The Midlife GlowGetter
Podcast

Apple Podcast
Spotify Podcast

View Transcript

Do you know what your next 12 months really look like? Not the dream version. The real one.

In episode 105, I’m showing you how to plan your whole year in early November, before the holiday rush, and why January is the worst time to do it. You’ll learn my 5 levels of planning (annual, quarterly, monthly, weekly, and daily), a 7-step plan for your bigger goals, and how to count your real weeks so you stop planning for time you don’t have.

Then, in the second half, I share 10 more ways I’m romanticizing my corporate job, plus a 7-day challenge to make your workdays feel more like yours.

Soft life at work. Strong plan for your money. You get to have both.

With love and confidence, Jax.

Part 1: Plan your time

  • Plan your year in early November, not January. You can still see your real year. Then review it in January so the new year feels gentle.
  • Use 5 levels of planning. Annual (early November), quarterly (7 to 9 days before the quarter), monthly (about 4 days before the month), weekly (once a week), and daily (the night before).
  • Check your year-at-a-glance before saying yes to any big request.
  • Plan big goals in 7 steps. Pick your end date, see what’s already booked, set realistic milestones, list specific actions, put them on your weekly calendar, and check in often.
  • Count your real weeks. Subtract holiday weeks, events, travel and weekend commitments from the calendar weeks you think you have.
  • Live within your time means. Do a one-week time audit, make trade-offs, and keep a time emergency fund for surprise tasks.
  • White space isn’t free time. It hides buffer time, catch-up time, recurring tasks and personal time.
  • Plan for reality, not perfection. Plan like a pilot: expect bumps and keep flying toward your destination.
  • Don’t let planning become procrastination. You’re allowed to change your plan.
  • Don’t dump carry-over tasks onto next Monday. Give each one a real home on a real day.

Part 2: 10 more ways I’m romanticizing my corporate job

  1. I wake up at 4 AM for my own self-care.
  2. My leather-bound planner and matching journal.
  3. I celebrate my coworkers with my own congrats email.
  4. Money and growth mindset audiobooks and podcasts all day.
  5. Real breaks, including a full one-hour lunch.
  6. Pretty pens, blue ink only, with pastel highlighters and Post-its.
  7. A Charleston coffee table book on my desk.
  8. A little mirror in my desk drawer.
  9. A candy dish for my coworkers.
  10. I use AI to work smarter, and I pitch ideas every week.

Your 7-day challenge and quick-start steps

Romanticize your workday, round two. Pick one a day:

  1. Day 1: Wake up 30 minutes earlier and spend that time on you.
  2. Day 2: Plan your day in a planner or journal you love.
  3. Day 3: Send a congrats email to a coworker who did a great job.
  4. Day 4: Swap your music for a money or growth mindset podcast.
  5. Day 5: Take two walking breaks and a few fresh air breaks.
  6. Day 6: Treat yourself to a pen or highlighters that make you smile.
  7. Day 7: Use AI for one task, then write down one idea to make work better.

Your planning quick start, before next Monday:

  • Write down everything you’ve already said yes to for the next 12 months on one calendar.
  • Count your real weeks left in 2026.
  • Pick one day from the challenge and start tomorrow.

Resources and connect with Jax

Loved this episode? Share it with a friend who needs a calmer, clearer year. And tell me which of the 10 ways you’re trying first.

With love and confidence, Jax.

View Transcript

Happy Halloween weekend! In this Friday Glow Edition of The Midlife GlowGetter Podcast, Jax rounds up the news that matters to women over 40. No fluff, just what you need to know, plus a little fun.

In this episode:

  • Election Day, the clocks falling back, and Medicare and ACA open enrollment dates
  • A brand-new heart health plan for women, plus the first generic weekly HRT patch
  • What the Fed did this week, mortgage rates, and the money dates to save
  • Hilary Swank’s baby news, J.Lo’s new romance, and the shows and books to queue up
  • Target and Walmart Black Friday dates and Halloween food deals
  • A bed rail recall and a fake FTC phone scam to warn your parents about
  • 10 brand-new getaways for Christmas week and New Year’s, from the Rose Parade to Key West

Stay connected

  • Get every link in The Friday Glow Report newsletter. Sign up free at jaxstys.com.
  • Take the free Midlife GlowGetter Quiz at jaxstys.com/the-glow-assessment.
  • If this episode helped you, please leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

This episode shares news and general information, not medical or financial advice. Always talk to your doctor first.

View Transcript

What if your weight goal wasn’t really a number at all? In this episode, Jax shares how she went from 431 pounds to down over 200, and why at 47 she stopped letting the scale decide her mood. She talks about her goal of 145, why how she feels will tell her when she’s arrived, and the real wins no scale can show: climbing stairs, walking whole cities on vacation, sleeping through the night, and feeling feminine in her clothes again. She’s honest about being on a plateau right now and still pushing forward. You’ll leave with a simple exercise to define your own health goals beyond the scale.

In this episode:

  • 3 affirmations to glow up your day
  • Where Jax started: 431 pounds and a goal number she made up in her head
  • Why daily weigh-ins stopped being healthy for her at 47
  • The question that changed everything: “When in my past did I feel my best?”
  • Her goal of 145, and why the feeling is the real finish line
  • When the scale didn’t move but she was winning, and when it moved but she felt terrible
  • 10 non-scale wins, from climbing stairs to sitting in regular chairs
  • The emotional rollercoaster of major weight loss, and what it taught her
  • Her longevity “why”: living strong to 90-plus and staying self-reliant
  • Your turn: writing your health and wellness goals beyond the scale

Your action step this week:

Write down every health and wellness goal you have except the number on the scale. Some questions to start with:

  • How do you want to feel when you wake up?
  • How much energy do you want at 3 in the afternoon?
  • What do you want your body to be able to do?
  • How do you want to sleep?
  • What do you want your life to look like at 70, 80, and 90?
  • When in your past did you feel your best?

Use that list as your guide. Let the scale be one data point, not the boss.

Favorite line:

“The scale gets a vote, but it doesn’t get the final word.”

Stay connected

  • Get every link in The Friday Glow Report newsletter. Sign up free at jaxstys.com.
  • Take the free Midlife GlowGetter Quiz at jaxstys.com/the-glow-assessment.
  • Send Jax a message with one goal from your list that has nothing to do with the scale.
  • If this episode helped you, please share it with a friend, follow the show, and leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

This episode shares Jax’s personal experience and is not medical advice. Please talk with your doctor before making changes to your diet, exercise, or health routine.

Keep glowing. Keep growing. You’ve got this.

View Transcript

Happy Friday, GlowGetter! This week I sorted through the new research from The Menopause Society’s big meeting, including what early menopause may mean for your heart and a new look at hormone therapy and GLP-1 weight loss. Plus a Medicare checklist for our parents, what’s happening with interest rates, a student loan warning, free Halloween treats (grown-ups too), and 10 places to go for Christmas week, December 18 to 27.

These are new studies, not medical advice. Money info is general education, not financial advice. Always talk to your doctor first. Dates and deals are as of October 21, 2026, so confirm before you go or book.

In this episode:

  • 0:00 Welcome and what’s on the list
  • 2:00 Health: early menopause and your heart, hormone therapy and GLP-1s, flu shot and mammogram reminders
  • 6:00 Caregiving: Medicare open enrollment and National Family Caregivers Month
  • 8:00 Money: the Fed meets, mortgage rates, savings rates, a student loan warning
  • 12:00 Sales and Halloween food deals
  • 15:00 What to watch and read
  • 17:30 10 places to go, December 18 to 27
  • 22:30 The One Thing to Pick

Health

Caregiving

Money

Sales and food

Watch and read

10 places to go, December 18 to 27

  1. Wildlights, Columbus, Ohio
  2. Longwood Christmas, Kennett Square, Pennsylvania
  3. Radio City Christmas Spectacular, New York City
  4. Holiday Pops, Boston
  5. Smoky Mountain Christmas at Dollywood, Pigeon Forge, Tennessee
  6. A Country Christmas at Gaylord Opryland, Nashville
  7. Holiday Lights on the River Walk, San Antonio
  8. Canyon Road Farolito Walk, Santa Fe
  9. Las Noches de las Luminarias, Phoenix
  10. Festival of Lights at The Mission Inn, Riverside, California

Stay connected

  • Get every link in The Friday Glow Report newsletter. Sign up free at jaxstys.com.
  • Take the Free Glow Assessment.
  • Have a question? Send it to Ask Jax.
  • If this episode helped you, please leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

View Transcript

Your body changes with the seasons, so your habits can too. In part one, I share how to line up your health habits with all four Midwest seasons: how to move, eat, get light and sleep, protect your mood, and plan your checkups in fall, winter, spring, and summer. Plus my simple 5-question seasonal reset.

In part two, I share the 11 little ways I’m romanticizing my corporate job, from writing my top 3 priorities on paper and a 60-second gratitude list before I open Outlook, to fresh flowers, a framed photo of my why, and treating my Zoom background like a styled set. Then try my 7-day romanticize-your-workday challenge.

Loved this episode? Please leave a 5-star rating and review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, and send me a screenshot for my 10 free guides. Come back Friday for the Friday Glow Edition.

This episode shares general wellness information and my personal experience. It is not medical advice. Always talk to your doctor first.

Links from this episode

Sources mentioned

Daylight saving dates follow the U.S. rule: it ends the first Sunday in November (November 1, 2026) and starts the second Sunday in March (March 14, 2027).

Back to top