Bruce Jenner is taking his story on the road. After coming out as transgender in a much-lauded interview with Diane Sawyer on April 24, the former Olympian is now preparing for an E! series documenting his transition and, as a source revealed in the May 4 issue of Us Weekly, a revival of his motivational speaking career.
"It was very lucrative for him in the past," an insider told Us of Jenner, 65, who earned around $5,000 per event in the late 1970s, "and now he has a whole new audience."
Indeed, life coach Seth Rainess suggested to Us that "Bruce will be in greater demand than anybody. He could make tens of thousands per engagement."
The money isn't the main draw, though. As Jenner said during his interview with Sawyer, "What I'm doing is going to do some good. And we're going to change the world. I really firmly believe that. We're going to make a difference in the world with what we're doing."
Mara Keisling, executive director of the National Center for Transgender Equality, doesn't disagree. "All of us who have struggled with coming out know what a monumental thing it is to have Bruce Jenner come out as trans," Keisling told Us Weekly. "He has been trying to outrun this for around 60 years — that's a lot of outrunning, even for a decathlon champ. It takes a lot of courage."
That courage could give others courage, too. "This year, trans people have been traumatized by a spike in murders and suicides," Keisling said. "And when a celebrity family like Bruce's is supportive, that can really help all trans people. It can have a huge impact."
With that comes huge responsibility, of course — but Jenner, dad to 10 kids and stepkids, is more than up to the challenge. "He is going to be a role model for the transgender community," the source told Us of the Keeping Up With the Kardashians patriarch. "He knows he has an important job to do."