An Inspired Chat with Viveka von Rosen

We recently had the chance to connect with Viveka von Rosen and have shared our conversation below.

Viveka , so good to connect and we’re excited to share your story and insights with our audience. There’s a ton to learn from your story, but let’s start with a warm up before we get into the heart of the interview. Are you walking a path—or wandering?
Walking My Talk (Literally!) with Technology

You know those moments when the universe hits you with clarity while you’re doing something completely ordinary? That just happened to me – literally while walking my dog.

I’ve been on quite a journey these past few years – from global LinkedIn expert to pivoting completely out of my tech company, to guiding women through their own reinventions. And if I’m honest? I needed that hard break. Sometimes you have to “throw the baby out with the bathwater” to make the shifts that matter. Sometimes it includes wandering around a bit- even if you think you are walking a straight line.

But here’s what hit me during my quarterly planning session a few weeks ago – I’m actually really jazzed by technology.

At 57, I absolutely love it. Not just LinkedIn (though it’s still a great tool), but productivity apps, AI, special platforms, and anything that helps get important messages to more people.

This realization led to launching my Women’s Technology Collaborative and planning “Tech in the Tropics” – a retreat in Costa Rica where we’ll actually implement the tools that matter, not just talk about them.

Now is not the time to retreat from tech – even if it scares us. Now’s the time to master it.

I’m not wandering anymore. I’m walking my talk – both literally (hello, dog walk!) and figuratively. My path is clear: helping accomplished women 50+ amplify their wisdom through technology that actually works. No shiny object syndrome. No tech overwhelm. Just clarity, implementation, and momentum.

Women’s wisdom deserves more than whispers. It deserves a megaphone. Tech can be that megaphone.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m a business strategist, international keynote speaker, and author who helps accomplished women amplify their wisdom and impact through smart, strategic technology.

After 20 years as a globally recognized LinkedIn authority and bestselling author, I now work hand in hand with entrepreneurs to create and scale their Legacy businesses. I offer one-on-one coaching, lead the Women’s Tech-Up and Reinvention Collaboratives, and run a Tech in the Tropics retreat in my home in Costa Rica. Why? Because I find that when I help my clients achieve clarity – it’s only the first step. When we begin to implement, that’s where momentum naturally flows, resulting in greater visibility and impact in the world.

Drawing from my experience as the co-founder of a SaaS productivity company and years of guiding executives, sales and marketing professionals – and women 50+ – through successful business pivots, I help leaders cut through the tech noise and build systems that actually move the needle. My approach combines curated expertise with practical implementation—because you don’t need every tool, just the right ones used the right way.

My core message is simple: “Women’s wisdom changes the world. Technology multiplies it.” That belief drives everything I do, from my Tech in the Tropics retreats in Costa Rica to the Women’s Tech and Reinvention Collaboratives—creating pathways that help women turn clarity into confident action.

When I’m not helping women turn their wisdom into movements, you’ll probably find me hang-gliding, scuba diving, hiking, or planning my next adventure overseas. I split my time between the U.S. and Costa Rica, bringing both strategic expertise and transformational experiences to a growing global community of women ready to take flight.

Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. What part of you has served its purpose and must now be released?
It’s fascinating how life has a way of coming full circle, but with deeper wisdom. I thought I needed to completely release “the LinkedIn Expert” – that 20-year identity that took me around the world, led to book deals, a successful training company and a global community. Back in 2023, I made that hard break because I needed space to explore more meaningful work – guiding women through legacy work and transformational pivots with my “Beyond the Dream Board” program.

But here’s what I’ve discovered: It wasn’t the technology expertise that needed releasing – it was the limitation of being known for just one platform. What needed to go was the narrow definition, not the valuable experience.

Today, I see that my LinkedIn expertise is just one piece of a larger mission: helping accomplished women amplify their wisdom through technology that actually works. My years of teaching LinkedIn, building a SaaS company, and understanding how technology can multiply impact – that wasn’t meant to be left behind. It was meant to evolve.

So what I needed to release was the self-imposed constraint of being defined by “the LinkedIn Expert.” LinkedIn is still a powerful tool in my arsenal, but it’s just one piece of a much richer story.

What did suffering teach you that success never could?
You know what’s funny about success? It can actually hold us back. We get comfortable. Complacent. I wish humanity grew better through success – but we seem to need those AFGOs (Another F’ing Growth Opportunity) to truly evolve. I’m certainly no different.

When I was “the LinkedIn Expert,” – everything looked perfect on paper. But sometimes the biggest cage is a golden one. It took the painful decision to leave my company (at significant financial cost), release my international personal brand (goodbye perks, airmiles and steady speaking gigs), and lose my established team to find a deeper truth.

That suffering – that uncomfortable space of reinvention – is necessary for growth sometimes.

And it taught me what real amplification means. It’s not just about having the right tools or the biggest platform. It’s about having the courage to use your voice in service of something bigger. For me, that meant learning new technologies from scratch, hiring help when needed (a humbling experience for a “tech expert”!), and completely reimagining how and WHO I could serve. All while focusing on a Legacy business I knew I was put on this path to create.

Every challenge now becomes part of my growth story and my work with clients. Because here’s what suffering really taught me: we can in fact change the world – not despite our struggles – but because of how they transform us. And it turns out my clients’ journeys are very similar to mine. So if I can save them some suffering, I’m all in! And sometimes, the path to that legacy runs straight through our biggest challenges.

So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. Is the public version of you the real you?
Is the public version of me the real me? Yeah. Literally.

You know what’s funny? After decades of trying to be what I thought the world wanted me to be (and my ex-business partner insisted I be), with the perfect headshots, styled outfits, and polished presentations, I now regularly hop on Substack videos fresh from a hike, sweaty and happy. Age spots? They’re part of my story. Not being a size six? That’s real life at 57. Sometimes I even forget to put my denture in. (I can’t believe I just told the world I have a fake tooth!!! How’s that for real?)

Just yesterday, I recorded a walking-my-talk video (literally walking my dog!) about using AI to plan my Costa Rica retreat. No makeup, no script, just me sharing my excitement about how we got from idea to sold seats in 12 hours. Because that’s what matters – the real work, the actual results, not the perfect packaging.

When you’re truly focused on serving – the superficial stuff falls away. My community doesn’t need another perfectly curated feed. They need real strategies, authentic connections, and proof that you can be both professional and perfectly imperfect.

You’ll find me streaming life as it happens, sharing wins and AFGOs alike.

So yeah, what you see is what you get. Sweaty hikes, tech victories, age spots, tooth gap and all. Because life’s too short and our work’s too important to hide behind perfect.

Before we go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on some longer-run, legacy type questions. If you retired tomorrow, what would your customers miss most?
I don’t think they will ever have to find out….

In my 30s, it felt like retirement was THE goal – that magical finish line where “real life” would begin. Then when I started my LinkedIn career, I was so lit up by the work that retirement seemed ridiculous. Until I wasn’t. Until I got bored and needed to pivot.

With my last company, I built it specifically to exit. The whole goal was to get out. Done. Finished. Next chapter. Thanks for all the money! (I’m still waiting…)

But now? I can’t even imagine retirement – because this work feels too important – and is too much fun – to stop.

What would my clients miss most? It’s not the LinkedIn strategies or the tech shortcuts (though those are useful). They’d miss having someone who’s walked the path they’re on, who gets that success can feel like a cage, who understands what it’s like to pivot at 50+ and rebuild something meaningful.

They’d miss having a business strategist who chases all the bright and shiny objects so they don’t have to – someone who can say “this works, that doesn’t, here’s why.” They’d miss having a partner who brings together world-class experts in Instagram, LinkedIn, Substack, and AI because relationships matter more than tools.

But mostly? They’d miss having someone who looks at their wisdom and says “This deserves a megaphone, not a whisper” – and then shows them exactly how to amplify it.

Sure, I might slow down someday. Take more trips. Spend more time hang-gliding and scuba diving. But retire?

Nah. This isn’t work I need to retire from – it’s work I get to grow with.

Besides, who retires from having this much fun?

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Jen MacNiven, Tricia Tupenoff, John DeMato

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