Midlife Makeovers: How Australians Are Transforming Their Lives

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For more on starting afresh in midlife, watch Insight episode Turning 50 on SBS On Demand.

During an interview with a state coroner, the presenter sparked an idea that resonated deeply with me. It seemed like a fascinating career, so I immediately researched online and found a remote bachelor’s law program. Without hesitation, I applied and was thrilled to be accepted.

For those who have risen to expert status in their careers, starting anew can feel daunting and uncomfortable. The shift from familiarity to the unknown is never easy, as one woman shared.

Rachael Paxton has made more than one career pivot in her time, having moved from psychologist to professional triathlete before making her biggest leap of all.

This final pivot crept up on her slowly when she was in her 30s.

“After seven years of competing, I wasn’t really enjoying the racing side of triathlon anymore. So I started working more as a physio but I got restless and started to think: ‘Is this all there is?’ I wanted to further myself,” she told Insight.

As she pondered doing something different, a light bulb moment came in the car one evening as she listened to a podcast.

Rachael Paxton reflects on the hurdles and rewards of changing careers at the midpoint of life. She acknowledges both the difficulties and the unique potential that come with such a transition. Source: Supplied / Caroline Riches

Rachael knew she had a mountain to climb: the degree would take her six years part-time as she continued to work, and would require considerable financial sacrifice (degrees in Australia cost between $8,500 and $50,000 for domestic students).

“Going back to uni in your 30s or 40s, most people still need an income because they have bills to pay. And studying brings financial limitations; you have to put your financial and real estate dreams on hold, so that’s a huge consideration,” she said.

A portrait picture of a woman with long hair smiling at the camera.

Rachael is optimistic, viewing midlife career retraining not just as a challenge but also as an opportunity for growth and reinvention.

But Rachael believes retraining into something new in midlife can also be advantageous.

“Having career and life experience has definitely helped me with applications and interviews. I’m very capable and comfortable asking for help or being aware of my strengths and limitations.”

Having now completed her degree and started a graduate role in a commercial law firm — far away from her dream of being a coroner — she has no regrets, despite a significant salary cut from her physio role.

“I’ll never work another day as a physio again. I’ve invested in a different future and I don’t want to go back; I’m really happy having made this change.”

The power of reinvention

Julie (not her real name) has also made two career pivots in her life as her values and priorities have changed.

After working in banking for 26 years, she became a beauty therapist and now, in her 50s, she’s retraining to become a nurse.

“I always maintained that when my values go on a different path to the firm’s values, it’s time to move on,” she said.

She said her senior banking role was extremely demanding, with employees encouraged to chase success at the expense of their families. When her dad died and she needed to spend more time caring for her mum, the demands became unsustainable.

Julie decided beauty therapy would give her the flexibility she needed, so she enrolled in a one-year beauty course.

But a few years in, she was bored and seeking greater meaning from her work, hence her decision to return to university.

“As I get older, I want to learn about the human body and give back a bit. I’ve only done my first year in nursing, so I’m still a long way from making a difference, but I love helping people,” she said.

A nurse standing and speaking to a patient in a bed in a hospital ward

Now in her 50s, Julie (not pictured) is studying nursing “to learn about the human body and give back a bit”. Source: Getty / SolStock

Julie is lucky that her years in banking have given her the financial freedom to explore different career paths. She admits her moves have been scary at times but she’s also learned that learning new things makes her feel alive.

“I’ve always been about reinvention and change. Even when I was in banking, I was never in the same job for longer than two or three years.

“I believe you have to take chances in life. What’s the worst that can happen? You have to go back to what you can already do.”

Building a portfolio career

Sarah Vizer wasn’t given the luxury of choice in switching careers; she was forced to leave her 20-year executive role in her 40s due to illness.

“I was on top of my game but burnout hit me like a ton of bricks. I look back now and realise my job didn’t give me the right balance; it was quite a harsh environment,” she said.

The burnout developed into chronic fatigue syndrome, which Sarah still lives with.

“I don’t blame the job, I blame myself for not really understanding what I wanted out of life.”

But understanding what she did want wasn’t easy.

“I went through this really intense time of going: ‘Well, if I’m not my career, who am I?’”

Sarah has now repurposed her executive skills and love of people to become an executive coach, she’s written a book on living with chronic fatigue, and she also makes money as an artist.

Unable to work a full day, her portfolio career brings her a sense of purpose while accommodating her disability.

“When I was younger, I only had one model in my mind, which was to get a corporate job and you do that job until you drop at your desk. Being made to stop working full-time has allowed me to explore other interests and talents. It’s allowed me to blossom,” she said.

A woman holding a piece of art in her studio.

Sarah Vizer says creating a portfolio career of different things she loves “has allowed her to blossom”. Source: Supplied

Sarah believes what works for us in our 20s and 30s often doesn’t in our 40s — and she’s adjusted her lifestyle expectations to accommodate these changes.

“In the past, my life was about: ‘Where can I travel to? Where can I go out?’”

“Now I get so much enjoyment from walking my dogs. I’ve become a lot more mindful of the small, meaningful things that don’t necessarily cost a lot.”

Getting clear on values and priorities

Sydney-based career coach Therese Rahme says the appetite for reinvention “is definitely increasing”.

“Many people in their late 30s and early 40s are reassessing their career direction earlier than previous generations — often triggered by becoming new parents, wanting more flexibility, or rethinking what work should look like alongside family life,” she said.

A graphic card showing some statistics around our working world.

Source: SBS

With many courses now offered part-time and remotely for those who work full-time, making a pivot is easier than ever. But for those considering a leap, she suggests starting with reflection before rushing into action.

“Get clear on what you want more of, what you want less of, and what’s no longer working,” she said.

“Identify your transferable skills — most people are surprised by how many they have. Speaking with people in the field, doing short courses, or even volunteering can help test ideas in a low-risk way. Take it step by step.

“Once people see it as a structured and supported process, the fear tends to soften.”

She added that when people step into work that fits their stage of life, they often describe “a renewed sense of purpose and energy”.

“People in midlife tend to have greater clarity about what matters to them — whether that’s flexibility, meaning, creativity or stability. A career change can open up new networks, different ways of contributing, and often a healthier work–life balance.”

When it doesn’t work out

Of course, if you try a new career and it doesn’t work out, that’s okay too, as Erin O’Dwyer discovered.

She worked as a journalist for two decades before moving into corporate communications roles, which she says she “hated”.

It prompted a radical change.

“A friend of mine was managing a boutique migration law firm, and she said to me: ‘Why don’t you finish your admission as a lawyer and come and work for me?’ At that point, I just wanted as far away from comms as possible.”

Erin had graduated with an arts/law degree in her 20s and needed to complete her Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice to be admitted. So she set about completing the 12-month course and began work as paralegal and later a junior lawyer.

A woman delivering a presentation in front of a whiteboard.

Erin O’Dwyer left her career in journalism before returning to it years later. Source: Supplied

At first she loved the human stories involved in her work as an immigration lawyer. But when she moved into a policy role, she found it tedious. Plus, she didn’t feel like she was playing to her strengths, and going back to a junior level and salary was hard.

“I had to leave my ego at the door. Plus, I hated the minutiae of law. Eighteen months in, I was very, very unhappy,” she said.

In her mid-40s, she decided to return to journalism, setting up a small storytelling agency, a move she describes as “empowering”.

“Being an expert in my field gave me back that seniority and sense of satisfaction that I was drawing on my experience.”

No experience wasted

But Erin says she doesn’t regret her experiment in law.

“I tried it but I don’t need to do it again. And actually, I’ve come full circle. Clients who want help telling their stories come to me because I have that legal lens.”

To others considering a career pivot, she advises doing the internal work.

“Look at yourself very objectively in the mirror and go: ‘okay, what is really going on here?’ Be honest with yourself about what’s involved in terms of training and cost. Maybe you can pursue this new passion as a hobby on the side.”

Former executive Sarah, meanwhile, says deciphering what you want the rest of your working life to look like is something to celebrate.

“Many people seem to go through a point of reckoning in midlife where you wake up and go, I’m not really sure what I’m doing here. That can feel scary but it’s a gift.

“That gift, if you’re brave enough to face it, is you’re setting yourself up for the next part of life.”