58 and Unapologetic. Jacqueline Freeman on living her best years and rising up against ageism Artwork

The Sage Sayers

A weekly podcast on ways to stay calm and compel others as you communicate. Along with executive communications tips and strategies, we interview intriguing individuals who've found the "Sage approach" by finding gifts, opportunities, and knowledge within trying situations. New Zealander show host, Debbi Gardiner McCullough, has written on social and business trends and struggles for the Economist, the Guardian, and Financial Times of London. She's a self-retired college professor of writing, an executive communications and narrative coach. Visit her at: www.hangingrockcoaching.com

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The Sage Sayers

58 and Unapologetic. Jacqueline Freeman on living her best years and rising up against ageism

August 08, 2025 • Jacqueline Freeman and Debbi Gardiner McCullough • Season 5 • Episode 16

My guest this week is Jacqueline Freeman, a New Zealander TV industry insider, a media strategist, and the unapologetic voice behind a platform thats rewriting what relevance looks like after 50. After her posts speaking out against ageism went viral, reaching 1 million views (and counting) her podcast interview with the Sage Sayers is her first after many invitations elsewhere. (Lucky us!)

Freeman’s a voice worth listening to. Thousands of people write to her saying they feel heard, stronger from her truth, and that her posts are real.

Her hope: that those 50 and over can sit and stand a little taller, find their place in a job market that discriminates, and go out on their own. Entrepreneurialism empowers, we both agree, and that brings creativity and an entirely different perspective and point of view. We’re not over the hill, yet. We’re doing the best work of our careers.

You can find Jacqueline on LinkedIn here. (Don’t be surprised if she writes back, as she did to me, to accept this interview.)

Your show host, D G McCullough is a former reporter for the Guardian, the Economist, and the FT of London. She runs Hanging Rock Coaching and serves as a communications coach to leaders all over the globe. Find her on LinkedIn. Join her upcoming communications workshops on Maven, Brag Anyway, and Listen Like a Boss. Her free Lightning Lessons: Be brief with your Brag (Aug 14) and How to feel less awkward with pause in conversation. (Aug 13)