Q&A with Michael Clinton

3 min read

Author of ROAR into the Second Half of Your Life (Before It’s Too Late)

Available September 7, 2021

What is ROAR, and what was the inspiration behind it?

If you are 45 and healthy, you will probably live to be 90. Instead of the proverbial midlife crisis, let’s call it a midlife awakening. You are going to have the opportunity to live multiple lives from new careers to new loves and lifestyles. The inspiration is to embrace the big possibilities ahead of you.

ROAR is the acronym to help you get there…

to Reimagine Yourself (before circumstances do it for you)
to Own Who You Are
to Act on What’s Next (what’s the plan?),
and to Reassess your Relationships to get you there.

What does it mean to “Reimagine Yourself”?

Something is going to happen to you, so why wait until that something happens? Face it—at some point, you may no longer have your current job. You might be pushed out, downsized, aged out, displaced or replaced. And that can happen in your personal life too, or you might face an illness or a natural disaster in your community. You have to always be thinking about what if? If you want to retire from your first career after 35 years, you may want to refire for another 20 years in a new career.

Now is the time to ask yourself if you are where you want to be right now? If not, how do you become a reimagineer?

How can anyone drive an action-oriented approach to shaping their next phase of life?

Start by making the commitment to “go deep” to understand what you really want. Keep a life journal for each year with your vision of who you want to be and where you want to go in your life. Write in it on a regular basis and revisit it the first of each month. Have you achieved any of your goals, or are you on a serious path to get there? Make sure that you are not just talking about what you want. If you find yourself spending a long time talking about something and you are not doing it, you should face the fact that you probably aren’t going to do it. For example, a friend said that he was going to run a half marathon, but never really trained or focused on it. It was his verbal goal, but it was borne of cocktail chatter and not a sincere intention.

Focus on what you can actually do and make a plan to achieve it.

Why do you think it’s challenging for those in midlife to make significant changes?

People are afraid of change, the unknown, taking a risk. But it’s more than likely that something is going to happen that will force you into change. If you step into the new, you’ll find your own course and the universe will bring opportunities and people to you…but only if you are open to it.

What can readers start doing today to realize their most fulfilling life?

First, you have to do the work to understand what it is that you really want. Is it that you want to pivot to a career that delivers a social purpose? Is it that you want to leave the cold Northeast for the Sunbelt? What will it take to make that happen? Is it the realization that your marriage has run its course, and you would rather be alone or have a new relationship in the future? You can’t start the journey to fulfillment until you understand what you believe will actually fulfill you.

Michael Clinton is the former president and publishing director of Hearst Magazines and is currently special media advisor to the Hearst Corporation’s CEO. He is also an author and photographer, who believes that everyone should strive to live their fullest life possible—especially in the second half of life. Michael has travelled through 124 countries, has run marathons on 7 continents, is a private pilot, a part owner of a vineyard in Argentina, has started a nonprofit foundation, holds two master’s degrees, and still has a long list of life experiences that he plans to tackle. He resides in New York and Santa Fe, New Mexico.

For more about Michael and his work, visit: roarbymichaelclinton.com.

Michael is the author of ROAR into the Second Half of Your Life (Before It’s Too Late), releasing from Beyond Words this September 7. ROAR is for everyone who is thinking about where they are in life—and those who want more out of life. Preorder your copy today and learn the 4-step process to help you fulfill the life of your dreams, before it’s too late!

Purchase here: https://beyondword.com/products/roar-into-the-second-half-of-your-life-before-its-too-late