Timing and choices
Plus, in today's papers "“These three phases define modern retirement. Which one are you in?"
In this week’s edition:
Feature: Timing and choices
Newspapers: “These three phases define modern retirement. Which one are you in?”
Podcast: Starting your Prime Time with very little: An honest conversation
From Bec’s Desk: Tuscany… without the kids
A little chat about timing and choices
This week, my article in The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald lays out how to stage your midlife using the phases I explain in my new book, Prime Time. It’s one I really want you to read. Please. It’s short, it’s sharp, and it’s not behind a paywall—just a simple sign-in gate. You can read it here.
Then I want you to read the comments. (they are full of messages from people who didn’t get to choose but instead had retirement forced on them).
There’s only a few, but they’re real. And they’re honest. Even for those of you who currently feel invincible or irreplaceable.
I wish I could reply to them directly, but I’m in Italy, and the newspaper’s commenting system won’t let me post. So, let me say it here instead - because I have a few passionate things to add. And these are things I cover in the book.
The truth is: the three stages of Prime Time aren’t available to everyone. But they can be. It all depends on when you go through your setup phase. If you haven’t done that work, you probably haven’t stopped to think about what needs to be in place to live well in your middle and later years. You might not have considered your super; nor contemplated whether your career will age well - or if it’ll support you if you want to slow down, shift gears, or work part-time. And by the time you do think about both… it might be too late to make meaningful change.
I know it sounds idyllic to choose your own path into midlife and retirement. But the hard truth is, most people don’t get that choice. Only 31% of Australians retire on their own terms. The rest are pushed—by redundancy, illness, or the needs of someone they love.
And that is exactly why I’m doing this work with Prime Time—to help you grab the steering wheel before something else does. To help you see that you can shape your next chapter, but you need to start early. Because if you don’t take charge during the setup phase, there’s every chance the lifestyle phase and the part-time years will be taken out of your hands. And then, having an epic retirement can feel harder.
In the book, I go deep on this. In the article, I only had 800 words—and one of the commenters rightly pointed out what didn’t fit in.
So go read it. Read the article, read the comments, and ask yourself:
Do I want to be part of the 31% who get to choose? OR Could we make that 31% into 50 or 60% with better planning.
Prime Time: 27 Lessons for the New Midlife lands in Australia on 30 July. It’s for everyone who wants to shape their second half—before someone else does it for them.
I’m off now to make my Prime Time count. If you can relate to the three stages share it with everyone today. We ARE reading the comments.
It’s back! The Epic Retirement Flagship Course kicks off this August — and Earlybird is still running🔥
If you’ve been thinking about getting serious (but not boring-serious) about your next chapter, now’s the time. My 6-week How to Have an Epic Retirement Flagship Course has already helped thousands of Aussies set themselves up for a retirement that’s smart, secure, and actually fun - with real strategies for money, time, health, happiness, travel, and how to age well in your own home.
🎟️ Earlybird spots are now open - and they’re 25% off.
They won’t last long, and once they’re gone, they’re gone. So if this is your season, jump in now and lock it in at the best price.
👉 Check it out here and download the new brochure for Spring 2025
Let’s make your retirement epic.
Even shorter than last week. It’s Saturday, I’m in Tuscany with my hubby. It’s B-E-A-U-T-I-F-U-L. We sent the kids home yesterday for school and uni and doggy daycare. This week is for us, adventuring through wineries, villages, climbing duomos and having time to mull over cheese and proscuitto platters slowly.
I’ll be back in a week. Then we’ll close the earlybird on the course, and we’ll launch this new book in stores all over the country and we’ll get out there and have some fun talking about Prime Time.
In the meantime — have a listen to the wonderful podcast below; read my Sydney Morning Herald column and smile at your progress to becoming a Prime Timer or Epic Retiree.
I have one big callout this week to add.. big news.
Our Epic Retirement Club just flew past 500,000 members worldwide. OMG. Half a million people! What a brilliant community of learners and contributors we’ve built together there — just brilliant.
And get this - it now reaches somewhere around 50 million people a month across the internet. Fifty million! 😎 Pretty cool, huh? (No, you can’t advertise in it. It’s strictly for learning and growing people’s retirement confidence. No sneaky promos, either - we ban anyone who tries.)
A massive shoutout to our amazing 18 volunteer moderators who keep the space thoughtful, safe, and purposeful. They’re the reason it works so well.
We don’t allow financial advice or self-promotion in the group. It’s a confidence-building, peer-to-peer learning space, and one of the most positive corners of the internet for anyone navigating midlife, retirement, or beyond.
And, one last thing. I’m excited to hold my own first ever free online event. It’s a book launch for Prime Time:27 Lessons for the New Midlife. My wonderful publisher from Hachette, Sophie Hamley will be joining me live online to chat about the book with you - because we both know it intimately and none of you will have seen it. All the details and the free registration link is below! And we’re hosting it on the day the book hits stores — a free lunch and learn! I’ll send out the link to everyone registered when I get back and set the tech up!
Now go, enjoy your Sunday.
Bec x
Cheers, Bec Wilson
Author, podcast host, columnist, retirement educator, and guest speaker
Prime Time: Live Book Launch Event
OK, we’re doing it. I’m holding a free live online event for the book launch on launch day… and my publisher from Hachette, Sophie Hamley, will be my cohost. If you’d like to attend, please register your interest below. It’s a free event, and I’ll do my best to pack it with valuable information.
Register here for the Prime Time: 27 Lessons for the New Midlife live online book launch.
These three phases define modern retirement. Which one are you in?
Extract of article published in print in The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald, Brisbane Times, WA Today on Sunday 13th July 2025.
We used to think about life in two financial stages: work and retirement. You worked full-time, saved what you could, and then one day you stopped and lived frugally on whatever you’d accumulated.
That model is out of date. And thank goodness.
What’s replacing it is a more layered, flexible and human approach. For many of us, the 50s, 60s and even 70s are no longer a single long descent into retirement. They’re a new season of earning, spending, planning and evolving. And money plays a different role in each phase.
From my work with hundreds of thousands of Australians, I see three emerging phases that most people experience in midlife and the lead-up to retirement: the Setup Phase, the Lifestyling Phase, and the Part-timing Phase. And I want us to understand all three.
Each one has different financial dynamics. Each one comes with both opportunity and risk. And you don’t always get to experience all of them – especially if money is tight – but with some planning, and the growth of superannuation that we’re getting today, more and more people can.
(READ ON… my articles are never paywalled for Aussies in The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald. )
If you’re in your 40s or 50s and starting to quietly panic about retirement, you’re not alone—and you’re not too late. In this raw and refreshingly honest episode, I chat with Mary, a single mum and media professional who’s spent her working life juggling freelancing, kids, and surviving. Now, at 47, she’s finally stopped ignoring “the big dark thing in the corner” (her money) and is facing her financial future head-on.
Mary doesn’t hold back. We talk about the fear of being old and broke, the realities of patchy super, and the moment she decided it was time to rip the Band-Aid off and take control.
So how do you decide which prime time phase you’re in? Is it purely a numbers game? I’m much younger than most but think I can move straight to part timing as although financially I think I could retire as soon as I downsize I’m thinking a transition will be better. Is it correct that I can continue to contribute to Super as long as I’m working a little? Can you add to Super if you are not working?