is Cathy Derksen. Cathy is about helping midlife women rediscover their spark and take on new possibilities.

Cathy’s focus is on breaking barriers for women writers, creating opportunities for them to become authors. In this episode, Cathy shares her insights on following your gut, the abundance of opportunities available through networking, and how midlife women rediscover their brilliance and step into new possibilities. Listen and be inspired to break free from traditional constraints and embrace the limitless opportunities of today.

Tessa’s Free Gifts: Get access to Tessa's Roadmap to a Soul-Connected Business and spice up your life with her Reignition Roadmap

Episode Highlights! 

• The importance of listening to intuition and making decisions aligned with personal values
• Cathy's journey of divorce into chaos, and midlife change in career, and then discovering new career choices
• Writing 12 best-selling books, inspiring others through her emotional intelligence and mental health advocacy
• Creating anthology projects for midlife women to share stories and connect globally
• Encouraging women to explore new possibilities by stepping out of their comfort zones

About our Guest Cathy Derksen

Cathy Derksen is a catalyst and disruptor, supporting and inspiring midlife women to rediscover their brilliance and step into new possibilities. As the founder of her company Inspired Tenacity Global Solutions Inc, Cathy helps women step into new possibilities for what’s next in their lives.

Cathy is an international speaker and an 12x bestselling author who inspires her audience to dream big and take a leap of faith into reaching for their goals. She has created a platform supporting women to share their own inspiring stories in books, retreats, and mastermind opportunities. With her all-in-one program, Cathy takes you from chapter concept to published bestselling author in a simple, exciting process.

Get Cathy's Free Gifts: https://inspiredtenacitygifts.now.site/home

Website: https://inspiredtenacity.com/

* About the Host * 

Tessa Lynne Alburn is a soul connection business coach, author, podcast host and explorer. Tessa believes that every woman has the ability to learn to express their true voice, be heard, and fulfill their dreams.

Her mission is to help women entrepreneurs bring their ideas and authentic feminine voices into the world, so they make a real difference and receive compensation that reflects their brilliance!

Tessa’s Free Gift: Get access to Tessa's Roadmap to a Soul-Connected Business and Say YES to Your Soul! http://www.tessafreegift.com/ 

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May You Say YES to Your Soul.

Tessa Lynne Alburn:

Hello there. We have a sweet guest. She's kind of like a, a stealth disruptor. When I first saw her in lay room, it's like this lady, she look, she's so sweet. Her name is Cathy Dirksen, but she's a catalyst and a quiet disruptor. She supports and inspires midlife women to rediscover their brilliance and step into new possibility. She also founded a company called Inspired Tenacity Global Solution. And really this stepping into possibilities is all about like that next step, right? What is the new door opening? What are the opportunities to embrace? CAPI is an international speaker and a 12 times bestselling author Wow. Who inspires her audience to dream big and take a leap of faith into reaching go their goal. She's created a platform supporting women to share their all inspiring stories and books in retreats and in mastermind opportunities with her all in one program.

Cathy takes you from chapter concept to published bestselling author in a simple, exciting process. Well, that sounds super cool. So Cathy, I just wanna welcome you, welcome to say YES to your soul.

Cathy Derksen:

Thank you. Thank you. It's wonderful to be here. And I'm, I'm excited to see where we go. .

Tessa Lynne Alburn:

Fantastic. So I'm kind of like waiting to see what you're gonna share here today. We're just getting to know each other. You were referred by a really good friend, Julie Steelman, and I don't have all the juicy tidbits, but there is something sparkly about your energy and I know what your mission is about. So I'm ready to have you begin sharing with our audience today, some of that sparkle, some of that aliveness. Cathy, the floor is yours.

Cathy Derksen:

wow, thank you very much. I love this community that you've created here. It's definitely right up my alley.

I've spent the last 10 years kind of figuring out, well, what it is I'm here to do. You know, after spending 25 years and working in medical genetics and then feeling like I was just stuck and didn't know what I was supposed to be doing. Like who am I and what am I really here for? And that's when I left that career behind. I was in the middle of a divorce and all of the chaos that comes with that. And at that time, I knew that I really wanted to help women change their life, like to have a true impact on helping women change their life for the better. To figure out what it is that really excites them in life and go do it. And at that time I thought, well, financial issues were, you know, a big part of a lot of women's lives.

So I, I went into financial planning thinking, well, this is how I can really help and change women's lives. But of course, after a decade of doing that in the major banks and investment companies, who really came to realize that I was pushing their products and saying their lines, but not really having a true impact on or not, not really being yourself either. No. Especially in that very male masculine system that the finance industry is that it, it was very stifling, very. And so about three years ago, I came to the realization again that if I'm truly gonna change women's lives and have a lasting impact, that really does help them step into something else that I had to shift again. And that's when, so I left, left the whole corporate world behind about three years ago and set out on my own. That's when I started my company inspired Tenacity.

And that name comes from when I was in the middle of all that chaos and upheaval and getting my life a new life back on track. It just hit me that inspiration and tenacity are a couple of the key ingredients for really shifting and causing change and bringing change into our life. And so it really, it came to me as the name for my company and I loved it. So I stuck with it.

Tessa Lynne Alburn:

Well, I like it. I, I'm curious though, I wanna know a little bit about the chaos, what was going on

Cathy Derksen:

, you know, going through divorce, I had two teenagers with me at the time. And, and of course what leads to the divorce is, you know, I've become a very toxic, abusive family life we had. And both my kids were also suffering from just living in that environment and, and the same level of all these things.

And between my two kids, one was going on the rebellious side and the other was going on the shutdown side. And so I'm in the middle thinking, how do I save my family? And I knew that the only way to really, again, cause a, a true change in what was going on was that I had to leave that marriage. So of course, that's where the chaos have started. As I I describe it, like I threw my life up in the air and reinvented it on the way back down. I left the career I'd been in for 25 years. We sold the house. Wait, so moved up. So there you are, you're like, the divorce is happening and also literally at the exact same time, you're feeling this discontent and everything going on. Yes, yes. With the medical genetics thing. Yes, yes. Exactly. My, my, well part of it was I was officially working part-time at that point.

I was working mostly full-time hours, but my official job was a halftime. And so I was looking at the idea, well, do I just apply for a full-time in that position or do I do something different? And at that time, my work environment was also very toxic. And it was under a boss who was very, I would say abusive to people, very belittling and insulting and really just kept people small. And, and again, that just that feeling of could I see myself doing this job in this place for the next 20 years, full-time? And you had a clear no to that. I could feel my gut squeeze. Like I could tell, you know, this was gonna kill me if I stayed here, . Oh. And I think it was pushing me, right? It was pushing me sure to, okay, this is not where you belong.

Keep looking, keep searching, figure it out. Mm-Hmm, . So, so yeah. So that's, that was a lot of the chaos. And I, I must say, I, I, I know I made the right decision both with the marriage and the career change. Yeah, it definitely has started me on a path going in the right direction. And so when I left the financial planning world three years ago, my original kind of vision, of course going on, the limited scope I had of what the possibilities were, I had the idea I would go into a coaching kind of model and do was like money and life coach. But, but that too, I, I just continued to feel like that that still wasn't it. And one thing I've really learned to do well over the last few years has been to listen to my intuition, right. And really follow my gut.

So when my gut is telling me, Nope, that's not right, , I learned to listen. And when my gut's telling me, go that way, . I've learned to listen to that too.

Tessa Lynne Alburn:

Well, that's amazing. Can I, can you, I think, you know, my listeners would really like to know like, how do you listen to your gut? Like how do you know what your gut

Cathy Derksen:

Yeah. Your intuition and not like some program to respond. Yes, yes. Well, what I've found, when I'm moving in the right direction and making the right choice, I feel lighter when I'm struggling with a decision or, or forcing myself into, oh, I think this is what I should do and I'm forcing myself into it. I feel very, I guess stuck and heavy and just like I'm walking through quicksand or something that just, it's just not flowing. But when I step into something that is feeling right, I literally feel lighter.

I feel energized. And so I, I've learned to look for that feeling and to be reflecting too on that whole idea of getting away from things that make you feel bad and going towards things that make you feel good. And I think something that's something, as women, especially I think we haven't allowed ourselves to do for a long time, for many of us, we've spent decades doing jobs we weren't really interested in or looking after everybody else and putting ourselves on the back burner. So I think we stopped listening to ourselves. We stopped really letting ourselves have that permission to step into something different or, or even asking what do I want? What is it that's good for me? Because we're so used to looking first for what's good for everybody else, . And I think that was one of the first big steps as well of allowing myself, like actually giving myself that permission to look at what, what do I actually want to do?

What are those things that really excite me? What makes me feel like I truly am being of value and being of service and having an impact? And to me, I think that's one thing that so many of us crave is that feeling that we're actually having an impact. That we're doing something that when we're gone, people will remember us.

Tessa Lynne Alburn:

Yes. It's, it's like I think this is a common thread for sure. And the more I work with people and understand like some of their original and initial programming, it seems to be very much connected to the need to know that we each matter, you know, that we, we have an intrinsic value. Would you agree with that? Oh, definitely, definitely. And, and, and that's where this falling in my intuition and figuring out, okay, what's that next step? What is the right thing that I'm supposed to be doing?

And just everything I went through in that whole process in my life, I realized that I had a story that I felt could help other women going through similar things. And so that's what inspired me to do with the first book I was in. And then from there it just kind of kept coming up that, oh, there's this theme that I like now there's this one. Then I started getting invited into other book projects. And along the way I really, I found that being in the books was really valuable for me, both in helping me clarify my own story, but also here in the impact the stories were having on, on the reader and the other people involved in the projects. So you were just hearing this like secondhand from others who were already doing this and it was starting to ring some bells for you, you're like, that's interesting, it's having an impact, that sort of thing.

Well it was when I started actually getting involved in the books that I started seeing that side of it. Okay. And in the time that I have been involved in the books and I have got feedback from people that have read my chapters and, and really thanked me for sharing those stories and sharing that journey and some of that wisdom that I had put out there. And so I'd been involved in several projects and at one point I was in one project that was really fun and amazing and smooth. And then I was at another project at the same time that was a nightmare. And I was so standing in the Middle East two projects. I'm thinking there has to be a way to make it so that it's easy and fun for women to get involved in these things where they can share their stories, build a new network, put their message out there on a global scale, you know, really kind of just, again, step into something totally different.

Mm-Hmm . And that's when it occurred to me. And again, stepping into this idea that now understanding that I really can create whatever I decide I'm gonna create going forward. Well, so it doesn't matter if it's a book, it could be anything, anything really. And that's been part of it. If you'd asked me five years ago if I was gonna be involved in books, I would've laughed at you. 'cause It was nowhere anywhere on my radar. And now my whole business is focused on creating these anthology projects focused specifically on midlife women to share their stories, connect as a group. Every book's got 20 or 25 different women involved from all over the world. So they're sharing their stories, they're meeting women they'd never would've met otherwise. And, and I've really come to see that these books truly are impacting women's lives in a, a huge way.

And especially for women who are entrepreneurs because the book becomes a way for them, in a way, it's a marketing tool. It's a way to get their message out there on a different platform, connecting with different networks. We do a lot of work around amplifying their business. So I've, I've stepped into it and realized that I have now created this mission of having a true impact on women's lives that I started 10 years ago. But 10 years ago I had no idea how I was gonna do it. . That's amazing. Yes. 'cause you had those other ideas, like it's gotta fit into what you already knew, you know? Exactly, exactly. With need help with finances. But really what you're doing is you're helping them create community. You're helping them to feel connected. You are, you're giving, you know, this platform is giving them a way to have their voice and to be heard.

Exactly. Yeah. I think they say about 92% of people have on their bucket list, they're gonna become a published author, . Yeah. I've always been astounded by that figure. I've just never quite understood it, but yes, it's true. Yeah. But I think what stops most people is they don't know where to begin and they don't see themselves. Like, they don't hold that identity as an author. So first not knowing how to get started, but even when they get that first clue on how to get started, they get held back with that feeling of, well, who am I to share my story? Or who am I to think anyone wants to read my book? Or who am I to call myself an author or I'm too old to start something like that. Well, it goes completely against all the programming of low self worth. Yes, exactly.

Exactly. I imagine this one could be a really interesting study to like do a study of every man around the world, like who's thought of writing a book and see how many of them thought of writing a book and didn't. 'cause I bet it's a lot fewer than women . I wonder, I wonder. Yes. Yeah. But I'm just making up, this is the world of Tessa . Alright, . Yeah. So, so you're helping them to get started in the, in the process they're getting a greater attunement with their value, their recognizing that their story, their life, their life has had value. Mm-Hmm. And they're experimenting with this identity as an author. Yes, exactly. And, and the books that I do, they're all focused on being inspirational and motivating. So the, the three that I've had out so far this year, one was called Embrace Courage.

So that was women sharing their journey in life. And, and part of that book was focusing on recognizing that courage isn't just those big things like rushing into the building to save the, you know, burning building to save the child. You know, it's those little things that we do every single day that require courage. Yes. Like for us to just get through life requires courage. Yeah. And one of the other books I had out this year was called Midlife Awakening. And again, 20 women sharing their journey of how they've hit this time in life when I've just thought, okay, what's next? What I'm doing is not the right answer. What am I gonna change? What's the next chapter? And so that one's a great one too. Just really inspiring to hear the journeys that women have been on.

Tessa Lynne Alburn:

Yes. And so you're kind of, you're like the mastermind that helps bring these concepts all together and find the, or or draws magnetizes in the, the otters who are gonna have that kind of formula, you know, like the ones that are gonna be able to share about their courage or the ones that are gonna be able to share about their awakening.

Somehow you orchestrate all that. You're like a conductor.

Cathy Derksen:

Yeah. Well actually it's interesting you mentioned that because that just came to me this last week. I was in a mastermind group and, and that's an example one of the women used as the, the conductor in an orchestra. And it hit me. It's like, my god, that's exactly what I do. I am the conductor in the orchestra. .

Tessa Lynne Alburn:

Yes. And then you have like, the books are like a living thing. You know, when you were, this is interesting, I don't know why this hit me when it did, but earlier here in this podcast, you, you were referring to books as like the books and I just was like, their these books are like living things.

Cathy Derksen:

Yes. Oh, it is like giving birth. Yes. When you release your story out into the world, it really is like, well, not as painful of course, but thankfully .

But that feeling of releasing something out, like leaving it leaves you and it's out there in the world, it's, you know, a, a very interesting feeling that most you don't anticipate until you've gone through it.

Tessa Lynne Alburn:

Yes. And it's in black and white now.

It yeah.

Cathy Derksen:

You know, unless you have purple ink, but it's there. Like you can't take it back. And, and one of the things I love about books as well is they really do live forever. Like a book that's sitting on your shelf 20 years later. Anyone could pick that book up and open it and just have the same impact that it has on someone today. I mean, I know my mom's got books in her shelf that are a hundred years old.

Oh my goodness. That's, yeah.

And those books, you can still pick them up and read them like any other book. So in my mind, that book will carry on for many lifetimes. They're timeless in a way. Exactly. Exactly.

Tessa Lynne Alburn:

They, yeah, they, I don't know, I'm just sort of having a new respect for books right now. Yeah. like yeah, these ideas come together and shared stories and not just ideas. It's not just characters, it's like real stories. It's real life, the pain, the suffering, the challenges, the achievements, right. Like beca, the becoming the champion, the overcoming, all of that is just so beautiful. We're all here with some kind of life story with something to give to grace others that inspiration.

Cathy Derksen:

You know, I've never been big on reading fiction and I think part of that is that I just see that real life has all those levels and layers to it and I just feel much more drawn to real life stories rather than fiction.

Tessa Lynne Alburn:

Cathy Derksen:

Yeah, no, it's definitely been an interesting journey. And when I first set out as an entrepreneur, of course I had no business experience. I wasn't really quite sure what I was gonna do or what I was gonna look like, and didn't necessarily feel that that I was a leader or that I had something unique to bring. And it was just kind of an, an interesting step by step as I went through it and have definitely come to, you know, at first I thought, well, I have to be big and flashy and bold. Like all these people tell you that you have to be here and there and everywhere posting all the time and sounding like this. And, and that's what I thought at first. And I, I still, again, I was not feeling that that was me, that was not the right fit. And and part of, like you were describing in my intro that I, I'm the quiet disruptor.

So I, I'm not the big flashy one. I'm not the one that's that is all over the front cover of the newspaper. I'm the one in the background creating opportunities and creating supports to help shift the directions and the confidence that the people around me are feeling. And it really helped me see that my real gifts are in connecting and bringing people together and being that support system to lift them to where they're going. So, so yeah. So it's really been an interesting journey to see that that was where I fit and that those were what my gifts were and that now I'm stepping into using those gifts in a way that I never would've seen before.

Tessa Lynne Alburn:

Right. You you had spent a whole lifetime not even knowing that. Yeah, exactly. Well I think this is the magic, you know, the next chapters after midlife or Right.

Like our lives really are not over and they don't have to be boring or no outdated. They can be totally relevant.

Cathy Derksen:

Exactly. Exactly. And, and the more I get involved in these things and the more I really stretch my network out internationally and I've met so many women in so many communities and it's just really hit me that really in our fifties, sixties and seventies, I think this is really the time for women to shine. This is the time when we can give ourselves that permission to do what we are interested in doing and to really see that we're supported by a community all over the world. And one of the things I always love to remind women, especially when they are trying to start something new step into just any kind of something they had never done before. Quite often when we do that kind of thing, our family and friends will be the ones to say, oh, calm down.

Oh, you'll get over it, don't worry. Just go back to what you're doing. It's okay. Just that you'll get over it. And you know, that old model of retirement, which really was to say, okay, quit your job, go curl up in the corner and be quiet. And you know what, I don't think most of us are looking for that. I agree with you a hundred percent out and away from that circle of people who's, I mean, they're just trying to keep you safe. They're not trying to harm you, but, but in doing that, they're really keeping you stuck.

Tessa Lynne Alburn:

Yes. Crab, I mean this is the crab pot,

Cathy Derksen:

but I mean now with the, with the internet and Zoom and all these podcasts, the whole world is your community and it's so easy to connect with people literally all over the world. So I really encourage women to just step further out, meet somebody different, meet somebody new, get on some of these networking Zoom events that there's so many free events and actually step out there and, and meet people, talk to people, connect with people, step into trying to do, you know, those things that you want to do but you've never thought you could.

Opportunities.

Tessa Lynne Alburn:

Well, you know, one of the things that prevents people, I think is, is like the whole like fear of technology first. Yes. right now, like for some, I still know those ladies, you know, some of them in their sixties, seventies, maybe not fifties, but sixties and seventies for sure. Like, I don't know how to do that. It's too fast, it's too this or whatever. But that's just a made up. It's, it's just not true anymore.

Cathy Derksen:

Yeah, exactly. And again, there's people all over the place that are willing to help. Yeah. So don't let things like that keep you stuck. 'cause The world is literally full of opportunities and possibilities and, and we really can create the lifes that we really wanna be living.

Tessa Lynne Alburn:

So Cathy, thank you for all of that encouragement and I'd love to make sure that people can connect with you. So what's the best way for them to do that? And we soon your gift.

Cathy Derksen:

Yes. So, so the easiest way to find me as far as social media goes, LinkedIn is where I'm at the most. But the easiest way to find me directly is my website is inspiredtenacity.com. And on there there'll be tabs of the top that link you to my books that are out so far. My book projects that are on the go right now, there is a tab there, I think I called it My Gifts for You. And so you can access my gifts that way. And I think also we're put are will there be Yes, absolutely. We on link directly in the show notes. Yeah. So, so basically my gifts are either or all and or a a 30 minute chat with me about what you're up to next if you're interested in being an author, how I can help.

And also there's downloads there of three of my, my books that were out over the last year or two. And you can download those for free as a PDF. And yeah, I'd love to chat about any interests people have in the books or networking or stepping out in the whole world. A couple of the books that I'm working on right now, one's called Ripple Effect of Impact.

Cathy Derksen:

I think, you know, so many of us, when we look at our lives and what, again, most of us are wanting to create an impact in the world, and so we look at what have we been doing? How are we creating an impact?

Tessa Lynne Alburn:

Beautiful. Do you already have all your authors for that?

Cathy Derksen:

No, I've still got a few spots left, so…

Tessa Lynne Alburn:

Okay. I might chat about that later.

Cathy Derksen:

Okay.

Tessa Lynne Alburn:

So I want you to like take the, the big scary thing out of it, right? Like, it's not a big scary deal, but when people first are like, write a book, like, I don't know if I can do that. Like, what would you say to them?

Cathy Derksen:

Well, working in my projects, I support the authors all the way through. And I would say anyone who really feels a calling to share their story, there's room in the book for you. And going forward next year, I'll have a whole collection of new projects. So there's something for everyone. Inspiring and motivating.

Tessa Lynne Alburn:

Yes. And I just wanna say like, I've known people who, who thought forever, I need to write my memoir. It'll be so amazing. And they just never did it.

Right? And that's, that's sad. And so, you know, Cathy

is here, she's offering something, a free chat with her for 30 minutes just to explore the possibility and maybe, you know, get, just get started on that could be a lot of fun. And also bring personal rewards that you are not expecting.

Cathy Derksen:

Yes.

Tessa Lynne Alburn:

Well, Cathy, is there anything else you wanna say before we go today?

Cathy Derksen:

Well, I just wanted to share one little quote that is one that I've really kind of focused a lot of my, my reminder when I'm looking at life, and it's a Howard Thurman quote, but it's, "Don't ask what the world needs, ask what makes you come alive and go do that. Because what the world needs is more people who have come alive." And I believe in that so much with the more we each just find what it is that makes us come alive, that shift in energy, that positive energy that we're bringing into our life, I truly believe that that is what's gonna shift this whole world out of whatever we're in right now.

Tessa Lynne Alburn:

Yeah, absolutely. Coming alive, being in, for me, it's really about like bringing forth the authentic being, the soul essences that have been there and they've just been dimmed by all the programming. And we need full souls to show up and to light the paths for many others, for our planet, for the land of our planet.

Cathy Derksen:

Perfect

Tessa Lynne Alburn:

For, thank you so much for being here today, Cathy.

And I just wanna wish you an amazing day and just, you know, give yourself a few moments to reflect and ask yourself, what is it I'd like to share? Start there.

All right. Have a wonderful rest of your day. Bye bye for now.