Making Up For Glossed Time

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Jen Polt• Confidence Coach, Speaker
Inspiring & coaching midlife women
Creator of Your Aunt LBD
Join The Confidence Clubhouse:
https://tinyurl.com/4j4ffe3v

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09/03/2026

You probably don’t want to hear this.

I have had MANY conversations with clients and friends trying to build a brand online, and here’s what I have heard:

“I don’t want to be on camera.”
“I don’t want to be known for the bad thing that happened to me.”
“I don’t want to talk about ‘my stuff’ online.”

And I get it. And I know what they want me to say—they want me to tell them that they don’t have to be on camera, that they can just share the stuff they WANT to share—all of the positive/informational/wisdom/“wow” content, and that will build their brand.

But after 6 years of building a brand literally from scratch, and all of the trials and tribulations that have come along with it—all of the research, all of the courses I took about social media content, all of the advice I’ve followed—I can tell you that the one thing that built my brand wasn’t my editing, my hooks, my messaging, or my knowledge.

IT WAS MY VULNERABILITY.

Yes, I have wisdom. Yes, I have experience. Yes, I have good content and things that help people build their confidence. I’m good at what I do.

But I know WHY they wanted to listen to me—it was because I was vulnerable. I was willing to share the ugly stuff, the ridiculous things, the times when imposter syndrome creeped in, the times when I felt frustrated and unmotivated. When I showed up on the Internet without a stitch of makeup on. When I shared about getting dumped at my kitchen island by my husband 3 weeks after I walked away from my big corporate job to bet on myself. I have cried many times on the internet—something I once thought was cringy, was something that connected people to me.

People BELIEVED that I would be a good coach for them because I had been through it myself.

I became a GUIDE instead of a coach.

And in a world of AI, that’s the one thing that will make your brand stand out. Put the PERSONAL in personal brand.

And if you need help building your confidence in your brand, comment CONFIDENCE below.

09/01/2026

This blew my mind.

In my coaching membership for women over 40, The Confidence Clubhouse, I bring in guest coaches to share their wisdom with the community.

A couple weeks ago, Samantha Brand, did an incredible session about journaling. And something that she said in that session cracked my head open.

Listen, I always wanted to be “journal girl.“ To have volumes of handwritten accounts of my thoughts, my dreams, my escapades, etc. I like to think that I’m cool enough to fill books full of my thoughts.

But I’ve never been consistent. I would get on a journaling kick for a few weeks, forget to journal for a couple days, then go down some shame spiral about being a few days behind and then stop.

As I was telling Sam that I’ve never been consistent in my journaling, I was quick to correct myself— I’ve actually been very consistent for the last six years—here, with all of you.

As she was quick to point out, journaling doesn’t have to be writing things down. It can be video, it can be voice notes or emails or text messages to yourself. The way you outward process is irrelevant. It’s the process that matters.

And then she said the thing that hasn’t left me:

when you are in a consistent journaling practice, your voice becomes the loudest in your head.

And when she said that I made the connection: here I am at 55, feeling the most confident I have ever felt. I have built a business around confidence. And all of that was built while I was outwardly journaling my life, thoughts and feelings to all of you. Doing that drowned out all of the other voices— friends, family, coworkers, trolls on the Internet— and has built this unshakable and unf**kwitable sense of self in me. I am proof positive that what Sam shows people in her journaling workshops is true.

So, Sammie inspired a month-long journaling discovery that we will be doing in The Clubhouse. To join us, comment CONFIDENCE.

And to be sure to check out Sammy’s workshops: Samantha Brand

08/30/2026

When you get to the top of the mountain, reach down and help others up, too.

This week, I’m doing a series all about Dolly Parton and lessons we can take from her life about how to love and live.

Today, it’s a story about what she did after she made it big and her song “I Will Always Love You” topped the charts.

They say character is what you do when no one is looking. And Dolly did a lot of things behind the scenes that people didn’t know about. Things to make people’s lives better, to protect their health, to put books in the hands of kids.

We could all take a page out of her life‘s handbook.

So, for Dolly… Let’s throw on some sparkles, push our t**s up, and spread a little love in the world.

Love you, kiddo.
Aunt LBD 💋

08/29/2026

Breaking up is hard to do.

With the passing of Dolly Parton, I’ve been looking at what an inspirational life she has lived. This week, I thought I would share some stories about her that you might not know —and some lessons that we can all take from the way she lived.

Today, it’s about walking away from someone who you love and who has been good to you… and knowing that is still not enough to make you happy. That sometimes we have to make tough decisions in order to chase down our dreams.

Not everyone is meant to walk with us through every season of our life. And when we are in a season of change and personal growth, sometimes the folks we thought would be there for the journey decide to opt out. Or, we outgrow them. When we go through a metamorphosis, we shed layers. And often, those layers are going to be people. And when the cost to stay the same is greater than the price we’d pay to shed those layers so we can grow… that’s when we know we have big decisions to make.

Come back tomorrow for part three of the series!

Love you kiddo.

08/28/2026

Dolly Parton was a bad ass.

A lot of you kiddos may not know a whole lot about her, but for people in my generation and older, Dolly Parton meant a lot to us.

I thought over the next few days I would share a few stories about her and the life lessons that she taught us just by living the beautiful life that she lived for 80 years.

I’m going to call the series “What Would Dolly Do?”

And today I’m going to tell you the story about her most famous song and how a lot of people don’t even realize she’s the one who wrote it.

I’m sure most of you kiddos know the song by Whitney Houston, “I Will Always Love You“— but many of you may not know that Dolly Parton actually wrote that song 18 years earlier and it was a little country song first. Not the power ballad that it became once Whitney got her hands on it.

The story behind that song is a testament to Dolly‘s business savvy, her refusal to be anything but herself, and her steadfast determination to never let anyone underestimate her.

Come back over the next few days and I’ll tell you a few more stories about her.

And in the meantime, t**s up kiddos. Let’s do it for Dolly.💖

08/22/2026

Have you ever been told you’re too much?⬇️

When you’re from New Jersey, dress in head to toe in leopard print, wear big jewelry, and swear a lot—you’ll often be told that you’re too much. Your Aunt Loretta has been told that all her life. And it wasn’t a compliment.

Most of the time when I have been told that, it was because of how my heart works. I am deeply connected to my feelings, and I’ve never been afraid to tell people how I feel. But, after years of experience of being told that what I am and what I need is “too much,” I’ve realized a very important lesson— I was never too much, I was just asking the wrong people to give me what I need.

Kiddos, your heart is a miraculous thing. And how it works and what it needs should never be ignored. Don’t bend and twist and fold yourself up into a smaller version of you in the hopes that it will be more acceptable to someone— in the hopes that they will love you in the way that you need to be loved. Don’t betray yourself the way your Aunt Loretta has over the years. Because one day you’ll look in the mirror, and you won’t recognize yourself.

The hardest part about your Aunt Loretta’s break up with Salvatore wasn’t losing Salvatore—because I’ve always been cool with being by myself. I like me. The hardest part was realizing how many pieces of myself I had let go of along the way. Ways I had dialed myself back, put aside my own needs, and tried to make who I was and how I love more palatable for someone else. What a stunad I was.

Remember kiddos… You’ll never be too much for someone who is ready willing and able to love you exactly how you are. Don’t lay your head in the lap of someone who can’t hold it.

Now, go outside and smack them upside the head with all of your awesome today. And know that your aunt LBD loves you to the moon and back and back again.

Go out there and be too much. I love you.
Aunt LBD 💋

08/18/2026

The conversation that changed my life… And the way I look at vulnerability.

When you are labeled as “the strong one” by family, friends, partners, etc, it gets really easy to carry that label and assume that it’s the only way that people will accept you—that if you show the sides of you that aren’t strong, that aren’t confident, that are insecure…that maybe you won’t be received or loved.

I had worn that “strong girl” label for most of my life. And, honestly… I’m proud of my strength. It has gotten me through heartbreak, loss, and tough times. And it has helped me take risks, seize opportunities, and stand up for myself.

But, a conversation in my mid 30s with my very best friend changed the way I looked at my strength and how it showed up in my close relationships.

It allowed me to see that moments of vulnerability are necessary for true connection. Allowing someone who loves you to see your softer facets gives them an opportunity to show up and love you in the most profound way. And when you don’t offer up your vulnerabilities, you take away those chances for them to demonstrate how much they love you. And you handicap the potential depth of your connections with people.

That conversation, which happened about 18 years ago, changed my life. And it has stuck in my head ever since. Vulnerability requires practice for me— it is not innate. I have to allow myself and push myself to reach out when I need help, support, and love. To say when I don’t know, to say when my heart is hurting. But, that practice has paid dividends for me over the years in forging deep and beautiful relationships with people in my life.

Kiddos, I hope you will see that your softer sides are beautiful. That you will share them freely with the people that love you, and that you will know deep, deep love.

And I hope you know that I love you very much.

Drink your water.
Aunt LBD 💋

And if you want some weekly love from me in your inbox, comment CONFIDENCE below. 👇

08/17/2026

Can’t get the estrogen patch? Here’s some alternatives.


Here’s the link for one of the estrogen alternatives from Alloy!

Remember to use my code GLOSSED to save!

https://go.shopmy.us/p-77562437

Yes, there is currently an estrogen patch shortage in the US, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t find other ways to get your HRT.

You can take oral estradiol, and there are topical gels and sprays that deliver estrogen replacement transdermally.
These are readily available and may even be a preferred option over your estrogen patch.

And if you’re having trouble finding a provider who will listen to your concerns about your perimenopause and menopause symptoms, you can reach out to myalloy.com—fill out a brief intake form and a menopause provider will prescribe a plan to help you with your symptoms.

And you can use my code GLOSSED to save on your first order with them.

Regardless of how you get your HRT, don’t suffer!

08/11/2026

What would your 12 year-old self say about your life?

In a crazy turn of events over the last few weeks, Aunt LBD has been changing my life.

In addition to bringing a few hundred thousand of you here, she landed on the screen of Pat Benatar late at night, scrolling before she went to sleep, like so many of us do. Pat left a comment on one of my posts, I lost my fu***ng GenX mind, and I thought that would be the end of it.

But last night, Pat invited me to her show and then to come backstage with two of my girlfriends to meet her.

Like many GenX girls, I grew up watching Pat’s videos— memorizing her dance moves and singing into my hairbrush. I thought she was so cool at 12 years old. So strong, talented—and how she seemed to thumb her nose at what society thought she should be. She was “zero f***s personified” in my mind.

What I thought was going to be a five minute handshake/selfie moment, turned into a 45 minute conversation on a couch with one of my childhood heroes.

They say you shouldn’t meet your heroes, because they will often disappoint you— but I’m here to tell you that Pat is everything I thought she was at 12 years old—and she still inspires me now, at 55.

Many of you are beginning to discover that Aunt LBD is my alter ego— basically me, with my aggressively loving, silly, Jersey side turned all the way up. 85% truth, with 15% fiction thrown in for a little razzle dazzle. She is the Aunt I always wanted—and it seems, the Aunt that so many of you need, too.

I never imagined that she would connect with so many of you, or that she would have so many viral moments over the last few weeks.

She is me, and I am her. And we are both too much sometimes.

And sometimes “too much” is exactly enough.

Today, my 12-year-old self thinks I smacked life upside the head with all my awesome.

I really like how she’s looking at me.🥹

There’s only one you, kiddo. Go be it unapologetically.
Look what can happen when you are.

Love, Jen & Aunt LBD

08/09/2026

Is this my life? Excuse me while I go squeal in GenX. 🤯

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