Gerontologist, masterful coach, advisor, and accountability advocate.

Barbara Waxman MS, MPA, PCC

Barbara helps people in midlife and better align success, impact, and a life well-lived—now and for the long run.

Barbara Waxman, founder of The Odyssey Group, is a highly sought-after longevity and leadership advocate, advisor, master coach, keynote speaker, and author. Barbara’s body of work—at the intersection of coaching, leadership, adult development, and longevity—translates cutting-edge science and collective wisdom into practical frameworks. Her mission is to help people—and the institutions that serve them—understand and act on the dynamics and potential of an aging world.

Barbara’s leadership as a gerontologist in the coaching field has culminated in the transformative coaching model Entrepreneurship Turned Inward™, the evidence-informed Seven Lifestyle Levers Assessment™, and the Longevity Lifeplan™—a framework that helps people and organizations align today’s decisions with the futures they want to create. She popularized Middlescence as a modern life stage and is advancing the Third Span™, longevity’s next frontier. Her upcoming TEDxBoston: Unlocking Longevity 2025 talk explores how we can make longer lives fully lived lives.

Barbara serves as an advisor to the Stanford Center on Longevity, Stanford Lifestyle Medicine and is a board member of ExtraFood.org. She is an Advisor and Master Faculty at MEA (Modern Elder Academy). Her insights have appeared on CBS This Morning and in outlets including the Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Thrive Global, Next Avenue, Marin Magazine, to name a few. Barbara is the author of The Middlescence Manifesto and contributed the chapter “How to Avoid Burnout, Provide Exceptional Care, and Enhance Work-Life Integration” to Springer’s The Successful Health Care Professional’s Guide. She holds master’s degrees in Gerontology and Public Administration from the University of Southern California, is a graduate of Colgate University, and earned coaching certifications through the International Coach Federation and The Hudson Institute.

Strategic Advisor

Barbara advises institutions like Stanford’s Center on Longevity, Stanford Lifestyle Medicine and serves as an Advisor and Master Faculty at the MEA.

Gerontologist & Coach

Among the first U.S. coaches grounded in gerontology, Barbara’s evidence-informed practice marries aging science with compassionate, pragmatic coaching to create durable, real-world change.

Life Stage Expert

Often called the “mother of Middlescence,” Barbara helped move the idea from insight to life’s newest stage—and authored The Middlescence Manifesto that catalyzed the conversation.

Reframes Conversation

From challenging the “midlife crisis” myth in her first TEDx talk and introducing the Third Span™ in her latest, to expanding retirement into the aspirational “preferment,” Barbara understands language matters.

Experience, Not Theory

Barbara’s view of aging formed early while making rounds with her physician father and navigating her daughter’s health crisis. Years later, a gap year in Italy, sparked her focus on Middlescence and seeded her body of work today.

And Most Importantly...

At home with her partner, Scott, and surrounded by a growing extended family—including four grandchildren who light her up as Nana—Barbara delights in the messy, joyful work of both flourishing today and becoming the best ancestor for tomorrow.

"Barb is singular as a teacher. She is an outstanding colleague and a phenomenal teacher. Barb has a unique adaptive teaching style. Barb is deeply qualified and studied in her field. Be prepared, be professional, and be ready to go all the way with her because she is not f**king around. Best of all, be assured that she will get amazing results."

"Barbara has the ability to capture the essence of a complex situation and build a productive conversation around it...so I can determine the best answers."

"Barbara Waxman's empathetic and practical approach to inspiring people to embrace midlife is a marvel to watch."

"Barbara was a strong asset as I prepared to step into an executive role. She helped me confidently step into the expanded external requirements of my new role."

"Once I started working with Barbara, I identified ways in which I was working against myself work-wise, health-wise and even psychologically. The level of true support and concern for my well-being made it possible for me to be more creative in problem-solving across my entire life."

"Barbara facilitated one of the most impactful exercises I've ever been through. I left the workshop with the confidence I needed to leave my unfulfilling corporate job. Barbara is a highly skilled coach and facilitator with a deep understanding of what it takes to help people move through and towards what they want."

"Barbara has a terrific tool box and is very results driven, thoughtful and organized. She helps me see different ways of viewing a situation which are transformational."

"Barbara blends together wisdom, leadership, coaching and business acumen to help you achieve your own goals. Whether it's a career transition, a challenge in your current role, a desire to create a long-term plan, or to have a Team Leadership Coach to help your team, Barbara does it all with grace, humor and incredible support."

"So many breakthroughs, impossible to count. Many of the things that I thought I cared about were utterly insignificant compared to what really mattered to me. She helped me attain clarity of purpose, both for "now" and for the longer-term; I was able to re-center myself on what I truly valued in all facets of my life and rechannel the courage that I deployed on behalf of everyone around me to courage in myself. "

"Barbara’s energy is positive and comes from practicing what she preached. Before working together my leadership felt scattered with lack of appropriate focus at time. With Barbara’s insights I have been more self-aware of my strengths and challenges and have been about to strengthen my overall leadership as a result."

"Barbara is compassionate, empathetic and challenges you to create the change you want to see so as to grow in all facets of life."

The Seven Lifestyle Levers Assessment™

Optimize for what matters most. Your energy, vitality, and well-being.

Surrounded by rigid protocols and endless data, we’re burning out in the name of wellness. The Seven Lifestyle Levers Assessment™ cuts through the noise with a science-informed approach that reconnects you with your own wisdom and lived experience. It offers a personalized snapshot that empowers you to take a decisive step toward meaningful action.

A monthly dose of actionable insight and wisdom.

Evidence-informed and deeply human, Barbara’s monthly newsletter weaves longevity research with lived coaching experience.

We value your privacy and trust.

Gerontologist, masterful coach, advisor, and accountability advocate.

Barbara Waxman MS, MPA, PCC

Barbara helps people in midlife and better align success, impact, and a life well-lived—now and for the long run.

Strategic Advisor

Gerontologist & Coach

Life Stage Expert

Reframes Conversation

Experience, Not Theory

And Most Importantly...

JEFF HAMAOUI

"Barbara has the ability to capture the essence of a complex situation and build a productive conversation around it...so I can determine the best answers."

MAGNUS BAARMAN

"Barbara Waxman's empathetic and practical approach to inspiring people to embrace midlife is a marvel to watch."

CHIP CONLEY

"Barbara was a strong asset as I prepared to step into an executive role. She helped me confidently step into the expanded external requirements of my new role."

CAROLYN GRAHAM

"Once I started working with Barbara, I identified ways in which I was working against myself work-wise, health-wise and even psychologically. The level of true support and concern for my well-being made it possible for me to be more creative in problem-solving across my entire life."

ALEXANDRA MORGAN

LESLIE BARTLETT

"Barbara has a terrific tool box and is very results driven, thoughtful and organized. She helps me see different ways of viewing a situation which are transformational."

JULIE ABRAMS

LAURA TALMUS

JAYE CHEN

MARSHA NELSON

"Barbara is compassionate, empathetic and challenges you to create the change you want to see so as to grow in all facets of life."

RUBEN AQUILAVECH

The Seven Lifestyle Levers Assessment™

Optimize for what matters most. Your energy, vitality, and well-being.

A monthly dose of actionable insight and wisdom.

Live, love, and lead well.

The Future of Resilient Leadership