My husband bet on my career twice.

The first time, I was pregnant with our first. He stepped back from his law career to stay home with our kids.

One year turned into 13.

The second time, I’d just been fired.

After 25 years climbing to Executive Vice President at Nordstrom, my time there was over.

When your title disappears, you find out how much of your identity was attached to it.

I was no longer “Loretta from Nordstrom.” No longer the breadwinner. To say I was rudderless is an understatement.

Sam could have asked me to play it safe and look for a job at Amazon.

Instead, he bet on me again.

I started building from our bedroom floor.

That bedroom floor became a consulting business advising global retailers and brands, a bestselling book, and a speaking career I never planned.

Getting fired took my title, and my confidence for a while.

But it didn’t take my judgment, my relationships, or what I knew.

Reinvention at midlife isn’t starting over.

It’s starting from experience.

And the people who bet on you when you can’t see the next step are worth more than any title.

For more on how we navigated all of this, check out my book Balance is Bullshit.