5 Famous Women Over 40 Who Discovered A New Purpose & Passion In Life
I am in my 40’s…is too late to start a new chapter in my life or achieve my dreams?
Midlife (yes, your 40’s count as midlife) is a time to transition into a new season.
Your children may have moved on to college or are more independent now needing less of your time. You may have started experiencing some changes in your health related to getting older, having a chronic condition or weight gain. You may have been home with your children and not in the work force or have been at a job that isn’t your dream just to make ends meet while being a family women.
Well, now is the time to make some changes!
You are wiser, more experienced and have a deeper sense of who you are & what you love.
It is never too late, you are never too old and it is time to start living your dream life. Start a business, travel, lose the weight…just start living your dreams!
Here are 5 famous examples of women who made major life changes in their 40’s that propelled them to live their dream life and follow their purpose.
Some made drastic changes to their career, some evolved to be an entrepreneur in a similar field and some dedicated their life to just living their calling.
Take some inspiration from these women and know that you can do the same.
Mary Kay Ash (founder of Mary Kay Cosmetics, Inc)
For all the women over 40 I assume you have heard of and maybe even purchased a lipstick or two from Mary Kay Cosmetics back in the 90’s. In home make-up parties were all the rage and so was buying anything out of a catalogue.
If you haven’t heard about the massive cosmetics empire then maybe you are familiar with the company that gives pink Cadillac's to all the top sales women, talk about incentive.
At the time of Mary Kays passing in 2001, her cosmetics company brought in an annual revenue in excess of $200 million with more than 800,000 sales representatives in 37 countries. Today, Mary Kay Cosmetics is still going strong bringing in over $3 billion from a dream one women had to start over with her new purpose in life…creating dream opportunities for women in their own business.
Before creating her makeup empire, Mary Kay worked in sales for 25 years. Despite being a top earner, she was passed over for promotions time and again while the spots were given to men even with inferior sales skills.
This was the leading cause to branch out on her own…she was frustrated with the inequity that was taking place and took her life and power in her own hands.
In 1963 she left her “secure” sales job and spent the next six months writing her business plan for her cosmetics company. She launched the business at age 45, using $5,000.00 she borrowed from her son to rent a storefront in Dallas for the new company.
In reflection she said…“one of my strongest motivations for starting was the determination to give women an opportunity that I was denied when `I worked for others.'”
Here is some advice from Mary Kay on how to succeed chasing your dreams later in life or anytime for that matter:
“ One of the things that I do, personally, is to keep some really good books on my bedside table that keep reminding me of what life is really all about.
There are some days when you wake up and you really don’t feel all that enthusiastic. I think that is true of every person.
Besides the Bible, there are some very good motivational books like Norman Vincent Peale’s The Power of Positive Thinking, or one that inspired me and turned my life around at one time, Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill; and of course Psycho Cybernetics by Dr. Maxwell Maltz. All of these are not exactly the newest thing on the market, but I keep reading the new ones and reread the old ones. They keep me enthusiastic.”
On waking up at 5am…“ You know, if you get up at 5 o’clock three times a week, you’ll gain an extra day. You need to try it a few times, because you’ll realize a great feeling of satisfaction at 8 o’clock in the morning when you’ve already finished what would have taken you six hours to do after 8 o’clock because of the interruptions.”
“Create a go-give attitude. If you give the very best you have in whatever you do, the best will then come back to you in a kind of boomerang effect. It certainly has worked for me and the more I give, the more it comes back. And yet, you don’t ever think about it. I mean, I never think about that when I am giving, I’m going to get a whole lot back. That doesn’t work. You give without any expectation of a return.”
“If you put God first in your life, you don’t have to worry about much else. Then, your family should come next. It is my opinion that if you make the most money in the whole world and in the process lose your husband and your children just for the dollar, then you’ve failed.”
“One of the most important principles that I ever learned is to write each evening the six most important things I have to do tomorrow. I also number them in the order of their importance. You need to make that decision because a woman can walk into any room of the house and find six things that need to be done. By deciding what’s most important, I can follow what I set out to do and don’t get off on all kinds of tangents.”
“There is another little habit that applies to time management and organization, I’ve discovered that whatever is on top of your incoming mail (to do list), you take it and finish it. I don’t go on to the second no matter how enticing. Normally, you tend to go through the pile and think {Oh, here is an easy one. I’ll do that one first} and {I don’t know the answer to this one, so I’ll put it aside for awhile} My suggestion is: to tackle one thing at a time and finish it, no matter how difficult it is or how easy it is. You don’t handle any piece of paper (task) twice.”
“One intense hour is worth a dreamy day. Parkinson’s Law states that {work expands to fill the time available for it}. If somebody called you from the airport saying, {we just arrived in town and we’ll be there in half an hour}, you’d get your spring cleaning done in thirty minutes, when you might have spent a whole day on it. Whatever length of time you have available for a project, you get it done.”
Mary Kay on the success principles you use that apply to goal setting…”first of all, you’re never going to get there if you don’t know where you are going. I think most people plan their vacations better than they plan their lives.”
2. Arlene Dickenson
As one of the famed Dragons on the hit t.v. show Dragons Den for 8 seasons, Arlene is best known for her witty banter back and forth with Kevin O’Leary, as well as being a keen investor. With a net worth of $100 million dollars, Arlene is the epitome of a real rags to riches story.
Having grown up poor immigrating to Canada from South Africa, Arlene understands the struggle of trying to build something out of nothing. She got married right out of high school and started her family young and it wasn’t until the age of 30 that Arlene found herself a stay-at-home mom who was newly divorced and in a position of losing custody of her children due to not having enough income to provide for them.
This fueled Arlene to go find an advertising sales job at a Calgary television station with very little experience and try to rebuild her life. During her short stay at the station she had a coworker who left to start his own marketing firm and invited Arlene to come and be a partner with him (I picture a Jerry Maguire moment here “who’s coming with me?”)
Her position as a “partner” meant that Arlene did not earn a salary and she essentially worked really long hours and weekends for free. “I went to Venture and worked for two-and-a-half years without any salary, I was hand-to-mouth and living off credit cards. I was doing all the things we tell you not to do on Dragons’ Den.” But with hard work, faith and sacrifice within 10 years she was sole owner of the firm at the age of 42. Venture Communications is one of Canada’s largest marketing agencies and was a catapult for Arlene to branch out into her other investments and projects.
Here are some words of wisdom from Arlene:
“I’m feeling very encouraged about women’s ability to think of their own experiences as being relevant to business, especially if you’ve been a stay-at-home mom going back into the workplace.
The learning that you’ve acquired at home used to be labeled and seen as less valuable. Today, we understand that it’s an amazing training ground for business. We are becoming more proud of and in-tune with what we are learning at home in terms of balancing household budgets, people, emotions and competing interests – and we are taking that into business.”
“Life is a journey not a destination. Make sure that you focus on the moment you’re in, not thinking where you’re headed to the point you don’t enjoy where you are.”
“Stand up for who you are, it’s okay to be who you are and asking in a good way how to get what you need without harming anyone in the process. Be the best you can be and you’ll be surprised at what can be achieved.”
“I’ve crossed things off my list, I won’t ever be a supermodel or a brain surgeon and there are lots of things I won’t ever be able to do because of my physical limitations, my age and my stage. Take that list away and the list of things that I can do is huge and that’s the same for everybody.”
Talking about going from poverty to where she is today, Arlene said she “wasn’t ever afraid to fail –but she was always afraid of regret. Never did she want to regret not having tried her best to succeed. It’s a lesson and motto for everyone to live by.”
3. Julia Childs
Julia’s kitchen is so famous it is in a museum...but it doesn’t stand up to her tall stature (6’2”), loud boisterous personality and her ability to introduce French cuisine into the hearts of American’s.
Julia has written over 11 cookbooks and starred in 8 t.v. shows, all well after the age of 40.
She persevered by going back to school to learn a new skill when she didn’t fit in, had no prior knowledge and was told she had no chance of succeeding as a reputable chef.
Her passion and desire for cooking poured out into the hearts of those that watched her and a nation fell in love. “Because of the technology in the 1960s, the show was unedited, causing her blunders to appear in the final version and ultimately lend authenticity and approachability to television. Child's show began before the feminist movement of the 1960s, which meant that the issues housewives and women faced were somewhat ignored on television.”
If Julia herself wasn’t already super intriguing, her story is just as much so. She started off in the intelligence field in the OSS (pre-CIA) as a typist and then was promoted to top-secret researcher reporting directly to the head of the OSS…I know! This all sounds so crazy but it is true. While at the OSS she worked briefly in the OSS Emergency Sea Rescue Equipment Section where she helped develop shark repellant that was needed to ensure sharks would not explode ordnance (military weapons) targeting of German U-Boats.
While living the life of James Bond she met her husband Paul who also worked for the OSS. Paul, is credited for introducing Julia to fine cuisine. After joining the United States Foreign Service the couple moved to Paris where they lived for many years until eventually moving back to the United States.
“Child repeatedly recalled her first meal at La Couronne in Rouen as a culinary revelation; once, she described the meal of oysters, sole meunière, and fine wine to The New York Times as {an opening up of the soul and spirit for me}.”
At the age of 39 Julia graduated from the famous Cordon Bleu cooking school in Paris and joined two French women who were writing a French cuisine cookbook. Julia was tasked with translating it into English and adding details that would appeal to an American audience.
The book was a 726-page cookbook called Mastering the Art of French Cooking and it took the ladies 9 years to research and write it. The book has sold well over 1.5 million copies and is one of the most famous cookbooks ever published.
At the age of 51 Julia appeared on a show to promote the cookbook and the audience absolutely loved her while she cooked an omelette live on the air, resulting in landing her first show The French Chef which aired for ten years and won an Emmy award. “She attracted the broadest audience with her cheery enthusiasm, distinctively warbly voice, and unpatronizing, unaffected manner.”
Life advice from Julia (she would have been great to have drinks with by the way):
“Find something you’re passionate about and keep tremendously interested in it.”
“Always remember: If you’re alone in the kitchen and you drop the lamb, you can always just pick it up. Who’s going to know?”
“I enjoy cooking with wine. Sometimes I even put it in the food…”
“Just speak very loudly and quickly, and state your position with utter conviction, as the French do, and you’ll have a marvelous time!”
"This is my invariable advice to people: Learn how to cook—try new recipes, learn from your mistakes, be fearless and above all have fun."
"The more you know, the more you can create. There's no end to imagination in the kitchen."
“The measure of achievement is not winning awards. It’s doing something that you appreciate, something you believe is worthwhile.”
“The only real stumbling block is fear of failure. In cooking you’ve got to have a what-the-hell attitude.”
“The best way to execute French cooking is to get good and loaded and whack the hell out of a chicken. Bone appétit.”
4. Saint Mother Teresa
As an icon of compassion and spirituality Mother Teresa has won many Peace Prizes, including the Nobel Peace Prize for her humanitarian work around the world.
She founded The Missionaries of Charity who have over 5000 members around the globe continuing Mother Teresa’s work to help the sick, homeless, orphaned and poor live with dignity.
She was given the honor of Saint for her selfless dedication, as she completely devoted her entire life to helping others.
During the Siege in Beirut Lebanon in the 80’s she called for a cease fire during the war so that she could go in and rescue stranded children in a hospital. The fighting factions did cease and allowed her to safely go in and retrieve 37 children.
“Many of us dream of changing the world, but only very few choose to act on it. And fewer still did it as bravely as this humble woman from Calcutta.”
Mother Teresa was born knowing she would live a life of service and was a devote Catholic. After her father died at a young age she became very close to her mother who instilled in her a strong sense of compassion.
Her mother would always invite people in for dinner. Mother Teresa would ask “mother who are these people?” and her mother would answer ”some are relatives, but all are your people.” This trait of caring for those in need took hold in Mother Teresa.
Mother Teresa chose to go to Sisters of Loreto, an Irish community of nuns to get her training and learn English. From there she went to teach in Calcutta India for almost 2 decades.
She then received a “calling within a calling” when she heard the voice of God tell her to leave the school and go help those who were sick and helpless.
"I was to leave the convent and help the poor while living among them. It was an order. To fail would have been to break the faith."
So at the age of 40 she left the school and went out to the slums and started caring for "the poorest among the poor, the hungry, the naked, the homeless, the crippled, the blind, the lepers, all those people who feel unwanted, unloved, uncared for throughout society, people that have become a burden to the society and are shunned by everyone"
She was joined on her mission by a group of young women who carry on her work through The Missionaries of Charity worldwide to this day.
Even when Mother Teresa faced such suffering in people and felt a lack of God’s presence on her journey, she was still fully dedicated to her work that she was called to do. She continued on caring for others.
Here are just a few quotes from Mother Teresa:
“Some people come into your life as a blessing and some come as a lesson.”
“We fear the future because we are wasting today.”
“When you judge someone, you have no time to love them.”
“God doesn't require us to succeed, he only requires that you try.”
“Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment.”
“Prayer is not asking. Prayer is putting oneself in the hands of God, at His disposition, and listening to His voice in the depth of our hearts.”
“I'm a little pencil in the hand of a writing God, who is sending a love letter to the world.”
“Life is an opportunity, benefit from it. Life is beauty, admire it. Life is a dream, realize it.”
“Work without love is slavery.”
“The way you help heal the world is you start with your own family.”
“I used to believe that prayer changes things, but now I know that prayer changes us, and we change things.”
“We must know that we have been created for greater things, not just to be a number in the world, not just to go for diplomas and degrees, this work and that work. We have been created in order to love and to be loved.”
"Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies."
This one is not a quote but an example…to have dedication despite having doubts. One of her greatest lessons and inspiration, was her unwavering dedication to those in need despite her own doubts. She at times did not feel the presence of God in her life and continued to dedicate herself to His plan.
5. Vera Wang
Fashion icon Vera Wang is famously known for her unorthodox and stunning wedding gowns (think of her black wedding dress), costume designs, dressing celebrities' and has boutiques in major cities around the world.
She has in her decades long career, which she calls a “happy accident” branched out to shoes, jewelry, perfumes and homeware racking in an estimated $650 million empire and employs over 200 people,
But did you know that she had aspirations to be an Olympic Figure Skater and didn’t make the cut and during her first attempt at college she was “asked to leave”?
Vera had a dream and desire to be on the Olympic team and when that didn’t pan out for her she looked to her second passion in the fashion industry.
Vera said in an interview that she was at an all time low and that she had felt as if she had let herself down…so she went to Paris to find solace and while there reevaluated her decisions and found a passion for fashion.
She said she immersed herself in the culture of fashion and started to explore life from a very different perspective while she began to reinvent herself. A life in fashion “intrigued her and it seduced her heart”.
While working retail during her second attempt at college she sold clothes to a women who ended up being the fashion director for Vogue. The women saw Vera’s desire and passion for the fashion industry and offered her a job as an Editor for Vogue upon completion of school.
She accepted the job and remained there for 17 years as a Senior-Editor until she lost out on the highly acclaimed position of Editor-in-Chief. “When you realize that you [failed at something], you just have to learn to let go, and letting go is perhaps harder than hanging in there. But in my own mind, I had not obtained what I hoped I would. I felt that, again, I’ve fallen short. I didn’t make the Olympic team. I didn’t become editor-in-chief at Vogue. I thought maybe it’s just too late for me.“
After losing out on the position of Editor-in-Chief, Vera went to work at Ralph Lauren where she learned the business side of running a fashion empire. During her short stay there she designed her own wedding dress and discovered this was something she had to do.
So she bravely took the leap to launch her own fashion brand which became an empire.
Here is some advice from Vera about following your passion and taking chances in life:
“With any perceived success, there is always great failure before it.”
“It is the courage to continue that counts…work hard on your passion and if you really love something you will succeed.”
Thanks for taking the time to read and I hope you have found some inspiration to follow your purpose and passion in this new season in your life.