I Found Love at 53: Why I Refused to Settle – And Never Accept Less Than I Deserve | Yvette Nicole Brown PT 1

Women of Impact

Impact Theory

Education, Society & Culture, Mental Health, Relationships, Health & Fitness

4.7 • 657 Ratings

🗓️ 7 May 2025

⏱️ 44 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Lisa Bilyeu sits down with actress, writer, and advocate Yvette Nicole Brown. Known for her iconic roles in "Community" and "Drake & Josh," Yvette brings her rich life experience and radiant authenticity to the table as she opens up about love, self-worth, and finding happiness on your own terms. Brown shares her journey from dreaming about marriage in her 20s to discovering real love at age 53, all while defying societal expectations around relationships, aging, and womanhood. Lisa and Yvette dive into the pressures women face to settle, struggle with loneliness, and grieve unfulfilled dreams—while still holding space for hope and joy. Yvette reveals the lessons she learned through toxic relationships, the importance of self-love, and how to embrace your authentic self regardless of your relationship status. Tune in to hear a candid and powerful conversation about perseverance, purpose, and why every woman’s life is valuable, with or without a partner. SHOWNOTES 00:00 Why women feel pressured to settle or fear being alone 00:26 Yvette’s approach to authenticity and self-acceptance 01:22 Why Yvette refused to settle or change herself to get a partner 03:09 Making peace with singleness and societal expectations 04:12 Grieving old dreams and redefining happiness 05:07 The reality of toxic relationships and lessons learned 07:06 Letting go of the dream of motherhood and finding new meaning 08:21 How Yvette cultivated self-love during years of being single 09:42 Holding space for complex feelings: "Happy for you, sad for me" 11:08 Early lessons on self-worth from childhood and Hollywood 12:19 Creating your own community when you don’t "fit in" 13:13 Red flags and leaving a toxic relationship 15:29 The “Sliding Doors” moment: Choosing self-worth over settling 17:02 The myth of women’s value being tied to romantic partnerships 20:30 Working against cultural programming and writing your own story 22:42 You don’t need a partner to be worthy or fulfilled 23:15 Allowing yourself to want love—and be open to it 27:20 Why being honest about your desires and boundaries matters 30:11 It’s okay to say you want love without losing yourself FOLLOW YVETTE: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yvettenicolebrown/ Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/YNB Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/YvetteNicoleBrown/ Threads: https://www.threads.net/@yvettenicolebrown CHECK OUT OUR SPONSORS Vital Proteins: Get 20% off by going to ⁠https://www.vitalproteins.com⁠ and entering promo code WOI at check out. BIOptimizers: Head to⁠ https://bioptimizers.com/impact ⁠and use code IMPACT for 10% off. OneSkin: Get 15% off with code LISA at ⁠https://oneskin.co ⁠ Kettle & Fire: Get 20% off at ⁠https://kettleandfire.com/lisa⁠ with code LISA Netsuite: Download the CFO’s Guide to AI and Machine Learning at ⁠https://NetSuite.com/women⁠ LISTEN TO WOMEN OF IMPACT AD FREE + BONUS EPISODES on APPLE PODCASTS:⁠ ⁠ ⁠apple.co/womenofimpact⁠ FOLLOW LISA: Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/lisabilyeu/⁠ Twitter: ⁠https://twitter.com/lisabilyeu⁠ YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/womenofimpact⁠ Tik Tok: ⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@lisa_bilyeu?lang=en Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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0:55.5	All right, to all you ladies in the house, if you've ever been told that you're too old
0:59.3	or that you're not worthy because you're single and you're just too picky or you've somehow
1:04.8	missed your shot, then this episode, ladies, is for you.
1:09.0	I'm Lisa Biliu and this is Women of Impact, the show where we just talk about all the
1:13.3	freaking BS that holds us back, like people's expectations, like society's timeline of when we
1:19.0	should do things.
1:20.2	And so today, I'm joined by the one, the only, Yvette Nicole Brown.
1:24.4	Now, guys, if you don't know who she is, she's an actress, writer, producer and straight-up
	...

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