How to Make Midlife An Adventure with Guest Kamilla Norrman

Are you feeling a bit flat? Lost your spark? Has life's living put a massive dampener on your zest for life, and rather than waking up feeling excited about what the new day can bring, you're growing sick of the same-old, same-old... week after week?

Then this episode is just for you. Join me and my guest Kamilla Norrman, the Adventure Mindset and SMILE Method Coach, as we share insights, anecdotes and inspiration for How to make Midlife an adventure.

Kamilla and I are both advocates of the saying "It's never too late", and in this episode we share proven tactics and practical tips for how you can break free from settling and overcome fear of change so that you can embrace the unknown and maximise the adventures that Midlife has to offer.. whatever that means to you.

And don't miss Kamilla's step-by-step SMILE Method which will enable you to embody her belief that "action precedes confidence".

Connect with Kamilla

https://kamillanorrman.com/

https://calendly.com/kamillanorrman/discovery-call 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/kamilla-norrman-45362712/

https://www.instagram.com/kamillanorrman/

Transcript

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SPEAKER_01 0:01

Welcome to Midlife Unlimited, the podcast for women who want more. I'm your host, Kate Porter, the Midlife Metamorphosis Coach, and I know what it's like to feel stuck navigating the midlife maze. I've looked in the mirror and thought, who is that woman? So Midlife Unlimited is here to let you know you are not alone. You don't have to put on a brave face and put up with it. You don't have to play it safe. Midlife Unlimited is all about ripping off that mask and telling it like it really is. Nothing is off limits because together there's no limit to what we can achieve. So, welcome to today's episode. Now, are you feeling a bit flat? You've lost your spark. Has life's lifing put a massive dampener on your zest for life? And rather than waking up feeling excited about what the new day can bring, you're growing sick of the same old, same old week after week. Well, this episode is just for you. Because I'm delighted to be joined by my guest today, Camilla Norman, the Adventure Mindset and Smile Method coach, to talk about how to make midlife an adventure. So welcome Camilla. It's fabulous to have you here.

SPEAKER_00 1:27

Thank you so much, Kate. I am delighted to be invited to your podcast, and it's a great pleasure to be here.

SPEAKER_01 1:35

Oh well, my absolute pleasure because we're going to be talking a lot about adventure, which is something that is very close to your heart, and we're both advocates of it's never too late, it's really not. But midlife can seem a bit humdrum, can't it? We can have settled into routines that we really we're bored with, to be quite honest. But for some of us, maybe we've been yearning the peace and quiet and the knowing what tomorrow will bring. But for the rest of us, we can sit or sit there and waste time thinking, if only I had the bravery, the courage, the the in inspiration to go out and have an adventure. Oh, but not no, I'm I'm not the kind of woman that does that. We tell ourselves some weird stories, don't we?

SPEAKER_00 2:25

Yes, absolutely. And uh I uh would echo what you say, it's never too late, and uh everyone has it within them to tap into that uh almost childish curiosity and be more playful, which is sort of allowing for the adventure to unfold.

SPEAKER_01 2:47

Well, that I I make no secret of the fact that that is one of the main things that has been part of my own metamorphosis journey, this embracing the yeah, the excitement of the unknown and playfulness and curiosity, because the phrases I hear again and again, and I'm you probably do as well in your role, is the fear of change, but the feeling stuck, not wanting to leap out of this blinking comfort zone that's almost become one of those overused phrases. Everything's becoming overused these days, and then the whole fear of judgment. What will people say? What will people think if I do this? Who they'll think who who's Kate to go on an adventure? And by an adventure, although this wonderful guest of mine, I I've lost count of how many countries you've actually visited, it's quite a long list, and we will delve into that in a minute. But a lot of us, you know, we have we've counted a few adventures on our life list, but we've got a lot more life left. We've got life to add to our years. Now, in a little while, you'll be sharing your top tips for how to make midlife an adventure. You're going to be sharing your adventure mindset, which I love the sound of, and your smile method, because smiling is all about, oh, I love smiling. I love smiling. Real smiling, genuine smiling, not fake smiling. But first, I I alluded just now to your own zest for life, passion for adventure. Talk me through. I mean, is this something that has been instilled in you from youngster, or is it you you you've leapt out of comfort zones yourself?

SPEAKER_00 4:22

Tell us your story. I have actually probably been adventurous uh since a young age, and it partly comes from the fact that I grew up with a mother who's Czech and a father who's Swedish. I was born in Sweden, but traveled through the Iron Curtain to visit my grandparents in what was then Czechoslovakia. So that was an adventure in itself, you know, sitting in a car, arriving at the border with guards, with uh rifles. Uh did you understand as a child what was actually going on? I think in the beginning I was too small, but I remember my mum telling me that uh when we had to unpack the car and they went through all the belongings to see if we were smuggling something. When I asked my mum, what what on earth, you know, what's going on, and her excuse was they are looking for a mouse. So as a child, that was uh that was sort of my first uh memory made sense, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 5:30

That makes sense. They look at yeah, absolutely.

SPEAKER_00 5:33

So, but of course, as I got older, I did understand that there was uh something uh quite sinister going on, but it was just uh how it was, you couldn't really avoid it. And visiting my grandparents involved this uh rather uh you know, when you look at it now, it seems like a ridiculous um exercise. But I think it did foster a certain uh just curiosity from my side as to how different countries can be, because Czechoslovakia was so different compared to Sweden, and to actually experience it and see it myself, and I think I wanted to explore the world because it felt like you need to see things with your own eyes, you need to experience it to know because what's reported in media might not always be true. Absolutely. That sort of stuck with me. Then I was very lucky to have a great aunt, it was my dad's aunt, and she never married, she never had children, but she traveled the world, and she became and still is probably one of my biggest influences in my life, and my role model. So I had this amazing woman that had done all these adventures, and I think she was an inspiration as well that sort of set the tone for my own life.

SPEAKER_01 6:58

Did she write diaries at all or anything like that, or travel logs?

SPEAKER_00 7:02

No, she didn't, but she did tell me about her stories. So she did um, because of course, my grandparents, my mother's parents lived in Czechoslovakia, so they only saw them a few times a year. But Aunt Murta, as she was called, she was almost like a grandparent, so she would be my extra-grandmother, and so I used to stay with her at weekends and she would tell me about stories where she had been to these gatherings of uh, you know, Native Americans in North America, and she was one of just a handful of white people, you know, and they had uh all these uh 5,000 people coming together, and she she had these amazing stories. She fell in love with a cowboy, you know, in Montana, and she lived above sort of the barn where the cow you're going, you're going to have to write her memoirs, you really are as if you've not got enough to do, as if you've not got enough to do.

SPEAKER_01 7:57

But there's there's one word there that has got so much power when we flip it, because you you're talking about your wonderful great aunt and her stories, yes, and the stories that have come from her adventures, but so often, and I know this is something that you delve into a lot, so often it's the stories that we're telling ourselves that stop us going on the adventures in the first place, isn't it? Yeah, so story it just stories are so powerful. But in terms of your own story, doing a little link there, how how did the the move because I know you you've you've moved around work-wise. Were you all was your career always involved with travel, or did you just take a leap and say, No, I've had enough of doing this, I'm going to try something else.

SPEAKER_00 8:40

So I actually met on my very first solo backpacking journey back in '99. I was uh lucky to meet a young Englishman who also loved travel. And so for 23 years, we explored the world and focused on traveling. That was what we loved doing. So we worked to travel, we worked to save money to go away, and we both had these amazing arrangements where we could go away from work and come back and were welcome back. So this went on for a long time, which was quite remarkable. But it meant that from Sweden, I briefly lived in Copenhagen, and then eventually I moved to England, and we lived together there until a few years ago when uh sadly the relationship ended, and I moved to Norway, and actually there was this transformation for me in my mid-40s where I broke up with the person I thought was the love of my life.

SPEAKER_01 9:43

And that's a massive, I mean, that's like a quarter of a century almost together.

SPEAKER_00 9:47

Yes, yes, and so I then undertook my own adventure to kind of rediscover myself because I had become part of some like a partnership. I was part of a child. Suddenly I have I was on my own again, and I needed to figure out who am I on my own.

SPEAKER_01 10:07

No, that'll resonate with so many listeners because especially now, I mean, I know you've not got children by choice, and not everyone, it's not for everyone. A lot of our listeners will have kids and will be now as this with the summer. I'm just thinking time-wise, we're coming out mid-August. The big looming empty nest. Oh my goodness me. Um, but in terms of, I almost forgot what I was going to say that I'm I'm my heart's going out to all the mums and dads out there. But no, in terms of moving and changing and things going thrown up in the air, we just don't know what's necessarily coming. And that's what I was going to say. I completely forgot then. I was like, Kate, just keep rambling away and it'll come back to you. And it has, listeners, I'll probably keep that in because that as a prime example, my brain is so foggy at the moment and the heat wave's finished. I've got no excuse. No, it was when the the when you are in a situation of empty nesting looming or a relationship breaking down, absolutely, it might be that the woman you are now, the last time you were on your own, you were 17 or 18. You might have met your partner at university or in your first job or whatever, and now you're like, I've not been on my own, I've got no idea. And often I would have thought the desire, the craving is to literally jump from one relationship to another, to another. I don't mean security, I'm not playing down off our emotions here, but it is like I, you know, I don't want to be on my own, I'm not ready to be on my own. But I think I think what you did is just such a powerful way of just as you say, getting to know ourselves again.

SPEAKER_00 11:53

Yeah, yeah. I think a lot of it has to do with rediscovering yourself, what you on your own actually love. And I think for empty nesters, where especially women have played quite a large role as caregivers, as the responsible mothers, and put them their own sort of perhaps desires on cause. Well, because excuses. Well, wonderful excuses. I think it's rediscovering those desires because in some cases, uh, I think women might even feel a bit like, who am I? I don't even know anymore, because it's been so long that they've had this role of mother, and um giving yourself the opportunity and time to allow yourself to rediscover what is it that I love doing if it's just up to me, that's important. And I think to trust yourself that uh you will you will find that spark again. But I think we are all held back by sort of patterns of behavior that almost run on autopilot, and breaking free from those is part of sort of uh what I call the adventure mindset, where you actually it's not about climbing Kilimanjaro or quitting your job and you know throwing it all out, but finding those little moments in daily life where perhaps you say hello to that person you've never spoken to at work or a neighbor or someone on the bus stop and just doing things that feel a little bit uncomfortable, but those micro adventures add up to you discovering that actually you can do things, and then step by step you are expanding your comfort zone to become as big as you want it to, but don't rush, just do it deliberately. That's I think for many people.

SPEAKER_01 13:56

So I was gonna say, you know, we obviously we've used the word adventure in the title of our episode, and for some people, they might immediately bring to mind, as you say, you know, around the world trip or or you know, I don't know, skydiving or something big, something, oh yes, absolutely, something big. And then they might again, the excuses emptiness or or no, not emptiness, emptiness isn't an excuse, it's the reverse, but having the kids around or having aging parents or a job that's you know, literally you leave the house at half six and you're not back till goodness knows what time. All these things we can say, no, I can't do that because of. But as these excuses fade away or change, not necessarily fade away, but as circumstances change, now's the time to think, okay, my adventure may not be climbing Kilimanjaro, my adventure may not be going solo round Europe on the train. But as you say, let's start thinking what does light us up? What are we thinking? Do you know what? I've always fancied doing so and so. I've always fancied, and uh one of the excuses that is still cropping up is I've got no one to do it with.

SPEAKER_00 15:10

So do it on your own, go to the cinema on your own. I mean, I've done that, and so many people say, What? You go on your own, isn't that weird? And it's like, why is it weird? You know, so it's it's all about just trying it before you make a decision that no, that's not for me. I don't like it. But until you've tried it, don't dismiss it because you might enjoy something far more than you thought. And not trying means that you might be missing out on an activity that you love, but because you hesitate to even give it a go, you actually don't know.

SPEAKER_01 15:49

No, that's so true. Now, I say obviously you're going to be talking through your your adventure mindset, which you've alluded to, and your small method. But I'm I'm itching to know now. You've been teasing me. We're talking about adventures, you're talking about your travels. I'm gonna put you on the spot a little bit. I mean, what are the key postcards of your life that you're like, yeah, when you are sitting having a quiet moment, the memories or the the vi are you a visual person? Do you do you or do you remember smells or sounds? What is it that triggers your memories of your adventures?

SPEAKER_00 16:21

I would say I'm a visual and a kinesthetic person. So it's all sort of touch, the feeling, the experience, uh, you know, the butterflies in your stomach, um, how it made me feel is very important. And then the visual. So I have some favorite countries that I keep going back to and some that I haven't been to for a long time, but Nepal is one of those. And being in the Himalayas, I always find has been it's sort of it's good for your soul. You come back, and there's something profoundly calming after having been to Nepal and hiked in the mountains, and then uh the beaches and the beautiful islands in Indonesia, uh amazing um diving, snorkeling, fascinating cultures, uh, very, very interesting, uh, different islands and different people between those different islands. And then lately I actually went to Madagascar in uh June, July for three weeks, and that made me feel like I traveled back in time because it's so undeveloped. Yes, it was like being back in let's say '99, you know, before mobile smartphones and people having every sort of access to everything at your fingertips. They're still heavily dependent on cash. And some areas you have to literally go to the bank and take out as much cash you can access and bring it all with you because otherwise there's no way to pay you for anything. And the people are still, if I may call them, unspoiled by tourism. Uh, the children know how to play, they invent games with the little things that they find, they don't have toys, so they make a pebble and a stick. It's like, oh yes, yes, and so that was an amazing journey. But um, I also love South Africa and Botswana for the wilderness and the big wild animals, which is quite something else. So there are so many countries that I could talk about, you know, Latin America with its dance and music and wonderful, sort of uh passionate people. Uh yeah, different world parts of the world bring different things.

SPEAKER_01 18:47

So yeah, listeners, I'd love in the comments your favorite places you've been to as well. Let's let's all let's all share, let's all share. I think India's right up there with me actually. I love India.

SPEAKER_00 18:56

India is another one. I mean, the food and the street food there is uh amazing. So every time I've been there three times, and I've I met an Indian who this recently, and he said, Oh, you've seen more of India than I have, and I could hear that quite often, actually.

SPEAKER_01 19:14

Well, that's another thing I was gonna say. You know, I said, you know, not all adventures have to be a massive physical trek or a massive leap out of our comfort zone. And of course, you know, most of my listeners or our listeners are UK-based, and we can have adventures on our own doorstep to a certain extent as well, and they don't have to cost the earth either. But I would love to delve into your I mean, I have the metamorphosis mindset. I think mindset is so powerful. So, your adventure mindset and obviously your smile method, how do the two interplay? And and how can listeners harness your advice and your framework, for want of a better phrase, to actually get off their bums, stop thinking about it, stop dreaming about it, say yes you can, whether you're on your own or not? And the cinema, it's almost weird to go to the cinema with someone because you can't talk to them. So it makes far more far more sense to go on your own. Um what are the the steps that we can take listening to this on a sunny-ish August day, thinking, right, I'm gonna set myself challenges? What what what are the steps that you would advise, or or how do we go about making our midlife an adventure?

SPEAKER_00 20:33

So, first I would say uh the awareness that you have some patterns is really helpful and important because the awareness makes you able to actually identify what's going on. Without the awareness, uh you are just gonna continue on autopilot, and it's difficult to change. So the first step is really the self-awareness and recognize that you are being held back by some fears, and usually they come from patterns that we learned as children that we've carried with us into adulthood. And then the smile is one of those things that I like to bring in because everyone can relate to a smile, and when we smile, we actually signal to the brain that we are safe, you're not going to be running away from a tiger smiling. So there is a sort of very basic uh biological reason for the smile having this uh profound impact on us. And even when you're sad, if you force yourself to smile and you do it for you know a few seconds, allow it to kind of settle, you are gonna start to shift your mood and you will still be.

SPEAKER_01 21:54

Well, I call it I well, I've heard it called before the Mona Lisa smile. And it is you don't have to put on a strange Grin, but it is just slightly lifting the corners of your mouth. And it does trigger, doesn't it? Yep. It does.

SPEAKER_00 22:06

There is a chemical uh process that will happen. And so most people don't realize that there's about twice as many signals going from the body to the brain as from the body down. So sometimes it's actually really useful to remember that we can change how we feel by activating the body by smiling, because that signals to the brain that uh we are safe, we are happy, and it will release those feel-good hormones that then genuinely makes us feel happy. So it's it's a constant uh exchange, it's a the mind-body connection is something people probably have heard, and and it is a real thing. And so thinking about why you might not be doing something, is it a fear, and where does that fear come from? And then really using kind of the different ways to be very present in the moment because when we are present, we can't really be stressed because we're not thinking about the past or the future, so we are kind of releasing those negative emotions that might come, and then allow for a more positive and expansive way of thinking to occur. So becoming very present through tapping into our five senses is very useful. And when you then apply the smile, it makes your whole nervous system relax. So it actually enhances your sense of being in the moment because you are signaling to your system, to your nervous system that you are safe. And then you can start to think about okay, what am I curious about? What could I explore today? So, like I said, you could say hello to a stranger and see what happens, and you could try that dish that you normally bypass, you know, on maybe a buffet or on the menu, or try a new dance or a move or anything, a hobby that you've uh been sort of curious about, but you thought that, oh no, that's not for me, give it a go. I mean, what's the worst thing that can happen, right?

SPEAKER_01 24:33

Oh, I I love that phrase, absolutely, and I say I call it positive catastrophizing as well. If you're gonna think what's the worst that can happen, you've almost prepared yourself for anyway. So it's like, okay, yeah, I'm ready for this, I'm ready for this. And yeah, mindfulness, like you just said, I'm a huge, huge fan of that. Just bringing yourself into the moment because again, it stops us worrying about the future, any guilt or regret that the past brings as well. No, love that. Um, flexible, I think, as well, because things won't always go to plan. The the best laid plans, yeah, the best laid plans will probably go wrong, won't they?

SPEAKER_00 25:12

Yes, yes, and it is also to sort of trust that things will work out. So it might not be what you thought, but things do work out, and people tend to be much kinder and much more helpful than we might suspect, because we have this very negative view based on media of our fellow humans. When actually, when you travel and you meet people, the vast majority are kind and good-natured people who will surprise you in a very positive way.

SPEAKER_01 25:47

Now, I said earlier, you know, we're talking about excuses that we make, and I think a lot of this as well, when we're talking about making midlife an adventure, because it does involve taking those steps, leaps, tiptoes, what whatever feels good for us. Yeah, there is that, what will she say? What will he say? Who do they? It's like kind of like who does she think she is type feeling of fear of judgment, fear of making an idiot of ourselves, fear of not liking it. You know, but these are all things that we can overcome, aren't they?

SPEAKER_00 26:20

Absolutely. And one of the things that I've learned is that regardless of who you are, where you come from, your culture, your religious background, you know, like it doesn't really matter. Humans all have this uh character, the judge or the inner critic, as it's also called. And it is that that sort of voice that judges us, we judge ourselves, we judge other people, and we judge circumstances. And it doesn't matter how successful someone is, but this sort of judge, this inner critic causing us to doubt ourselves never really goes away. It is a part of being human, and it's learning to lower the volume and recognize when this judge character is hijacking us and uh learn to just well that's it.

SPEAKER_01 27:17

I think the most important thing is to give her a name because she's not us. I say mine's called Deirdre. Listeners will regular listeners will know that, but yeah, it's about turning the critic into the cheerleader because in the end of the day, she's trying to protect us in her own strange way, but we can let those comments and those phrases just stop us in our tracks, can't we? And then we just we start you repeating them almost out loud to ourselves, I'm not good enough, I can't do that. What you know, who do I think I am to go and do that? Oh no, what will people say? I mean, as you say, turning down the volume and saying, Well, what will people say? They'll say, Good on her for giving it a go. They'll probably say, Wish I had the guts to give it a try. They'll probably say, Why didn't she invite me to go to the cinema with her?

SPEAKER_00 28:11

Yes, yeah. And I think also a lot of women have this uh pleaser saboteur, this sort of um characteristic or pattern of behavior that they put everybody else's needs first and then they don't necessarily feel deserving of doing something just for themselves. And that can be a very powerful hindrance to having more fun, having more adventures, because you believe that you know you need to please others, you need to take care of others first. Uh so I think recognizing whether it is that pattern, whether it's the pleaser, whether it's um something else, that you might have perhaps be scared. You know, you might genuinely have grown up in an environment that was quite um dangerous, and so you might be a hyper-vigilant. So you might have this fear of things going wrong, and that again will be a fear that's holding you back. So most of us have different fears, and it's all based around how we grew up, how our parents were, you know, and recognizing those and then working on what's the option and what alternatives do I have. And we all do have alternatives that are far more liberating and positive. We just need to learn to identify those inner powers, if you like, or the inner wisdom and trust ourselves again. I think a lot of people don't really listen to the intuition as much as they could. Um when we listen to that gut feeling, often I love a good gut feeling, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 30:00

No, absolutely.

SPEAKER_00 30:02

So, and that's that is uh part of what I do is to learn to people or to help people learn how to be more curious, to explore, how to navigate different decisions, how to innovate, find solutions, and then also how to take action so that it's not stuck in just this you know thinking phase, but actually doing it because that's what matters, you know. Action precedes confidence. You need to I love that phrase you use.

SPEAKER_01 30:34

Yeah, no, that's so true because I don't know. I I love the idea of you know manifesting and vision boards and everything, but I always say that's that's great, but you've actually got to take the action as well. Now we've we've mentioned your SMARL method, and obviously later on you've got the your um all your details are in the show notes, and you've got your guest profile on the website. Um, but before we go into your questions that I ask everyone, can you actually talk us through what the SMARL method's all about? Because I'm quite intrigued. I'm quite intrigued.

SPEAKER_00 31:08

Yes, of course. So it's uh it's not as cryptic as it might uh sound. I think at its core, it literally is just to discover how powerful your smile is. Because when you smile, it's like you open the door for others to have a more positive experience, for conversations to flow with the positive tone. So it does have an impact both on how you feel, but also how your relationships are, the communication with other people, and therefore also often the performance from a professional perspective. And the SMILE method is really, I've used the acronym because it feels uh aligned for me, but it's S stands for self-awareness, M is for meaningful connection, I is for inner resilience, and L is for lasting change. And the final E is empowered living. So that is perhaps most relevant to how you'd introduce your show because it's all about reclaiming your spark.

SPEAKER_01 32:22

Oh, love that, love that, love that. So before I say we go into the three questions I ask each of my fabulous guests, what would be not I won't pick tie you down to one, but your key takeaway to all the lovely ladies out there and gents as well, who are sitting there going, well, yes, actually, Kate, Camilla, my spark could do with a bit of uh re-sparking. I am feeling a bit flat, but now I've actually got itchy feet. I'm gonna actually get off my bum when I finish listening to, or you might be walking through the woods anyway, you might be off your bum already. I'm going to make a little plan. Would that be your first tip? Do you think? Make some plan some small steps.

SPEAKER_00 33:08

I would say my first tip would be smile. Yes. And then perhaps make a plan. But definitely take action. So the plan needs to be followed by action. Don't just make a plan. You might have lists all around post-but without without actually doing it, it will remain largely um in the, you know, it's not gonna have that impact on you unless you carry out those uh those um little steps or big ones, you know, depends on where you are. So I'd say challenge yourself to do something new, however small it is, each day, and do it for seven days and see how do you feel. Because it might seem insignificant, but uh when you add those little mini adventures on top of each other, you do start to feel more confident. And when you feel more confident, you carry yourself differently, and that means people are gonna probably uh start to treat you a little bit differently, and it all compounds, it's what people normally talk about sort of the marginal gains or 1% each day has a profound impact over time, and so I am a firm believer in the small steps and the little actions are more sustainable, and therefore that's what works. People could do something once that's amazing, it's an it's got a transformational potential, but unless they carry on with some something to keep that going, it might still become just that one event, and it doesn't have a lasting impact. And I'm all about the lasting impact.

SPEAKER_01 35:02

Oh, absolutely. I was gonna say another another little thing you could do as well is you say, think how you feel, recognize how you feel, even make a note of how you feel, journal about it, and then you could actually use the thoughts that kind of come flooding out on your journal pages to create some mantras that to actually use to encourage yourself and motivate yourself. So it really does build into a whole plethora, a plethora of skills and tips that you can use for adding adventure to our midlife. Absolutely, yes. I'm I'm ready, I'm ready. I always love I love an adventure. I'm very, very I'm I'm definitely embracing the childlike curiosity. I do love trying new things, as will become more evident as the year progresses, because there's so many new things that I'm trying. I'm trying to control my magpie tendencies at the same time because it's a fine line, isn't it, between trying lots of new things and going over the top, and then you're like, I can't, yeah. All these wonderful ideas, turning them into actions, turning them into actions. Now, as I said, we are going to be sharing your um details for how people can get in touch with you in a little while. But first, if you're still sitting comfortably, I am going to ask you the three questions that I ask each of my fabulous guests. So you can't escape, but I'm quite interested to see if there's an adventurous theme or a smile theme going through them. So your first question is what is your midlife anthem?

SPEAKER_00 36:30

That one was really tricky because I love dancing, and anything that has a good beat usually gets me wiggling in my chair. But uh a song that I listen to uh often and have for many years is uh Saturday Night Uh Fever, so Night Fever from Saturday Night Fever, and so I would say that one has to be the the anthem if I have to.

SPEAKER_01 36:59

Yeah, one of my favorite films of all time, one of my favorite soundtracks. Oh love it, love it, love it. Bee's absolutely brilliant. And first time that's been put on the uh the playlist as well. So this playlist is coming, ladies and gents. This playlist is big. I thought you were gonna say smile by take that, but no, you can have it on that. Well, there are loads of smile songs out there. We won't go down that road. I won't start singing take that to you. So that leads me into question number two. What is your midlife mantra? The phrase or yeah, sentence, phrase, quote that lights you up.

SPEAKER_00 37:39

So it will be action precedes confidence because I started in my early 40s to volunteer to be the first to do something rather than stand and wait and hesitate. I decided, you know what? When someone's asking in a group to uh who wants to go first, I decided I'm gonna be that person, I'm just gonna go for it. Uh because by doing it, I am reinforcing that I can. And every time you do that, you'll grow your confidence, and then the confidence is just becoming part of you. So in the beginning, yes, it might feel really daunting, but action precedes confidence, it really does make you more confident.

SPEAKER_01 38:32

No, I love that because there's a lot of people now you hear again and again that during the years saying yes. I think it was a book originally, wasn't it? But that has caused huge changes, and people have really found that empowering. But I think this takes it to another level, and I'm a big fan of this. Sometimes you can fall flat on your bum and think, Why did I do this? But it is that fear of the unknown, it gets you used to, and also often if you're at an event, it'll involve putting yourself in the spotlight, which for some people is can be uncomfortable, can be something that's unfamiliar. So by say, yeah, by volunteering, going, okay, here I am, and it's a good way if you are on an event. If it for I mean, I know this isn't a business podcast, but it's a little top tip for a networking event, but it's a good way to get yourself seen as well, even if you do make a bit of an idiot of yourself.

SPEAKER_00 39:22

Just saying. I think most people love that though. They will because they will feel reassured that they're not the only ones who can make a fool out of themselves. So people will love you for it.

SPEAKER_01 39:34

And it's leading by, you know, especially as you know, two coaches here, it's leading by example. And I think a lot of people do like to see that someone is up for it. We're not just sitting there spouting, you should I don't do shoulds, but you know, telling people what to do. No, we're just that further down, a little bit further down the path, reaching a hand out to you going, come on, we'll show you, we'll show you, we'll show you where the pebbly bits are. Which leads me to your final question before we go into your contact details. What is the title of your autobiography?

SPEAKER_00 40:08

It is Wildly Alive, a life of adventures. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 40:15

And is it gonna be packed with fabulous photographs as well?

SPEAKER_00 40:19

Oh, yes, that's probably gonna take me uh uh 10 years to throll through all the thousands of photographs I've accumulated lately.

SPEAKER_01 40:28

Oh, I I'm delighted that you are uh you do take photos because a lot of people go, Oh yes, I did this amazing thing, but I was so busy doing the thing I forgot to take photographs.

SPEAKER_00 40:38

I it's it's a fine line, isn't it? Because you don't want to be distracted uh by taking photographs and missing out on the experience. Yeah. So it is take a quick photo and then be in the moment rather than spend too much time uh recording the experience. But I I do like I try to do both because I do think that this uh I can revisit it, I can share it, and of course, when you try to have an online presence, showing people who you are and what you're up to is kind of important, so it has made me more more sort of focused on it than I think definitely do both.

SPEAKER_01 41:23

I remember a vivid memory. My son and I in the Louvre, Mona Lisa in front of us, packed packed room. Finley and I were the only two people actually looking at the picture. Uh everyone else had their iPods, pad no, yeah, pads, phones, looking at it through the phone through and then went walked out. We actually took some time, we didn't outstay our welcome, but we took some time and we yeah, we took photos, but as you say, to actually absorb it directly through your senses rather than with the phone in between. But then no, make sure you do get the photographs because otherwise you get home and you go, Oh, I I wish we had a photograph of so-and-so. Yeah, that's me that is, yeah. Well, I look forward to your book, but in the meantime, I'm going to ask you to share. I say all your details are on the um show notes. My brain went there. Show notes for our episode, and you have your guest profile on the Midlife Unlimited podcast website. But can you talk listeners through how they can get in touch with you? I understand there's a bit of a update coming with your website. So, do you want to give both for now? And then obviously the most relevant one will be on your links. Over to you. Over to you.

SPEAKER_00 42:38

Yes. So the easiest way to find me is uh I have a name that's if spelled correctly, it is most likely gonna be me.

SPEAKER_01 42:49

Quite an unusual spelling, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 42:51

As long as people spell my name the way it is, Camilla with a K, double L, and then Norman with a double R and just one N at the end, then you will find me pretty much across uh all social media platforms. And my first and current website is literally Camillanorman.com. That has a focus on the adventures and adventure mindset, and now I'm also building a website that's gonna be the smilesmethod.com, so smilesmethod.com, where it will slightly more focus in on the smile because I think sometimes people who are very stressed are not ready to think about adventures, and so that becomes a too far-fetched. Uh, and the smile might be that bridge. Uh, it feels more approachable. So that's uh in the pipeline. Uh, I have started the work and I'm very excited to be launching that soon.

SPEAKER_01 43:54

Excellent. So, oh yeah, watch this space. Obviously, whatever's on the um show notes and on Camilla's profile on the website is the most accurate if I've remembered to update them. The most accurate way you can get hold of her. But if not, all the socials you are available by name. By name, yes, Camilla Norman. Love that. And listeners, I'd like your feedback on today's episode. Has it inspired you to welcome a bit more adventure into your life? So it'd be fabulous if you could leave a review or thumbs up, uh, share, subscribe. Love all of those. And you could email or text me too via the link in the show notes. Um, come and join the Midlife Unlimited podcast Facebook group. Again, the links in the show notes where you'll find details of the website, where you'll find details of how you can work with me one-to-one. Um, and join more M-O-R-E exclamation mark, my multi-award-winning uh all-in-one coaching that combines one-to-one with group programming. Group programming, group program, uh coaching. My brain, I tell you, my brain today is not good, it's not good. Um, and watch this space. Obviously, I keep talking about the book. The book is coming. Camilla will be in the book, and also my first ever live in-person event is in the pipeline. So I know, I know. Exciting. Very exciting. Adventure, adventure, just getting started. So thanks for joining me, Camilla. It's been wonderful. I love I love your adventure. I love your zest for life. I love everything about you. Thank you for listening, dear listeners. I look forward to tuning in next week because don't forget Midlife Unlimited has a new episode every Thursday, at least one episode every Thursday, available wherever you get your podcasts. So here's to being fabulous and flourishing together and living Midlife Unlimited. Thanks, Kamila. It's been brilliant. Bye. Thank you.