Jennie Garth, the actress best known for her role as Kelly Taylor in the hit television series “Beverly Hills, 90210,” began — as so many women do — reflecting upon her life when she turned 50.

“I was at a place in my life several years ago where the roles that I wanted just weren’t coming to me and I was waiting,” Garth told Liz Vaccariello, editor-in-chief of Woman’s World and First for Women, during a keynote session at the Women in Retail On the Road event in New York last fall. “I was feeling pretty lost in my life.”

Two out of Garth’s three daughters had flown the nest for college, and she was looking for her next opportunity.

“I had been doing a lot of reflection and during some of my meditations the messaging of ‘I choose me’ started coming into my life,” Garth told the audience.

That led Garth to the drawing board, where she wrote down everything she wanted. While slightly skeptical of the vision board exercise, it ultimately helped her quiet the world around her and center her thoughts on an overarching theme for her life.

Tapping into her already-existing relationship with QVC, Garth pitched the idea for a solo brand around the concept of “I choose me.” Around the same time, she started her popular iHeart podcast of the same name — “I Choose Me with Jennie Garth” — to embolden women to celebrate their evolving identities with confidence and self-love.

“I was really excited about the idea, for the first time in a long time,” said Garth. “Even though it seemed enormous and daunting and more than I could handle, I just jumped in with both feet.”

The apparel brand, “Me” by Jennie Garth, launched exclusively on QVC in July and offers relaxed, easy and refined styles in current silhouettes that will inspire confidence and body positivity.

On Dealing With Imposter Syndrome

Garth acknowledged that imposter syndrome has always been a part of her life, and she experiences it daily, especially coming from the world of acting, where “you have to have really thick skin,” she said.

“My default is to be critical of myself,” Garth acknowledged. “My default is to latch on to the negatives that I hear.”

Garth recently spoke about imposter syndrome on her podcast, inviting Dr. Lisa Orbe-Austin, a psychologist and expert on the topic, to help dismantle the condition.

“In acknowledging it, it helped me to find some solace in it and be able to tamper it down a little bit,” Garth said.

Now, Garth has learned to shift her mindset in a more positive direction rather than latching on to the negative thoughts ruminating around imposter syndrome.

On Knowing What You’re Good At

Another way Garth combatted imposter syndrome is to voice out loud the things she knows she’s good at.

“One of the things that I’m most proud of is being a mom,” she said. “It’s one of the things — I have three daughters — that I know without a shadow of a doubt that I am good at. And it makes me feel competent.”

On Being in the Mid-Life Stage

Entering the “mid-life” stage — Garth is 52 — has been freeing in many ways, Garth said. With the help of her QVC brand — QVC’s target audience is primarily women over the age of 50 — Garth said she’s trying to help more women in this life stage be their authentic selves and toss out the shame around getting older.

“One of the first choices we make every day is, ‘What am I going to wear?’ and that can be stressful,” noted Garth. “I feel like when I look good, for some reason, I feel good. So, I want to make women choosing to look good an easier decision every morning.”

Last year, Garth signed on to be one of QVC’s “Quintessential 50,” part of the brand’s Age of Possibility platform that champions women over 50 and aims to build a community and platform for this core group to come together to share their experiences. To celebrate the launch of the Age of Possibility, the QVC team brought the Quintessential 50 together, which is comprised of QVC hosts, celebrities, activists, entrepreneurs and more.

“I’m like the poster child for age of possibility,” Garth said. “I turned 50 and my life changed because I wanted it to. I was hungry for change.”

Garth said what she loves most about the Age of Possibility campaign and the Q50 “club,” as she called it, is that there’s no competition among the women, like there was for Garth during her acting career. Instead, she finds a culture of celebration and empowerment among the group — something she said was missing in her life.

Women in Retail Leadership Circle (WIRLC) members can watch Garth and Vaccariello’s full conversation on-demand now. Not a member? Apply today!