How was a stay at home mother with no formal business training and not a lot of cash able to start one of Australia’s most successful private companies? According to Fernwood Fitness Founder and refreshingly humble entrepreneur Diana Williams, it was just good, old fashioned hard work. From modest beginnings in a Bendigo schoolroom nearly 30 years ago, she would turn her first female-only health club into a nationwide enterprise of some 68 clubs, with over 2,000 employees.

Despite being labeled as digitally ‘out-of-touch’ research shows baby boomers are spending more time online than any other generation, viewing social media as having a positive impact on their lives. It should come as no surprise that Facebook is the most popular social hangout for women over fifty in Australia, but for those of us that might not be as au fait on the interwebs as we would like, Deborah Chambers proffers a little insight as to how social media just like a millenial.

Increasingly, women over fifty are turning to alternative, supplementary income streams such as Airbnb, to assist with the rising cost of living. As a result, mature women are the fastest growing segment in this unique hosting community, and are often the highest-rated hosts on the platform. Our own Airbnb aficionado, Nadine Cresswell-Myatt takes a look at some of the benefits of becoming an Airbnb host, and the many ways it is empowering older women financially.

Former Masterchef contestant Benita Orwell overcame ageism and personal adversity to land herself a spot on the internationally acclaimed reality cooking programme. She hopes that her story will inspire more women over fifty to follow their dreams not in spite of their age, but because of it.

Lisa Hall is the free-spirited couturier behind the womenswear label, Madame Hall, creating bespoke, original attire for urban bohemians. Unlike other western fashion designers before her, Lisa was not content to simply fly home with a suitcase full of Indian fabrics, and instead, traded life in Sydney for a remote Indian town at the age of 48.

By immersing herself in what truly inspires her — art, traditional crafts, and colour as a reflection of everyday life, Madame Hall has flourished, attracting a dedicated community of followers and customers from around the world, and even gracing the pages of Australian Vogue on one Cate Blanchett.