A New You

Clay in the Potter’s Hands 

I hosted a short-lived, low-budget cable talk show in Boston called The New You in the 1980s, and it was an intimidating and exciting experience along my journey of life. I hadn’t thought about it or even remembered it until I realized the theme of this edition would be “New Year, New You.”

I was armed with a Bachelor of Science degree in Communications & Speech from Suffolk University, concentrating in Journalism, and I took a lot of odd jobs back then to hone my craft, which would become my life’s work. At the time, I wanted to become a war correspondent on the front lines so I could be front and center, capturing what was happening and reporting back. An internship during college at the television station WNEV (now WHDH) led to a full-time job there as an assistant assignment editor on the evening news desk before I graduated college, and that was a wild experience. To say deadlines were crucial would be an understatement. It was fast-paced, just like most of my life, and I was made for it. My stints writing copy, interviewing local politicians, and doing voice-over work at multiple radio and TV stations and film studios were low-paying. Still, I loved it all and innately understood that I needed to learn everything I could. The strange thing is I still feel exactly as I did then. Experience it all. Learn it all. Embrace it all. Born with a tenacious and curious spirit, I never embraced boredom very well.

A recent epiphany allowed me to see my life in slow motion, taking me back to those college years. I realized that I continue to practice and build a career with just about everything I learned there. Various aspects of writing, publishing, speaking, and my on-air radio and TV days laid a foundation for the VIE Speaks podcast I host. I never dreamed that so many years later, college writing workshops and the speech and debate team would equip me for the copious amount of writing and speaking that is my livelihood.

I have felt like I reinvented myself many times and that there have been more than a few iterations of myself. In reality, it was me maturing and equipping myself like clay on the potter’s wheel so I could pivot, evolve, and become what I was meant to be. I am thankful I did not have to figure it all out at once, as I keep taking the journey one step at a time while the threads of the tapestry are woven to create my story.

I’m comfortable in my skin today in a way only time and maturity can give us, but I have always been looking for my next big break along my journey. Imposter syndrome strikes sometimes, but I still feel like this. I’ve asked myself how I can still reach for more, as I find it odd. The summation is that I’m still interested and curious, and I want more experiences. I am grateful to be blessed with health and strength many years later. I don’t want to slow down—I want to continue exploring life and love.

I have an affinity for and an interest in helping people when I can, and meeting a seventeen-year-old high school senior on a plane to Maine this past October for my nephew’s wedding was one instance I won’t forget. Daniel Nuñez was sitting next to my husband and me, and we struck up a conversation (in hushed tones, as people rarely talk on planes anymore, which I feel represents a dystopian DNA in a society where people don’t want to connect with strangers—but that topic is for another day). We discussed where he was going, his upcoming admissions meeting at Duke University (which he later shared went very well), and his blog, Bridge of Wills. The blog aims to unify our country amid the political angst, and I was so impressed with Daniel’s intelligence, focus, and vivacity that I asked him if wanted to write about it in VIE. He told me he is also the editor-in-chief of his school newspaper, and I said I held the same title within my magazine. The funny part of this story is that I felt we were similar and that the age gap wasn’t even there. I count Daniel as one of my new friends and am rooting for his success—he is going places! Look for his article in this issue, “Our Bridge of Wills.” He is well-spoken and wise beyond his years, representing Gen Z superbly.

Since the New Year is about renewal and achieving new goals, I want to encourage people of all ages and walks of life to stay in the game each and every year. You’re blessed to be alive and should get all you can out of your life. Thank you for indulging me in my walk down memory lane. I hope it lifted you to know that your destiny is waiting, and nothing can take it from you.

And now, in present-day life and in the flesh, we have one of the most famous and well-known actresses in modern history gracing our health-and-wellness-focused cover! Join everyone’s best friend and media darling, Jennifer Aniston, as we delve into her favorite way to stay fit in our feature story, “Strength Redefined: Pvolve x Jennifer Aniston Ring in the New Year.”

This is the way to start the New Year off right!

—To Life!

Lisa Marie Burwell

CEO/Editor-in-Chief/Creative Director

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Lisa Marie Burwell on Panama City Beach with her sidekick, Sucre