Advertise on podcast: The 40 Portal

You start to see with your ears and listen with your belly. That's how my first guest, Kate Schmieding, describes what happens when you turn 40. Forty is your sixth sense — you begin to recognize what you already knew but can now KNOW. Really know. In this conversation, Kate and I talk about: → Friendship in your 40s (her 3-strikes rule, why reciprocity matters, how to stop forcing connections that aren't reciprocal) → Being cool because you're YOU (not performing, claiming who you've always been, "I recognize the cool in me as the cool in you") → Creative work without overnight success (Kate writes pop culture poetry — staying in the "low hum" instead of chasing viral moments) → You're not a late bloomer ("I've been blooming this whole time, my friends. I just haven't given it a name.") → Doing things because you WANT to (not because you're supposed to — this is your permission slip) → The midlife squeeze (parenting, work, everyone depending on you — and how to navigate it without losing yourself) ABOUT KATE: Kate Schmieding (rhymes with meeting) is a writer, poet, creative leader, joiner, hand-raiser, and hard-conversation-haver. She writes pop culture poetry, and her work studies the intersection of the mundane and the meaningful. She is the Creative Operations Director for NYS. Kate loves the 5 Ps: people, poetry, pop culture, push-ups and parmesan. She's also one of the most generous friends I know. Find her on Instagram: @kateschmied | @pop_culture_poetry SUBMIT YOUR WISDOM: Submit your voice to Portal & your words might just anchor the next episode of the podcast. Send your wisdom here: the40portal.com/submit IF YOU'RE IN THE MIDLIFE SQUEEZE: Work. Kids. Aging parents. Everyone depends on you. You've fallen to the bottom of your own list. Your 40s can break you or they can shape you. I'm gathering a small group of women in the Hudson Valley this June for The Portal Retreat | June 17-19, 2026. Three days to write and tell your own portal story. To do this inner work in community with other women who are deeply committed to the bit of becoming themselves. Space is limited. A few spots left. Learn More → https://www.the40portal.com/retreat 🎙️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube 📧 Substack: https://substack.com/@the40portal 🌐 Website: the40portal.com | catherinezack.com 📷 Instagram: @the40portal CREDITS: Host: Catherine ZackGuest: Kate SchmiedingEditor: Ruwantha Gunasinghe © 2026 The 40 Portal. 00:00 Welcome 02:44 Meeting Kate 06:24 The 3-strikes rule for friendship 11:46 What friendship is actually about in your 40s 18:23 Who are you without job titles and accomplishments? 22:39 Writing poetry at 40 (alchemy and magic) 28:17 Holding yourself so you can hold others 33:54 "I'm cool because I feel like myself" 41:45 Not being an overnight success44:57 "I'm not a late bloomer—I've been blooming the whole time" 49:35 Reciprocity 52:46 The 40 Portal notebook origin story 58:00 Kate's poem: "40 Is Your Sixth Sense"

Welcome to the trailer episode of The 40 Portal podcast, a coming of aging story, told by 40 real women. Host Catherine Zack shares the origin story: how a sketchbook at her 40th birthday party turned into something bigger. She asked inspiring women to write their wisdom in her notebook instead of signing a card. What she got back was raw, honest, beautiful — the kind of truth that doesn't show up through the algorithms. That notebook became the catalyst for this podcast. Over 40 episodes, Catherine sits down with 40 different women (ages 20s-80s) to explore the portals they're walking through — divorce, turning 40, career changes, loss, or the well-known "everything looks fine but I'm dying inside" feeling. These are threshold moments. These are the portals real women are walking through. This podcast is about what happens when women tell the truth — not the polished version, but the REAL stories. Because when women's real voices get heard, it sets us all free. Life is cyclical. Portals are natural. And a woman who knows herself is one of the most powerful, magical, and creatures on earth. Welcome to The 40 Portal, babe. Learn more and submit your wisdom and questions to The 40 Portal Podcast at the40portal.comSubstack: https://substack.com/@the40portalInstagram: @the40portal Keywords: 40 Portal Podcast, women's stories, portals, threshold moments, midlife transitions, turning 40, Catherine Zack, personal transformation, women's wisdom, handwritten wisdom, authenticity, coming of age, real stories, women in their 40s, portal stories, life transitions, becoming, conscious aging, women's voices, storytelling podcast, portal work, self-knowledge, real talk, vulnerability, women over 40, midlife transformation, feminist podcast