Hi, I'm Terri.

Before I tell you who I am, let me tell you what I'm not:

I'm not a life coach who "found herself" after a devastating divorce. I'm not a yoga instructor who "discovered enlightenment" in Bali. And I'm definitely not going to tell you that midlife is about "finding yourself" (you're not lost) or that I have all the answers (I'm still figuring out my own shit).

We all have our own personal journeys and have to do our own personal work to figure out who we are, who we want to be, and what we want out of our lives.

What I am: A tiara-wearing, champagne-drinking, midlife troublemaker on a mission to help women over 40 blow up the boxes we were told to live in.

After nearly 25 years in IT consulting for life sciences companies, I realized I'd been living by someone else's rules. So I changed the game, ditched the script, and rewrote my story. Now I help other women do the same.

I'm the award-winning author of Piloting Your Life, a book written specifically for women over 40 because we needed our own damn book—not another one written by men about men and sprinkled with pink fonts for us. I teach "Navigating Midlife for Women" at Stanford Continuing Studies because someone needs to challenge the tired story about biological clocks and diminishing relevance.

I'm also a commercially rated helicopter pilot (yes, seriously!) and a former angel investor focused on women-led startups that expand the power and influence of women.

My husband Zeke and I have been married nearly 30 years. After nearly divorcing at year 25, we accidentally rebooted our marriage through travel (and sex, but that's another story) and launched Zeke and Terri Adventures to inspire people over 50 to get out, get uncomfortable, and go adventure. We have two young adults (ages 21 and 24) and spend a fair amount of time figuring out how to support them in ways our parents didn't.

My work is built on research and interviews focused exclusively on women's experiences—because midlife for women isn't just male midlife with hot flashes. I speak truth about the messy middle: career pivots, empty nests, changing bodies, loss, and evolving relationships. I help women reclaim their power on their own damn terms.

I was born in San Francisco and have lived in the Bay Area my entire life, though you'll find me in Europe for 7 weeks at a stretch, always attempting to learn French. I believe midlife is when the real adventure begins.

Midlife isn't a crisis. It's an opportunity. And for women? It's a rebellion.

Terri Hanson Mead