Meet Dr. Brenda
Passion and persistence are the keys to building a fabulous life.
Add in a bit of good fortune and you will be unstoppable.
Adversity. Now that’s a word I know well. Like many, my life has been shaped by adversity.
As a young girl, I dreamed of a life beyond the family farm. Education would be my way out …or so I believed.
At the age of 30, I earned my doctoral degree in Sociology. With the new PhD in hand, I was ready to set the world on fire. A month later I was downsized from my university job and entered an anemic academic market in the midst of state budget cuts. I slipped into poverty as career prospects grew dim.
Three years and four states later, I finally caught a break, landing a position as a Crime Analyst. And less than a year later, I drove to the outskirts of the nation’s capital and began my dream job, carrying out national-scope research on justice system issues. Eventually, I made one more career move, spending more than 16 years researching and promoting court reform.
My career was wildly successful - I received national awards and even testified in front of Congress. But I was worn out from the work trips, long hours, dysfunctional workplace, and the slow pace of reform. And I had become increasingly distraught by the political landscape of divisiveness and negativity. I turned to writing as an escape, launching The Five Journeys in July 2017.
Later that fall, for the first time ever in my career, I took a month of vacation. I had an amazing time, and when I returned to the office, something had changed. Vacation had brought COLOR back into my life…work was filled with BEIGE. I fell into a rut. And that’s when the 30-Day Challenges were born. The Challenges finally outgrew my website and are now housed at Better Life Challenges.
In the spring of 2018, my career came to a crashing end. In hindsight, I had been preparing for a new life for quite some time. I had built enough financial freedom to take a giant leap, so I created the Early Exit Academy, where I offer fun online course to help others become financially free and live the life of their dreams.
Life has certainly taken twists and turns and I’m holding on tight for this wild ride! I hope you’ll join me on this journey. Life is good!
Brenda