💌 Inside This Week’s After Party - Edition #2

🍸 Opening Toast

From the desk (actually dance floor!) of Robyn Cohen:

“To the late bloomers, the second chancers, the women who said ‘why not me’ at halftime.”

Here’s to the women who rewrote the rules on their own timeline.
To the ones who stopped waiting for permission and instead gave it to themselves.
To the women who looked at the world and said, “Why not me?” and meant it.

I remember the first time I said it out loud.

It was the summer of 2008, and I had just moved back to Los Angeles. I found myself at a tech event at the Viceroy in Santa Monica, surrounded by innovators and founders. That night, I met the woman behind Girls in Tech, who had launched chapters in San Francisco and New York. After hearing her story, something lit up inside me. I thought, “We need that here.” And then came the question that changed everything: Why not me?

By December, I had launched the LA chapter. I built a team. We hosted an event every month for a year. It became the largest and most successful Girls in Tech chapter at the time. I didn’t have all the answers, I just had a vision and the courage to follow it.

Fast forward to 2010, when I moved to Brazil for my husband’s work. At first, I looked for a job teaching English. But then I started attending local events, and I could feel the energy of a growing startup scene. At 38, I asked myself again: Why not me? That time, it became Girls On It, a community for women across all industries.

Since then, I’ve whispered and shouted those three words over and over again:
At 44, when I became Director of one of Salt Lake City’s first coworking spaces.
At 46, when I launched W Collective.
And again. And again. Each time unsure. Each time scared. Each time moving forward anyway.

That’s what I want to toast today:
To the women who are done waiting.
To the ones who are starting now, whether at 35 or 45 or 65.
To the ones learning that courage doesn’t mean fear is absent, it just means fear isn’t in charge.

So here's to you.
To the next time you say: Why not me?
Because if you’re waiting for a sign, this is it!
Your timing is sacred.
And your second act might just be your most powerful one yet.

🔥 Truth Bomb

You’re not behind. You’re right on time and your timing is sacred.

Let’s quiet the noise for a moment - the pressure to have it all figured out by 30, to peak by 40, to shrink our dreams because someone else says “that ship has sailed.”
That’s not your truth.
Your life isn’t late. It’s unfolding. And your timing? It's divine.

You may be in a season of rebuilding. Reinventing. Or just beginning.
You may be starting something new after a major life pivot; a layoff, a breakup, a move, motherhood, loss, or maybe just a moment of clarity that whispered, “this isn’t it.”

Here’s what you need to hear:
You’re allowed to want more.
You’re allowed to try again.
And no matter your age, background, or what path brought you here, you are not behind.

Your "Why not me?" moment doesn’t require a business plan or a polished elevator pitch. It just requires one bold step in your direction. You don’t have to feel ready. You just have to be willing.

🔥 Ask yourself:

• What am I waiting for permission to do… and what if I gave that permission to myself?

• What would change if I asked, “Why not me?” instead of “What if I fail?”

• Where have I been holding back, and what would happen if I decided to go all in?

💡 This week’s challenge:

Write down one thing you’ve been putting off because you think it’s too late; a dream, a change, a risk, a creative idea, and next to it, write the words:
“Why not me?”
Then choose one small action you can take this week to move closer to it. A DM. An outline. A phone call. A bold ask. Start messy if you need to, just start.

You’re not here to play small.
You’re not here to stay stuck.
You’re here because something inside you still believes more is possible. And guess what? It is.

You’re not too late. You’re right on time.
Now go remind the world.

(HIT REPLY and let me know what you’re going to say “Why not me?” to this week or next month!)

💫 Mirror Talk

“To the version of me who thought the ship had sailed:
Darling, you are the ship.”

You were never waiting for the right wave, you are the force, the current, the captain. The destination doesn’t exist without you.

So the next time you catch your reflection and wonder if it’s too late to start again, to take the leap, to dream differently, remember: the ship hasn’t sailed without you. It’s been anchored, waiting for you to decide it’s time to go.

You don’t have to ask for permission.
You don’t need a map.
You are the map.

Steady your breath. Square your shoulders. And set sail.

🌟 The Guest List

Bozoma Saint John - The Powerhouse Who Redefined Her Own Timeline

If there’s anyone who embodies the spirit of a second act, it’s Bozoma Saint John. Her career has been anything but linear, and that’s exactly what makes it legendary.

Boz has worked with some of the world’s most iconic brands: Pepsi, Apple, Uber, Netflix. She’s the kind of woman who walks into a room and owns it, not just because of her style (which is always fire), but because of her undeniable presence and truth-telling power.

But here’s what many don’t see behind the powerhouse title and public accolades: Bozoma has faced profound personal loss, identity shifts, and the quiet reckoning that comes when you ask yourself, "What now?"

After losing her husband in 2013, she had to reimagine everything, not just her family life, but her future. And even after reaching what many would call the pinnacle of corporate success, she did something so many dream of but are too afraid to pursue:
She walked away.

In her 40s, Boz said “why not me?” not to take another corporate job, but to bet on herself.
She launched her own consultancy, took control of her voice and her platform, and began redefining what it means to be powerful on her terms.

Bozoma reminds us that power isn’t just about the title on your LinkedIn, it’s about the permission you give yourself to pivot, to heal, to create something new. She didn’t hit pause at halftime. She hit play, on her terms, in her time.

She shows us that there is no expiration date on boldness. No age limit on reinvention.
And no better time than now to take the leap.

This week, we raise a glass to Boz, not just for what she’s accomplished, but for how she reminds us that our second (or third, or fourth) chapter can be our most liberating one yet.

Check out Bozoma Saint John’s episode on Diary of a CEO!

🎁 Party Favors

• ☀️ Use it! Naked Sundays Collagen Glow 100% Mineral Sunscreen Perfecting Priming Lotion SPF 50+.

• 📚 Read It! The Urgent Life: My Story of Love, Loss, and Survival by Bozoma Saint John

• 🕶 Shade it! Quay’s LEVEL UP shades, their most popular square frame for any occasion.

•  💄Try It! Ilia’s Balmy Tint Hydrating Lip Balm in Heartbeats.

📣 Last Call…

Before we turn the lights up...

What if this next chapter isn’t your second act, but your real debut? Hit reply and tell me one thing you're doing for yourself this week — no guilt, no justification. Just joy.

You’re on the list because you’re a woman who gets it.
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_{(Fellas, if The After Party isn’t quite your scene, that’s cool. But chances are, you know a woman who needs this energy. Be a hero, hit forward)}

Until next week,