Transforming Connections: Reinventing in the Digital Age

In this episode of Age of Reinvention, host Emily Bron welcomes Jennie Eriksen, co-founder of EventRaptor. Jennie shares her inspiring journey from being a voiceover professional to becoming a tech entrepreneur in her late 50s. She discusses her mission to help people globally connect and reimagine their careers through virtual events. Jennie elaborates on how the ‘global interrupt’ in 2020 led her to create EventRaptor, a platform that simplifies organizing and participating in online events. She also opens up about overcoming personal challenges, including a life-changing surgery, and the importance of resilience and community in her entrepreneurial path. Tune in to hear Jennie’s insights on staying relevant and reinventing oneself in the latter half of life.

TIMESTAMPS:

01:11 Meet Jenny Erickson: Voiceover Professional to Tech Entrepreneur
02:55 The Birth of Event Raptor
05:35 Navigating the Virtual Event Space
07:36 The Power of Words and Speaking
09:53 Simplifying Virtual Events
12:12 Networking and Community Building
14:22 Refire, Don’t Retire: Embracing New Beginnings
17:00 Personal Challenges and Resilience
24:12 Embracing Life After Challenges
24:47 The Power of Networking Events
25:45 Creating Authentic Connections
29:08 Event Raptor’s User-Friendly Services
30:34 Integrating Diverse Experiences
34:12 A Global Family Journey
37:56 Advice for Midlife Reinvention
42:22 Finding Your Community
46:41 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Emily Bron: Hello and welcome back to Age of Reinvention. The podcast where we dive deep into stories of transformation, resilience, and change. And freedom in the second half of life. I’m your host, Emily Bron. In today’s episode, we are journeying into the digital world of connections and events. A remarkable guest is Jennie Eriksen, the co founder of EventRaptor, a visionary platform transforming how we organize and engage in virtual events.

Jennie Eriksen, a voiceover professional turned tech entrepreneur, has worked with clients from over 70 countries. After significant life changing event, she’s on a mission to help others connect and flourish globally. Beyond her entrepreneurial spirit, Jennie’s background in voiceover artistry And her passion for connecting people give her a unique edge in crafting meaningful online experiences.

Today, she is here to share how she is weaving her talents into her mission and inspiring others to redefine their careers pathways at MidLife. Let’s dive right in. Jennie, it’s wonderful to have you with us today.

Jennie Eriksen: Thank you so much for asking me. Looking forward to this very much.

Emily Bron: And I will start our conversation with your motto, which I found in your papers.

Which perfectly align with the topic and actually spirit of our podcast. You are not done yet. You are just getting started. We started Event Raptors in my late 50s and I’m over 60. More refire than retire. Wonderful for my ears. Would you start by sharing your journey from a voice over professional? To co-founding event Raptors after 50. What sparked this significant career shift?

Jennie Eriksen: Oh gosh. Thank you for asking. So for me I’ve been a voiceover now for well over 15 years, and actually we can talk about it later, but, living in a little bubble, talking to myself in a small, dark room and recording was great for a challenging.

Illness, if you like, that I was dealing with, but I’d already been in the virtual world working with people who needed my voiceover work. So I, people could send me things that their scripts and I can narrate them and I can send them all over the place all from. My own space.

I don’t need to go to somebody’s studio, et cetera. And when I call it the global Interrupt, when the global Interrupt happened in 2020, so many people had no idea how to show up online how to continue their business or how to even rethink their business in terms of showing up online. And because steve, my husband and I had already been in the virtual space. We very much wanted to make it easier for people to do that and to realize that really there literally is a whole world out there. We’re more connected now, of course, than ever. And, if we could play our small part in helping people make global connections and re imagine their business to work in the virtual space and in the physical space, then, so that’s what we did.

My husband had definitely wanted to use speaking and virtual events as more of a way to, to show people that they can, talk about their knowledge, their wisdom, their skills and their expertise. And. We looked for something on the market that made it easy to do that.

My husband’s a tech guy. So if you can make it easier to do something, then he’s interested. And what was on the market wasn’t really affordable or such for people that had literally made themselves a startup. And at that stage I was already 57. So he wanted to create his own system and. Asked if I would be on board in helping and that we took a family decision.

We’ve got two, two grownup children as well. And we took a family decision that if we could create something that made it easier for others. then we would do so yeah, re reinventing, if you like, in my late 50s.

Emily Bron: You’ve been operating the virtual event space with your company, EventRaptors, especially during challenging global circumstances.

How do you think Virtual events reshape how we connect and learn.

Jennie Eriksen: It’s very interesting, actually, because when we created EventRaptor, we also created a networking meeting, a global networking meeting to bring people together. And I think for us For us, I guess we took for granted the simplicity of being able to connect with people worldwide.

But for so many people, it was like a revelation. And one of the first meetings we had, I’ve never forgotten it we have at our networking meeting a little opportunity for people to share when they’re going to break, what we call, breakthrough rooms, share, a little something afterwards. And I remember somebody saying, Oh my goodness, I’m a speaker.

I’ve just been asked to be on, and I’m in England. I’ve just been asked to be on somebody’s podcast and they’re in Greece. And this goes out to over 50 countries, their podcast. And I never even thought of that. And suddenly my mind is now open to all the amazing opportunities that I can take, because what I talk about is not just about the UK.

I think she was a women’s Coach and empowerment coach that people all over the world need me and it’s yeah, they do so the fact that we still get people even after all this time going, wait a minute, I can, I could do this all over. I can include people all over. That just is. I never imagined what a huge.

How wonderful we would find that. But even now, after all this time, it still gives me tingles to think of people making those connections and sharing what they do all over the world. I just love it.

Emily Bron: And I love it. It’s how I met you, actually, in one of these events. And now I’m sitting in Toronto speaking with British expat living in Norway.

And all this, even I used to eat, still giving me, additional vibe, I would say. With your extensive experience in voiceover work across over 70 countries, as I learned, how has this international interaction influenced your approach to creating global virtual events?

Jennie Eriksen: For me, as I say, the words are so powerful.

I could talk forever about words and what we talk about and how we are speakers. And, people think of speakers as being somebody that steps onto a stage for 45 minutes or an hour and they’re a speaker. But, you’re a speaker when you go to a networking meeting. You’re a speaker when you’re a voiceover.

Understanding the power of words and knowing that actually that your words can be impactful the world over in various different ways. And, we get people saying, Oh, no, I could never be a speaker for 45 minutes. That might not be the right thing for you, but it might just be that you are an awesome guest on something like this.

For example, my husband. To be a speaker. He likes to have his presentations sorted out. He’s ready for Q and A and all that kind of thing. He doesn’t like this so much, the interview technique. I’m much more. I love this kind of thing. And I will speak. But if you ask my preference, so We can be a speaker in so many different ways with our message in so many different ways.

And as a voiceover, you are a voiceover whether you want to call it artist or a voiceover professional now with your voice, especially as a voiceover, you are looking at the message that your client wants to convey and. Appropriately speaking in a way that really connects with that message.

So very much looking at the light and shade, the speed, the cadence that you use with voiceover, and that’s very much true as a speaker to, even if we’re doing a networking message, we think, Oh my goodness, we’ve got 20, 60 seconds, we’ve got a whole load of things we want to say, but actually how we deliver.

what we say is most impactful. You could literally say a few words in that time and let the gaps, the pauses that we know as humans, we’re not great with pauses, but often saying nothing speaks volumes.

Emily Bron: EventRaptors aims to simplify running virtual events. which you described as herding kittens. I found.

Can you walk us through some of the unique challenges you faced in the initial stages and how you overcome them?

Jennie Eriksen: Sure. I call it herding kittens because there is a there’s a video on YouTube. I don’t know if you’ve ever seen it of a photographer. That’s got six kittens in a line. And he wants to take a photograph of them.

And they are all over the place. They’re not standing still at all. And, that’s a little bit like running a virtual event. We have demonstrated a lot that running a virtual event or being part of a virtual event is an amazing way to, to be more visible and talk about what you do. But there are lots of moving parts.

And so many people running virtual events have needed, lots of time, lots of people to help. Gosh, Emily’s going to be speaking. What time is Emily on? Do we have her headshot? What’s she speaking about? Did she send her bio in? Has that email gone out? All those bits, and they’re the bits that I call herding kittens.

So everything that you’re trying to chase, and then you think somebody has done one thing, and, oh, no, I didn’t. I thought you were doing that. So Steve created the system so everything could be created in one place. You can literally see, yes, that’s gone out. We’ve got Emily’s bio in. That’s great.

She’s speaking at 115 or whatever. So we just wanted to simplify it because so many people, Will use something as a stumbling block as a barrier. I would like to, but it’s an awful lot of work. I would like to. But so we wanted to not only make it easier for people running their own events, but also people that were participating in virtual events.

For example, if you speak at certainly, an event Raptor event or one that is created on our system, it should be easy peasy. You select your topic, you select what you’re talking about, you’ve got that ebb and flow between the organizer and it’s job done. There’s no ambiguity and you’re not, oh did you get that email or I didn’t get that email.

So literally that’s why we created it, to make it easier and for people to be able to be part of events and then have those continued conversations from people that they meet thereafter.

Emily Bron: Thank you. Your passions for networking and community building are evident. How does your company facilitate this for speakers and event organizers?

Jennie Eriksen: As mentioned, we when we run virtual events, we always talk to people about, speakers bringing along a little gift or having a little VIP option. And the very first summit that we run called Own Your Stage, which we run twice a year, is all about the specificity of speaking, how you use speaking in your business.

So we might have speakers that talk about how to share your story what tech you might use, are you considering maybe a TEDx talk or whatever. And so we had to consider after, Steve had spoken at that event, what might have the IP gift be? And we thought let’s have a bit of a networking meeting.

Because I love it. I’ve been passionate about network for nearly three decades, and so we created what we called a bit of a networking meeting. All of you who’ve got the VIP upgrade, let’s have a bit of a networking meeting. The speakers can come along, and let’s talk about how we can help you find more places to speak and event organizers, what are you looking for in terms of speakers?

And that morphed into our networking meeting that we’ve been running for two years called speaker connections. And that really is the simplicity of the meeting. So it’s not a general networking meeting, but it is a meeting. So if we say to people, if you are a speaker, and as we’ve already discussed, you and I, that could be a great guest.

It could be somebody that, can speak at them on a master clock, wherever it may be. Then come along because you’re looking for more opportunities and if you’re an event organizer of an anything, so it might, you might not be running a summit, but you might be having a podcast, a live stream. You might want somebody to do a talk at your local community center, then come along.

And in the spirit of community, which is super, super important to me. Let’s help speakers find more places to speak. Let’s help event organizers find more speakers and guests for their events. Come along in the spirit of community, that how we can help and support each other and that’s what we do.

Emily Bron: Excellent. I like it. You mentioned the phrase modifier than retire in your bio. Can you expand, elaborate on what this motto means to you personally? And professionally, as you navigated to founding a tech startup in your late fifties,

Jennie Eriksen: I think for any of us, we very much get caught up in how we do things or how we are perceived to do things at a certain age, even now, we have people that go out with each other and there’s when you’re going to get engaged, when you’re going to get married, when you can have Children, when you’re going to do this, when you’re going to go to university, and I think more than ever, That’s not linear.

And for any of us, especially with, as I mentioned, that the global interrupt in 2020 where we questioned what was going to happen, how long might this be? We lost people. Not only did we lose people personally, we people lost their businesses. And so Being able to show up every day is a privilege.

It’s a privilege for any of us, and none of us know in the blink of an eye things change, and none of us know, and with the greatest of respect, if you want to think I’m in my 40s now and, I don’t want to start anything because I’m this age or that age or whatever, what a shame, if you’re sitting in your God’s version of waiting, we’re waiting for the inevitable, I can’t do that because, we live longer than ever technology.

Medicine means that we live in our seventies, eighties and nineties. What a shame that at 45, you think I can’t do that because my life is nearly over and you might live to 95. So for any of us, we don’t know what’s around the corner. And if you’re going to let something limit you because of your limiting beliefs that’s such a shame.

And so I just subscribe to the fact that every day is a privilege for all of us. So many of us don’t get another day and what an amazing opportunity to make connections and do different things and see where it goes.

Emily Bron: Beautifully spoken. And I believe, I fully agree with you that now even in our 50s and 60s, we still have 30 years of active life ahead of us.

If we take care about our body and mind and actually doing some new activities, being active and passionate with what you’re doing, it’s what makes these years special. Beautiful, fulfilling, and actually it’s what gives you energy to move forward. It’s working this way. You have faced and overcome significant personal challenges, including major surgery.

How have these experiences influenced your business philosophy and outlook on professional and personal life and challenges?

Jennie Eriksen: Okay in a way that’s twofold because as I mentioned, when I was in my 40s, my early 40s, I developed something that was called a hemifacial spasm, which means that one half of my face was didn’t the nerves, if you like, misbehaved in my face.

So all those lovely things that we take for granted smiling, kissing, eating, drinking out of a straw, all that, all of that made my face had terrible tremors and I couldn’t use one half of my face the same side as the other. And so I, I had that for over a decade because I’d actually moved to a little island called Tenerife, one of the Canary Islands.

And there’s only two there’s only one cure, if you like, for this. You can have something like this is quite interesting, actually. You can have Botox for it. Because people think of Botox as being a beauty treatment, but in actual fact, Botox is used for an awful lot of situations. For example, here.

Medical procedure. It’s medical procedure. Yeah, exactly. Dystonia, excessive sweating, people use it. So I had that as an option. Or, another option is actually to have brain surgery. And what they do, they actually, the nerves that misbehave, they actually use Teflon, as you would find in a frying pan, they use Teflon too.

And that surgery wasn’t available to me until I moved to Norway. And as soon as we moved here, I thought I would like to explore that because as I say there’s no point in having to saying, refire instead of retire, if you’re not wanting to embrace something. And I wanted to embrace that.

More than I was scared of the risks that it might involve because with any surgery, there are always risks involved for some people doesn’t work. Some people makes them worse. And actually, when I had the surgery in the first instance I was about 50, 60 percent better and, initially I felt a little disappointed because I thought, wouldn’t it be lovely to, the gratitude for being that much more improved was wonderful.

And then I improved still further. So as time went on, I improved still further. But what happened? If you like, and this is very interesting. Fast forward to today, people say, Oh, Jennie Eriksen. It’s all right for you. You’re super confident in you’re an extrovert. I’m an introvert. It’s all right for you because you can smile and do all the things.

Had to learn it. So literally, when I had the surgery, I had to learn to do all those things again that we take for granted because smiling was such a challenge. I had to learn what does it look like to smile instead of holding my face one way and the other way and doing, literally smile and use your teeth or burst out laughing without putting your hands in front of your face.

And so I had to learn it again, how and what a natural face looks like. So when people say, oh, it’s all right for you, this, you can do this and you can do that. It’s not overnight, I had to learn again. And so I would encourage anybody that, oh I don’t want to because I feel old or my background’s not so good or whatever.

The momentum is everything. The small steps is everything. And so I wanted to be able to demonstrate to people that you can go through things and come out the other side. And then with respect to business, as we started event Raptor so as a startup we were, our business was going up and then my husband became ill.

He had A double pulmonary embolism and he also went into heart failure. So our business went up and our business went down. And what can you do? You’re, there you are. You’re thinking, there you’re in your late 50s. You’ve made yourself a startup and you just carry on. And it’s amazing that we think about so many things and we don’t do it because what if and we catastrophize or I don’t know, but when you’re in the middle of a situation, what all you can do is carry on and you have more strength, you can dig deeper than you ever imagined possible.

But you just don’t know until you’re in the thick of it, how resourceful and how resilient you can be. Now I wouldn’t wish that on anybody, but it’s amazing how we can plow through these things.

Emily Bron: I really commend you for this amazing story. And how long did it take for you to overcome your facial issues and I understand how it’s devastating for acting professional because actually it’s your professional tool.

Voice and face. So it’s set of exercises. How did you work on

Jennie Eriksen: just literally living day to day? We didn’t really go live in terms of video with with EventRaptor until 2020. So just really just getting on with life, so to speak. And, even now as I mentioned we always think, I don’t know how many meetings you might’ve gone to where people want to take a picture.

Come on, everybody. We’re going to take a picture, smile, everybody. Oh, Julie, you’re not smiling or whatever. We take for granted that people can do that. And sometimes people can’t because, medical issues, sometimes people’s lives are really, challenging and to try and find a smile, but I had to unlearn some of my behaviors in order to be to show up just like this.

As I mentioned, even things like propping my face up. And even now, when I laugh, my hand, this is 2000 or 2016. I had surgery next 2024. Now, as we’re recording. I still put my hand up in front of my face and I have to almost fight myself if I’m, laughing, really throwing my head back and laughing, my hand automatically comes up and I almost have to, bring it down because I learned to protect myself.

You do that. You navigate a way round as showing up as what people perceive as normal. And unfortunately, people with the best of intentions say things that they think is well meaning. Or cheer up love, with British people, cheer up love, it might never happen. That basically means, oh, come on.

smile or Oh, who upset you today? Or things like bright lights, for example, would trigger me. And I remember one time we’d gone we’d gone out for the day and we took the children out for hamburger and fries in the evening and, to this lovely restaurant and it had fluorescent lights and I walked in and my face went, bananas because the lights was making it happen.

And the man at the door said to me in the loudest voice, Oh my goodness, what’s wrong with you? And it was like everybody, they didn’t, but it felt like everybody had put their knives and forks down and were looking at me. And I just wanted to just die on the spot. But, you get used to people not making comments in the end and living your life and not looking in the mirror and thinking, how do I balance myself today?

And for that, I can’t tell you how grateful I am for that. I just, I’m hugely privileged. So why wouldn’t I want to embrace life having almost lived half of facial life for over a decade? So to me, it was obvious.

Emily Bron: I sincerely can say, so your smile is wonderful and natural. And I’m looking at you like illuminating face and energy aura, which is coming off.

So I understand how it was hard for you. And. Really, to overcome such challenges you have a lot of things to share, even inside you. Yes. And, can you share a memorable moment? Or events that solidified your love and commitment to hosting and managing networking events. And actually what kind of people you attract or target with your networking.

Now I am curious.

Jennie Eriksen: As mentioned, both Steve and I are introverts. He’s quieter than me. I’m what you call a situational extrovert. So when I’m on. And people say, Oh, how can you be an introvert? You’re so noisy and I am, I can be noisy at times, I’m not shy.

I’m just an introvert. So after you and I have had our chat, I’m going to go off and I’ll grab my tea and I will be quiet because I’ve used my energy up in, in terms of chatting to you. And so when I have a meeting later on, I want to be. Right back energy wise in terms for my next meeting and we very much wanted to come from a gentler place without meetings.

And in fact, we do, so many people have lost money to people that talk a big game. I call them table thumpers. Oh, join my program. It’s this and you’ll get this and. We get caught up in things for three days and then in the cold light of day people have spent money because they feel they’ve been coerced or they’ve got caught up in the effect of well somebody else has bought it and I’m going to buy it and we very much especially as people in our 50s even though Steve’s four years younger than me as people in our 50s we just wanted to come from a place of authenticity and I know it’s an overused word people oh my goodness if I hear the word authentic one more time if you When you try to sharpen something that is not you, then be sure your body will let you down.

What comes out of your mouth is one thing, but your eyes and your body language will convey another. So if Steve and I try to thump tables and, coerce people into things, be sure my body language will give, my shoulders will end up around my ears. So by creating a place where we would feel a sense of belonging and acceptance, our shoulders are where they’re supposed to be and we are as we would wish to be and with respect, we might not be the right place for you.

You might find our place too gentle, too heart centered, too, whatever you might, and that’s okay because I believe in community. So if somebody was to say to me, Oh, your networking meetings are great, but I need more arm waving on whatever, then I would be very happy to introduce them to somebody I know does that more of that kind of thing, but.

The lovely thing that we have found is how many people, it’s twofold actually, how many people help each other and how much we get the feedback on that. People go, I came to your meeting and I just met somebody and they’ve introduced me to this and we’re going to talk about that and I’ve booked four podcasts or whatever it may be.

But also through to people saying, I feel a real sense of belonging. I feel heard. I feel seen. I feel, because I talk about something, there’s perhaps a little out there that people are like, Oh, don’t be silly. Nobody wants to hear that. It’s let’s hear more. And that to me means everything.

We have at our meeting something called after hours. So we have a networking meeting and then we say to people, do you want to hang out with us? You want, if you want to ask anything about EventRaptor, you’re jolly welcome, but maybe you just read a cool book. Maybe you’re new and you want to say hello.

Maybe you just wrote a book or whatever. And we just have a conversation, but the amount of people that hang back and just say, Thank you so much. I was, I didn’t want to go to a networking meeting and this felt great. Or I just wrote a book and, we had somebody recently, she shared a little bit of a song.

She’d just lost her grownup daughter. And she’d written a song for her. She said, do you mind if I play a few chords of my song that I’ve written for my daughter? Absolutely. And she was just, thank you so much. I wanted to share that. And I felt this was a lovely, that means everything,

Emily Bron: absolutely. By the way, I’m introvert as well who decided to launch new project Age of Reinvention and actually showcase other people of what they’re doing, how they flourishing or how this Inner power, we can really change our circumstances, our life to the better. What development, new development or goals are you most excited about for event Raptors?

Or any new upcoming features or expansion can you tease for our listeners?

Jennie Eriksen: Oh obviously more events, which is lovely. Last year, end of last year, we actually started to do some done for you services. Steve, this is quite interesting. Actually, when Steve created event Raptor, we wanted it to be user friendly for people.

And actually, one of our first clients, one of Steve’s coaching clients was a lady in her 70s. And she wanted to run her own event. And she said, I want to run my own event and I don’t want you to help me, but these are challenges that I feel I would have. And so she very much helped us in terms of somebody who is a client in what challenges might be, but so we thought we feel we’ve created something that is very user friendly.

And indeed, we’ve got. Plenty of clients that they run summits and then run another summit and they run the networking meetings and all that. But last year, we actually created done for you services when we have people going, Oh, I know I could do it myself, but if only somebody could do it and we were like we could do it for you.

So that has actually been. Lovely. And, so creating more and more done for you services has very much been on the agenda. We’ve already created some and there’s many more to come. And I think Again, coming back to what we’re saying about the networking meeting, especially people of a certain age, when they hear all the stuff that they are supposed, I’m supposed to have a lead magnet.

I don’t know what lead magnet is. I’m supposed to have a sales funnel. What is a sales funnel? We’re not going to come from a place of that’s really stupid. You should know. It’s don’t worry, we’ll do it for you. And the mere fact that we do it for people, or we handhold people and help them to do it, has proven very successful because then it’s not only been an extra service that we can provide, but also it is empowered other people that if something like that was in the way of them launching their business, or they just couldn’t see a way round this thing that they needed, but didn’t know how to.

So that more of that is is going to be coming for sure. And more features and being part of more events and such. Yeah.

Emily Bron: You also have a robust experience as a sales development coach, as far as I understand, and performing arts teacher, how do you match this diverse experiences? into your current role and what synergies between the different areas have you discovered along the way?

Jennie Eriksen: It’s funny because our daughter, when I lived in Tenerife, our daughter has always done performing arts when she was little, the trifecta, the singing, the dancing, the acting, and that’s actually what I did when I was in Tenerife. I worked with children in Tenerife. who were taking exams called the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.

So they do singing exams, they do presentation and that kind of thing. And so very many people will say, Oh, that’s all very nice, but you can’t make a career out of it. Can and for a lot of people, that’s true. You try to get an acting part in the West end of London or an acting part is on a film or a TV show.

It’s very competitive. What those skills teach you. is actually how to present, how to hold yourself, how to speak, how to be eloquent, how to enunciate. So you might never be on the television in a show, but you might in a firm of accountants be asked to make a presentation in front of 200 people.

And those skills will give you a headstart in being able to do that. So fast forward to today, my daughter is a scientist. She’s actually a biologist. And she’s going to be doing a PhD, from next year, her PhD. And she was asked to be part of an event with academics a few months ago. And academics can be very highbrow and it can be a little bit technical and that kind of thing.

And there were a whole lot of students that had come in. To to hear. So a whole load of young students had come in and she was asked if she would do a presentation and she did her presentation in a, in the way that worked for her in a way that she felt was entertaining, engaging, using an awful lot of the principles that she’d learned in performing arts.

And afterwards she had a whole load of young people coming. I loved your presentation. It was so cool and I love the fact that you made it exciting and, sometimes to get when you’re doing things like a degree, you’ve got to go through some, challenging stuff and research and stuff, but she had made it interesting.

So she’d been able to bring something that was perhaps a little bit dry and dusty and, could be a bit boring. She’d made it interesting. She’d made it in, she’d inspired other people. She sent us such a little footage of somebody that had filmed her doing it. And it was indeed, wonderful to see.

So I, I think that these are never lost skills. These are skills that You can use throughout and whether you’re in a sales capacity or performing arts, whatever, if you think of this as a conversation, because indeed it is a conversation, you are using your voice and the end of the day, you are articulating to people.

And if you’re in a sales capacity, people will buy your products or services or they won’t. But how you project yourself, how you talk about, what it is you do or what it is you have is super important. So anything you can learn along the way, even right from, being young it’s all helpful.

It’s not a lost skill set that you’re never going to use again.

Emily Bron: Thanks for your advices and thoughts. And just listening to you, I briefly see the geography of movement or relocation for your family. And so I understand you are British family who relocated to Tenerife. Now you in Oslo, Norway.

And probably it’s not the last stop in your family plans and journey. Can you a little bit elaborate what actually push your relocation plans, to the different areas?

Jennie Eriksen: We lived in England, first of all. My husband is actually Norwegian. So we actually met in England in the first instance.

And we got to the stage where we actually had So we’ve always Our work has always been working with clients in terms of words. We actually had a local magazine in England. So we helped people that were local businesses, small businesses, who wanted to be in our community magazine because they wanted to get more business.

So we haven’t really gone very far away from what we do. So what we did at that time was created adverts. that people would read and find compelling. So rather than I’m just a hairdresser, putting features and interest in in, in adverts. And we had a growing family. We had our two children and that just took up absolutely everything.

It took up every waking hour of everything we did. We had 9, 000 magazines. We delivered them all ourselves. We created all the adverts. We did the whole thing. And I think we just got to the stage where it just, we’d finished delivering the last magazine. And then it’s almost have a cup of tea and then off we go again.

And it was, it just felt too much. So we moved to Tenerife to do. Something different to have a lifestyle change, if you like, and actually be able to spend more time with our Children. So that was a bit of a hiatus that we took and our son had always wanted to study in the U. S. In actual fact we thought both our children would probably want to to do that.

But because my husband is Norwegian and our children are half Norwegian, half English, he was able to take advantage of Norwegian state support, the Norwegian loan, the student loan that they give you, But only if we lived here and only if he took the appropriate certification in terms of being able to speak Norwegian and all the things that you needed to do.

So if you like, we were strategic parents. We moved to facilitate him doing that. And in actual fact, that’s what he did. So our son went off to the U S he went, he studied in Michigan and worked in the U S and our daughter when it came time to, for her to go to university, she went to Australia and she And then the global interrupt meant that we became boomerang parents.

So they both went and then they both came back. Fast forward to today. We still have our daughter in Oslo, but she’ll doing her PhD. She’ll be off to another country. Our son is in London and actually his partner is Portuguese. So we truly are international. And. He’s probably, going to be going to, to different places as well.

And we had planned just before the global interrupt to be digital nomads. We thought we’d be the core parents in our fifties. Our son was actually, he was in Dubai at the time and our daughter was in Australia. So we thought that we would be, Hey, we’re this place or that place, and we’ll come and see you.

And then of course, nobody could travel. But that’s on the cards again, because we work in a digital world, we can make that happen. We’re just, stay tuned as to where next. We’re just thinking it’d be nice to spend little blocks of time in different places. And See different people because essentially being online, it doesn’t matter where we are.

We’re connecting here.

Emily Bron: I like your spirit and good luck with all your future relocation plans and reflecting on your career journey, your life journey. What insight can you share for the people in midlife about reinventing oneself and staying relevant in the rapidly evolving industries of our times?

Jennie Eriksen: Sure. It’s where my you’re not done yet. You’re just getting started comes from. It You know, we look at people and we think that they’ve made a change and it all just happens so swiftly and one day they were this and then the next day they’re not. It takes planning, you might be in, I don’t know, corporate Canada or corporate America and think I’d like a coffee shop and you create a coffee shop and believe the people will come.

The people won’t come unless you are prepared for people to come. So it’s about it. Doing your research and it’s about the momentum of something, sometimes we might try things out for size and think, we’d like to do that, but perhaps that’s not feasible. Maybe we could do that in a different way.

So it’s about being realistic and rather than just completely jumping ship, just looking at things and seeing what is needed. Going to networking events and being part of a community and bouncing ideas off of people, but also playing to your strengths. So I hear this all the time. For example, you might get somebody who is a coach.

Perhaps they coach midlife women. Let’s give that as a for instance, and they want to change the banner on their website. Or their LinkedIn profile or whatever. And they go I didn’t know how to do it, but after eight hours, I figured out how to change the banner on my website.

Isn’t that wonderful. And is it wonderful? You managed to do it and that’s great. If your expertise is a women’s empowerment coach. How much better would it have been to have paid somebody to spend 15 minutes or 20 minutes, who’s an expert in that changing your banner on your WordPress website while you did what you do best, which is to work with midlife women or whatever it is you do.

So there are some things that we need to learn, but really look at what you truly need to learn versus what you can outsource. And the first thing that people will say that’s going to cost me a fortune. Not necessarily, but you have a think about what your strength is, who and what you need to utilize along the way and use people as sounding boards.

Have a virtual cup of coffee with somebody and just say, thoughts about this. Do you have any? That’s what creating a community is all about whether that’s your local in person community or an online community because when you create community and when you have you show up with people and there’s not this expectation that you’re always going to have to put your hand in your pocket and pay money People will be happy to help you.

I have lots of people that bounce ideas off me. And that’s the lovely thing that these are people that are on your radar. You talk to them, you throw ideas down the line. They may or may not become customers. We have plenty of people in our community who have never spent a penny. In our community and they come along to all our events and they’re very welcome right through to people that we work one on one with who do spend money for a one on one service, and they’re all just as welcome.

So identify those people who champion you that speak your language. That aren’t going to coerce you on, you can do this, but it’s going to cost you a 30, 000 course to find those people that you can bounce ideas off of and know that overnight success isn’t really overnight. But trust the process that the momentum.

Is everything and celebrate the small stuff

Emily Bron: excellent advice and I’m still would like a little bit expand this topic because it’s a Main channel and a idea of age of reinvention to inspire more and more people for the Jump for the change for those inspired by your journey and looking to either It Pivot their careers or boost the existing trajectories.

What first steps would you recommend for people in midlife in this digital and interconnected world?

Jennie Eriksen: Gosh, if you’re wanting to change things, know that these things are I’m not overnight and it’s about joining a community or being part of communities where you feel that there is a sense of belonging.

We could go to mastermind or be part of masterminds or networking events seven days a week. If we chose to, there’s all sorts of, we’re doing a five day challenge. We’re doing this or doing that. It’s about finding that place where you feel. That sense of empowerment or you feel that you are with people that are going to champion you and that you can be that there’s nothing worse than being part of something where you feel people are miles and miles ahead, and you’re never going to catch up.

And I tell you what’s very interesting. Just to digress very slightly is when we have virtually our virtual events. A lot of people, most people will actually start with their story and I would always encourage people to come along and be a participant at an event because we look at people and oh, here they are, they’re super successful speaker, they’ve done three TEDx talks and my goodness and oh, I could never be that person.

And then you listen to their story about how they were a widow at 23 with three children under the age of whatever, that they lost their house. They lost their business. Something happened. They had a challenging illness and we have these people on such a pedestal. My goodness, they’re and those stories are so empowering and it’s amazing.

I, people often say, and in virtual events, Oh, it’s not the same as being in person, where you see people physically and you get to shake somebody’s hand physically. There is so much you can see on people’s expressions at virtual events. And I spend a lot of time watching people because you’ll see.

People will perhaps be sitting back like this listening and then you’ll see their eyebrows raise and you’ll see they lean in and you see they’re leaning on their hat. And I’m just as guilty of doing that. We run our own events where, somebody is going to finish and then we’re going to do a bit of an introduction to the next person and we’re looking at the chat for questions.

And I’m so engaged in somebody’s story and I’m so inspired by something they’re saying. I’m thinking, oh goodness, I should We need to check the chat for some questions because we’ve seen, we’ve thought of these people in one way, and then we’ve seen them in another way. And that’s been to be a part of their journey or to hear their journey is such a privilege.

And I know it inspires people. We’ve had so many people go I think I might. Give that a little try. I might reach out and connect with them. And the nice thing is that when we have speakers at our events, so many of them are just like you and I, they’re not lofty people. They’ll go, yes, of course I’ll have a virtual cup of tea with you and I can give you some pointers.

And this might be an idea for you. So find those People and gather information and figure out what might be what you may or may not to need to invest in. We think that we need to buy all the things in order to have all the things, not necessarily. We just need in the first instance to be amongst like minded people or people in us.

So find your virtual family and often your virtual family. Are the people that will champion you because we get caught up in our real, our blood family. Oh no, you don’t wanna be doing that at that this age. And you, no, you don’t wanna be doing that and oh my goodness. And, find, as much as that can be said then true.

Your, your own blood relatives, your husband, wife, whatever, may be championing you. But find that sense of belonging and empowerment and ask questions along the way and. Acknowledge those people that have taken time out. Now there’s nothing lovelier than if somebody has taken time out to say, I’d like to say, thank you.

I just spent some time with this person and they gave me some ideas and I want to acknowledge that they’ve been such a help to me. We love that. It’s so powerful to, for somebody to acknowledge that you’ve given them a little, some help or support along the way.

Emily Bron: Thank you, Jennie Eriksen for joining us today and sharing your incredible journey and insight into creating and managing a successful company and actually very fulfilling and active life.

It’s clear that whether it’s behind the mic or in front of the camera, Jennie is a true pioneer in fostering global connection. Let’s wrap up another episode of Age of Reinvention. Thank you, Jennie, again. Follow our podcast to more stories like Jennie’s as we continue to explore what it means To redefine freedom, lifestyle and purpose in midlife.

I’m Emily Bron, whether you are just getting started, or retiring your passions, remember, you are not done yet. Thank you for listening, and until next time, keep reinventing.

Jennie Eriksen

High Vibrational Super Connector Diva 🙃 | Want more global speaking and connection opportunities? Visibility is YOUR Responsibility – but I’m here to help! | Co-Founder Eventraptor – Virtual Event Management made easy

With over 13 years of diverse professional experience, my mission has been to innovate in virtual event management and voiceover artistry. At EventRaptor, we’re redefining event organization, harnessing the power of technology to connect speakers and audiences seamlessly. My core competencies lie in marketing communications, social media marketing, and video production, underpinned by a commitment to delivering quality in every project. My approach aligns with my company’s culture of excellence and the constant pursuit of improvement.

At EventRaptor, I’ve leveraged my skills to create a user-friendly platform that streamlines the complexities of virtual event planning. From coordinating speaker information to managing attendee communication, my expertise has been pivotal in simplifying the process for event organizers worldwide. As a British English voiceover professional, I bring warmth and sincerity to eLearning and corporate narration, ensuring that every message is engaging and effectively delivered.

In today’s digital age, transformation and reinvention have taken on new meaning, especially regarding careers and personal growth in midlife. Our guest, Jennie Eriksen, beautifully embodies this spirit of reinvention. Jennie, the co-founder of EventRaptor and a former voiceover professional, has turned her life experiences and professional expertise into a mission to connect and empower people globally through virtual events.

From Voiceover to Visionary: Jennie’s Path to Success

Jennie’s career transition from a voiceover professional to a tech entrepreneur is a testament to the power of resilience and adaptability. Having worked with clients from over 70 countries, Jennie leveraged her extensive background in voiceover artistry to connect with people globally. During a significant life-changing event, Jennie realized her calling: to help others thrive in a virtual world. With the support of her husband, Steve, Jennie co-founded EventRaptor to simplify and redefine how virtual events are organized and experienced.

The Digital World of Connections

Virtual events have redefined how we connect and learn; Jennie’s work is at the forefront of this change. EventRaptor offers a platform that not only makes organizing virtual events more accessible but also empowers speakers and organizers to engage with a global audience. The platform’s ability to facilitate seamless and impactful interactions is credited to Jennie’s understanding of the power of words and her passion for connecting people across borders.

Navigating Challenges and Triumphs

Jennie’s journey has not been without its challenges. Overcoming significant personal obstacles, including major surgery, has deeply influenced her business philosophy and outlook on life. Her experiences have fostered a belief in the potential to emerge more robust and resilient from adversity. This outlook has shaped EventRaptor’s mission to support speakers and event organizers in creating and maintaining meaningful connections within their communities.

The Importance of Community and Networking

Networking and community building are central to Jennie’s vision. Through EventRaptor, Jennie has facilitated countless connections by creating a supportive environment and helping people find opportunities to share their stories and expertise. Her approach is one of authenticity and kindness, championing a spirit of cooperation and mutual support.

Looking Ahead: Enabling Global Participation

As EventRaptor grows, Jennie’s excitement about its potential is palpable. With the ongoing development of new features and services, Jennie’s commitment to making virtual events more inclusive and accessible remains unwavering. Her company’s focus on making virtual event participation straightforward for anyone highlights the platform’s inclusive nature.

Lessons in Reinvention

Jennie’s inspiring story underscores the importance of embracing change and finding your passion, regardless of your stage in life. Her journey is a compelling reminder that midlife and beyond is not merely a time for winding down but an opportunity to refire rather than retire. Her insights encourage others to pursue their dreams and harness their unique talents in our interconnected world.

Through her work with EventRaptor, Jennie Eriksen has become a true pioneer in fostering global connections. Her story serves as a beacon of hope and motivation for anyone looking to redefine their freedom, lifestyle, and purpose during their age of reinvention. Whether you’re just starting on this path or already exploring new avenues, Jennie’s message is clear: You are still going. Keep reinventing.