A Conversation with Gail Taylor, Canadian Songwriter, Entrepreneur and Advocate for the Power of Music to Inspire Change

Gail Taylor is extraordinary! She found her purpose in midlife and found a way to build her finance career around that purpose. She then pivoted full time into a career helping others full time, using her passion for music and "superpower" of songwriting to help others meet life's challenges with grace and intention. In this episode, Gail shares the story of her midlife reinvention, in which she traded a successful finance career to help others become their best selves. Her unique public speaking approach harnesses her songwriting talent to motivate and inspire. She became a songwriter at age 62, as well as a keynoter speaker, entrepreneur and passionate advocate for the power of music to inspire change. Her catalog of 13 published songs (produced and recorded in Nashville) draws from her life experiences and imparts invaluable messages, taking center stage in her speaking engagements. She considers songs to be stories, and she uses her powerful songs drawn from her personal experiences to help others re-write their own stories. For the past 35 years, Gail has stood on stages and spoken about finance and socially responsible investing. Her journey began in the business world, where she honed her skills and expertise. She attained her Certified Investment Manager Analyst (CIMA) designation from Wharton University, acquired her MBA at Queens University, and underwent executive training at Harvard Business School, all while building a successful Investment Advisory practice.  In the late 1970s, she embarked on a parallel journey, one dedicated to personal betterment and the art of setting and achieving goals. Then she started learning and playing the piano at age 58! Music flooded into her life, and she retired at 61 to begin studying music in earnest (including at Berklee School of Music--my son's alma mater). She reinvented herself as a musician. She is currently penning her second book, Curve Balls, which contains personal stories and tools to inspire folks to take action in designing their own lives. She started a kickstarting campaign (see below) to help her continue to get her messages out and be on stage in the empowerment world. She observes that the Covid pandemic and opioid crisis presented both challenges and opportunities for people to consider reinventing their lives. Her primary speaking topics are mental health and addiction; empowering women, having worked in a male-dominated industry for most of her career; and tools for leveling up one's life. Her mission is to help as many people as she can to deal with life's curveballs. You can learn more about Gail, support her and follow her work at the links below. Her current Kickstarter campaign (ending 12/22/23) will help her help others and includes clever rewards, like digital access to her upcoming book and the music that accompanies the book, an autographed copy of her book, having your name in her book, an inspirational pendant necklace (which include messages like "Be Your Own Wings"), public speaking discounts and private mentoring sessions with tools to uplevel your life. Gail will even write an acoustic custom song and create a photo video (at $1,000 off her customary price) for someone a donor loves, interviewing the donor and using personal stories to write the lyrics. Those who donate to the campaign can keep the rewards or gift them to others. Listen to this episode and be inspired! Website: http://www.gailtaylormusic.com Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/gailtaylormusic/curve-balls-an-inspirational-book-speaking-circuit Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/gailtaylormusic Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/gailtaylormusic TikTok: http://www.tiktok.com/gailtaylormusic Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/gailtaylormusic Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1IpG4HEUG1OPL5bOtUgZhx?si=MG_ySn6aS0eHDO9-AKsaGQ Speakers Bureau of Canada: https://speakerscanada.com/keynote-speaker/gail-taylor/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gailtaylor1/