By: Deb Monfette
Across cultures and continents, women are reimagining what midlife looks like. For generations, this season of life carried a narrative of crisis or decline—a time marked by regret, limitation, or the sense of having missed one’s chance. Today, that story is changing. More women are using midlife not as an ending, but as a powerful new beginning.
Cassandra Crawley Mayo is among the leaders helping to drive that shift. A bestselling author, speaker, transformational mentor, and founder of CCM Enterprises LLC, she is part of a global movement of women who are choosing clarity, faith, and purpose over burnout, regret, and self-doubt.
Roots of Resilience
Mayo’s clarity didn’t appear overnight; it was shaped by a lifetime of experiences. Raised in Newport News, Virginia, her faith was nurtured early by her grandfather, a Baptist minister. At the same time, her mother broke barriers as a teacher who volunteered to integrate an all-white school. As a child, Cassandra was the only Black student in that environment, an experience that forced her to navigate questions of race, belonging, and courage from a young age.
Later, she attended a Historically Black College and University (HBCU), where she discovered deep cultural pride and the confidence to step into spaces where she would often be “the first.” Those formative years instilled the grit and determination that carried her through her corporate ascent.
Redefining Midlife on a Global Stage
Mayo’s career path initially led her through the automobile industry and banking before she ascended to senior leadership in hospitality. This breadth gave her a wide-angle view of corporate culture across industries, sharpening her adaptability in navigating different environments. Along the way, she earned a Master’s degree in Organizational Development and Human Resources from Johns Hopkins University and a Hopkins Fellows Certificate in Change Management. These credentials deepened her expertise in leadership, culture, and organizational transformation.
Her rise was not without resistance. At times, she faced whispers that she was promoted because of her race. Instead of letting doubt define her, she let her results speak louder than assumptions—proving again and again that her leadership, qualifications, and work ethic earned every advancement.
That turning point led her to write her #1 bestselling book Is Your Way In Your Way?, launch her acclaimed podcast, Is Your Way In Your Way?, and create her signature system The Rise Journey™. While these platforms are rooted in her personal story, the message resonates globally: midlife does not have to be a crisis. It can be a season of alignment, clarity, and courageous new beginnings.
A Defining Moment of Leadership
But the defining pivot in Cassandra’s life wasn’t a boardroom victory; it happened in an airport. After hours of mounting chaos and flight delays, she sat quietly watching frustration and tension rise. Then, without planning, she stood up not to complain, but to lead. She approached the overwhelmed airline agents, calmly gathered the facts, and took the mic. In that moment, she brought calm, clarity, and direction to more than 100 anxious passengers.
Mayo explains, “It was surreal. I heard God’s voice say, ‘If you would just get out of your own way, you would see the glorious purpose I have for your life.’”
That moment of divine clarity gave birth to her bestselling book, Is Your Way In Your Way?, and became the foundation for her mission: to help women move from stuck to shining, from doubting to leading, from fear to fierce faith.
Rise Beyond Limits™: A Roadmap for Reinvention
Central to Mayo’s message is the Rise Beyond Limits™, a six-step, faith-rooted method she created to help women stop shrinking and start rising. The framework offers a universal roadmap for midlife reinvention:
- Recognize the barriers, patterns, and limiting beliefs that keep you stuck.
- Interrupt negative thought cycles, perfectionism, and comparison.
- Surrender control and open yourself to divine alignment.
- Embrace your authentic identity, gifts, and purpose.
- Build new habits, boundaries, and goals that sustain growth.
- Launch into a new chapter with clarity, courage, and confidence.
Mayo explains, “This is not about quick fixes. It’s about transformation. Midlife presents the ideal opportunity to pause, reflect, and choose alignment. When women rise through this process, they not only change their own lives, they impact their families, communities, and workplaces.”
Walking Out of Regret
A key theme in Mayo’s work is regret and how to overcome it. Too many women, she believes, carry the weight of “shoulds” that define their choices.
Mayo explains, “So much of our lives are shaped by what we think we should do: the career we should pursue, the life we should live, the way we should show up. The breakthrough comes when you realize you don’t need permission to live boldly. You only need to stop getting in your own way.”
Through her mentoring, programs, and speaking, she helps women not only confront regret but transform it into courage. By sharing her story of reinvention, she provides proof that midlife is not a finish line but a launchpad.
The Midlife Ripple Effect
Globally, women in midlife are facing unique pressures. Economic uncertainty, career transitions, caregiving responsibilities, and cultural expectations often collide during this season of life. Yet research shows that women over 40 are also among the fastest-growing entrepreneurs, community leaders, and change-makers.
Mayo explains, “When women rise in midlife, they don’t just change their own lives; they change families, organizations, and entire communities. The ripple effect is global.”
Her work underscores a larger truth: empowering women at midlife is not only a matter of individual growth, but of leadership, culture, and collective impact.
Building a Global Movement
Through CCM Enterprises LLC, Mayo delivers keynotes, corporate training, workshops, and ministry events alongside her bestselling book and podcast. Each platform amplifies her mission to help women rise beyond limitations and align with their God-given purpose.
Whether speaking to audiences in the U.S. or connecting with listeners worldwide through her podcast, Mayo blends candor, faith, and strategy into a message that transcends geography. She has also been featured on NBC 4 Washington, Great Day Washington (WUSA 9), and the Spotlight Network with Logan Crawford, as well as on international stages, including the Frankfurt Book Fair and the Black Books Matter Fest.
Mayo explains, “Wherever I go, I hear the same struggles—fear, doubt, regret—and I see the same courage rising. Women are ready to stop shrinking. They are ready to rise.”
Midlife Reimagined
Looking back, Mayo sees her pivot not as an isolated story but as part of a larger wave of women reimagining what is possible in midlife.
“Burnout and regret don’t have to define you,” she reflects. “This season can be about clarity, courage, and divine alignment. Midlife is not a crisis. It’s the most powerful time to rise.”
Cassandra Crawley Mayo continues to guide women to rise boldly through The R.I.S.E. Journey™her signature system, and bestselling book and podcast Is Your Way In Your Way?. Discover more at her official website or connect with her on LinkedIn.
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