Reignite Your Childhood Dreams: Why It’s Never Too Late to Start Your Second Act | #194

Are you feeling stuck in your career or craving more creativity and fulfillment in your life? In this inspiring solo episode of the Second Act Success Career Podcast, host Shannon Russell encourages you to rediscover the dreams you once held and explore how to bring them into your present life. Whether you’re navigating a life transition, dreaming of launching a business, or simply want to feel more alive in your day-to-day, this episode is your reminder that it’s never too late to start fresh.

Shannon shares personal stories, reflective questions, and actionable steps to help you reconnect with your younger self, reignite your passions, and take that first small step toward your next chapter—your Second Act.

Key Takeaways:

• Why your childhood dreams still matter
• How to recognize signs and nudges pointing you toward change
• Why small pivots can lead to big transformations
• How to give yourself permission to dream again (without guilt)
• Practical ideas to begin exploring your passions now

🎧 Tune in and learn how to embrace the permission to start again—on your terms.

🔗 Visit secondactsuccess.co for more career transition resources.

 📩 DM Shannon on Instagram @secondactsuccess and share how you're pursuing your second act!

SHOW NOTES:

https://secondactsuccess.co/194

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Transcript

Season 1 - Reignite Your Childhood Dreams: Why It’s Never Too Late to Start Your Second Act | #194

Episode - #194

Host: Shannon Russell

Transcription (*created by Descript and may not be perfectly accurate) 

[00:00:00] Are you ready to quit your nine to five job and start a business of your own? Well, you're in the right place, my friend. Welcome to the second Act Success Career podcast. I am your host Shannon Russell. I am a former television producer, turned business owner, career transition coach, and boy mom. My mission is to help you produce your best life.

This podcast will teach you how to get from where you are now to where you want to be, and how to build a business that fits your life and lights you up. Let's get started.

Shannon Russell: Hey friends. Welcome back to the show. I'm so glad you're here today because we're gonna talk about something really close to my heart, and that is taking a chance on yourself, not in a leap off a cliff type of way, but in a loving, powerful way that shows you that anything is possible,

it is the idea of pursuing your passions, finding something that you can do each and every day that truly fills [00:01:00] you up, that you feel like you're using every aspect of yourself, your creativity, your passion, maybe serving others, bringing money into your family.

Knowing that you get to do something each and every day, that really is all encompassing of you. and This episode is all about giving yourself that permission to do that thing that you've always wanted to do. And now maybe you're working full time, maybe you're raising a family, or you're navigating a transition in your life, personal or professional, but maybe life has thrown some curve balls at you

and you're sitting with those curve balls and you're trying to figure out what your next step is. We've all been there in some way, shape or form, and it's just realizing sometimes, or thinking to yourself that these curve balls, these obstacles that life throws at us, that sometimes those can be a sign to take a beat.

Step back, [00:02:00] examine the situation and say, Hmm, maybe this is a sign from above that I should be making that pivot or making a change of some kind and giving yourself that permission to at least think about it and explore it and see what you come up with. Have you ever had that little quiet nudge where maybe it's as simple as hearing a song on the radio in the car, or seeing a sign somewhere where you're at, where you just kind of pause and you go, whoa. Was that meant for me? I know that's happened to me in the past and every once in a while I'll say, well, why did I hear that particular song?

Or Why did I see this picture when I was in a restaurant? Why was I given that sign? Sometimes it is in those little moments where you can say, Hmm, maybe there's more to explore here.

So let me start by asking you, what did you want to be when you were little? For me, it was an actress. I wanted to be an actress. I had a [00:03:00] Hollywood obsession from as early as I can remember. Everything was about TV and movies. To me, even the books I read when I got into, say, middle school and high school, every time I could do a report, it was on a celebrity or a.

Filmmaker or a Broadway director. I wanted to soak in everything in the entertainment industry, but maybe you've wanted to be a singer or a teacher, or a writer, or an artist or a fashion designer, or maybe you wanted to travel the world or be a doctor or a healer of some kind, helping others.

Think about what it was that you wanted to be, what you dreamed about when you were younger, and then pause and really think some more. Think about that younger version of you. The one that dreamt without limits.

Money was not an object. Anything was possible somewhere along the way from those days to where we are now in our [00:04:00] lives, we. we've tucked those dreams away life became practical. What is the practical path? How can I make money? Have a home, start a family, do all of the things that an adult should do, and then life became noisy and busy and you're stuck in that path and you're moving forward, and hopefully you had joy along that path and that you learned along that path.

And there were great parts of what it was that you did and you learned and you experienced. But now at this stage of life, the moment right now where you are listening to my words and we're having this conversation, maybe this is a sign, and I want you to think about that younger version of yourself and where you are now, that dream can still be inside of you, and it might be a little dusty.

You might have to brush it off, but maybe you can say to that [00:05:00] little girl, I see you. I see you and I see what you thought your future would be.

As you're thinking about this, is there a part of that little girl that you took with you into the future? Maybe you accomplished your dream, maybe you are doing exactly what you dreamed of when you were younger. And it's funny, I think back to friends of mine in elementary school, even up till high school, and I remember there was a girl I went to school with who wanted to be a nurse, and all she talked about was being a nurse.

Being a nurse, being a nurse. And she is a nurse. And then I have friends who wanted to be teachers and that's all they dreamt about and they're teachers. So it is possible to live out that dream. I wanted to be an actress. I ended up being a producer behind the camera. But I still got to live out that dream, at least as far as I'm concerned.

 so maybe you were able to live out that dream, or maybe you took [00:06:00] that dream, kind of like me and you turned it around a little bit and you focus on a different aspect of that field. And if you haven't, that's okay. That's why we're talking about this now because second X really are an opportunity to think about what it is that you've always been passionate about and how you can maybe incorporate that into your life right now.

 On this podcast, we talk a lot about big success stories of people changing from one career to the other, opening a business, having this life transformation. But my friend, it does not have to be this big dramatic reinvention. It doesn't have to be walking out of your nine to five and moving across the world and trying this big thing.

It can be a small pivot on your path, whatever it is that you want to do. In my new book, start Your Second Act. I talk about it being little things like maybe you want to volunteer somewhere that speaks to you, [00:07:00] or maybe you want to write a book, or start a blog or create a podcast or teach dancing lessons to kids.

Whatever it is, there's ways to incorporate what it is that you dreamt about when you were younger into your life. Now it can be a quiet change. It can be more personal to you. It might be just picking up a paintbrush and creating and getting into art, if that's always been something heavy on your heart.

I have a friend who actually was on episode 1 69 of this podcast, Helene Hebert, and she was an engineer and she found herself in a place where she needed to create food. She was living out kind of in the middle of nowhere in Canada. And she learned about gardening, and now she runs an incredible business teaching others how to plant food that they can eat all year long.

That's an incredible story of taking a little something, starting to try something new, and [00:08:00] finding that you love it, that you're passionate about it, and then forming that into whatever you want your second act to be. Yeah. Your second act is about reclaiming that part of yourself, that part that wants to be creative and explore and connect and feel alive again.

We have one life, and I talk about this a lot

 in this one life that we are given. Isn't it important to feel alive, To feel like we explored these passions and really served ourselves well in living the life that we want, that brings us that happiness.

I have to say, I have to remind you, it is not selfish to explore a passion. It is not selfish to be a parent and have a job and be a caretaker and do all of the things, but still want a piece of your life that fills you up, that gives you that bit of creativity that brings you back to who you are at your soul, at your [00:09:00] core.

Here's what I want you to hear loud and clear today. You are not too old. It is not too late, and you don't have to have it all figured out right now. You just have to start somewhere. Think about your past. Think about where you are presently, and take one step, make one choice, one tiny brave step in the direction that will.

Bring your passions to life that will bring that creativity and light to your life. One small step, maybe it will be difficult. Maybe it will be awkward. Maybe you don't know how to dance anymore. You love dancing, but you are a little rusty. That's okay. You can join that dance class.

You can get back out there and maybe no one in your circle will understand why you're doing this, but you're doing it for you. And honestly at this stage in our lives, I don't know about you, but I care a lot less about what other people [00:10:00] think. I am living this life for me, myself, and I, and of course my children.

 but you take care of the people around you. You are not throwing away your responsibilities and your day-to-day to take that dance class or learn Pilates or decide to create.

With watercolor, you are figuring out what it is that gives you that peace and that excitement in your day to day or even once a month. Whatever it is, you are worth figuring out what it is that you can do for you. Right now I want to offer you a little challenge.

Take a few minutes to sit quietly and ask yourself a few questions. Ask yourself, what did I love doing before the world told me who I should be? And then ask, what would it look like to give that part of me just a [00:11:00] little more room to breathe

And then ask. What would it look like to give myself a chance to explore this?

And if you're feeling really bold, Write it down. Speak it out loud to yourself, and if you're feeling ready, then take one action. Step towards exploring what lights you up this week. Think about the passions.

Think about what would make next week more exciting in your life. Think about what you've always wanted to do and take a step towards doing it now.

This podcast, what I teach second acts are not about perfection. I share stories here on the podcast of women and of myself, and the different challenges and the ups and downs and the rollercoasters of. Reinventing yourself or trying something new or making that pivot or change. And it's not always easy.

But it's about becoming more of who you [00:12:00] really are. remember, you don't need permission. You already have everything you need to begin. You know yourself better than anyone else in the world knows you. So take a chance on you and explore who you are deep down inside.

Just imagine what might be waiting on the other side.

I hope this conversation has gotten you excited, or at least your wheels are starting to turn so you can think about what else there is for you to explore as a part of your second act.

If this episode spoke to you, I'd love for you to share it with a friend who might need this little reminder too. And if you've started your second act, big or small, I would love to hear what it is that you are doing. So drop a comment on Apple Podcast or Spotify or you can DM me over on Instagram.

I'm @secondactsuccess'. Let's celebrate together because the more we [00:13:00] celebrate trying something new and living our best life, the more we are going to feel truly whole in this life that we're living. Until next time, keep going. Keep producing your best life, and I am always here cheering you on. I'll talk to you soon my friend.

Thank you for joining us. I hope you found some gems of inspiration and some takeaways to help you on your path to second act, success. To view show notes from this episode, visit second act success.co. Before you go, don't forget to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss a single episode. Reviews only take a few moments and they really do mean so much.

Thank you again for listening. I'm Shannon Russell. And this is second act success.