What’s Your Golden Time of Day?

I am back my friends! It’s been a journey and season of change. More on that later… Find Big Mama’s Playbook with NEW grants for education, youth programs and MORE! Also, my SPECIAL OFFER IS EXTENDED – more information at the end of this post.  What’s new for 2026: Lead Like Big Mama will move to Substack, starting in February. You can subscribe here. 

I haven’t posted since before the holidays - not because I ran out of insight or words, but because life invited me into a deeper personal transition and I listened. And at this stage of life, as a septuagenarian who wants to share nuggets of wisdom offer some insight - and to show up in a different way as a seasoned, nonprofit servant leader. In my journey, I’ve learned to honor those invitations. And I’ll be honest: I didn’t plan this pause to be as long as it was. And I honored that time. I also didn’t plan this post topic. This post came together unexpectedly, sparked by a conversation with another seasoned and wise leader going through a similar stage. It was one of those exchanges where you don’t need to explain yourself because the ‘knowing’ is already there – educated through our lived experiences. So, as I prepare to leave this space on Wix and transition Lead Like Big Mama to Substack, this felt like the right story to tell. It’s about how we’ve come to understand the messages and lessons from a Frankie Beverly and Maze song, “Golden Time of Day” – about timing, truth, and finding yourself again, and again, and again.

The late Frankie Beverly, for those who may not know, was the voice behind a group called Maze. Frankie’s voice and their music has carried generations through love, loss, and growing into ourselves. The group, Maze featuring Frankie Beverly shared life’s truths, songs like “Joy & Pain” and “We are One.” Though born in Philadelphia, Frankie made the Bay Area home. You can hear it in that sultry voice - smooth, grounded, and real. Listening to Golden Time of Day feels like taking an enjoyable drive in the Bay- sun going down, sunroof open on a warm day. Uniquely Oakland/Bay Area/old school back in the day; wisdom set to music: reflective, soulful. 

There’s a reason “Golden Time of Day” speaks across generations. The song debuted in 1978 - I was 24 years old. This song has taken Boomers, like me through adult life - love, loss, still searching for answers. It isn’t just a song - it’s a life lesson. Many Gen. Xers and Millennials know this song too. They grew up listening to it (sometimes reluctantly) on repeat! This song is a reminder that there comes a season when you finally recognize your own light, stop dimming it for others, and learn how to shine with intention - Frankie proclaiming, “Shine Your Light!”

“People let me tell you, there’s a time in your life when you find who you are that’s the golden time of day.”

There’s a certain kind of ‘knowing’ about life and leading others that just doesn’t come early. It arrives after experience has shaped you, after disappointment has shaken/refined you - typically occurs after life has tested what you believe. And from my own seasons of reflection, learned that leadership, just like life, has a rhythm; sometimes the most powerful insight arrives right on time, not on schedule. We don’t all get there at the same time…it tends to happen later in life, if at all. It’s a golden time of day, an intergenerational truth about life and leadership. 

Leadership often begins before we truly know ourselves - and over time, something shifts. We stop leading to prove and start leading to protect what matters. Many of us spent our early years proving ourselves - working hard, carrying loads that weren’t ours, leading from survival instead of clarity. But a golden time of day is about alignment. It’s that moment when you realize who you are, what you stand for, and how your presence (or lack of) affects others. Leadership – the emotionally mature kind, begins when you stop asking, “How do I look?” and start asking, “How do I leave people better than I found them?” That’s your golden time of day.

So, if you’re feeling a quiet confidence these days, even in these bizarre times: less interested in applause or settling for “nonsense” and more interested in impact – do not rush past it. Learn from it. That’s your golden time of day. As we step into 2026, encouraging words from Big Mama: keep shining your love. Lead with clarity. Lead with boundaries. Lead with compassion and accountability. And I hope that you will take five quiet minutes to listen to Frankie Beverly, the lyrics and message he wrote to Golden Time of Day. You can find the song on your favorite streaming platform (or on vinyl or CD, take it old school) then ask yourself: what would it look like to lead fully as myself in 2026? What part of my light have I been dimming? Let this moment be more than a song, these times call for us not to dim.

Finally, as I begin to close this chapter here on Wix, I want to say thank you for reading, reflecting, and walking alongside me in this space. I’m still learning how to live in the flow of life. This pause I had, this post, and this moment feel like my own golden time of day: clear, grounded, and honest about what matters most. The Lead Like Big Mama journey continues, soon in a new home on Substack, and the light will keep shining. You can subscribe now.

A Special Offer from this Big Mama:

I’m still offering coaching and consultation services on a sliding scale basis (starting at $50/hour) to support nonprofit leaders and organizations. Contact me for a free 1-hour consult! Are you a former student/client of mine or referred by one?  Learn about a very special rate! 

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Weekly wisdom, in their own words:

“And in your mind you will find you’re a bright shining star...ooh that’s the golden time of day”

• Howard Stanley (Frankie) Beverly (Dec. 6, 1946 – Sept. 10, 2024)