Prime Time: 27 lessons for the new midlife

by Bec Wilson

From Bec Wilson, hit podcast host and bestselling author of How to Have an Epic Retirement, comes the ultimate guide to modern midlife. We're now living longer, saving smarter, working more flexibly and seeking meaning at every turn. In 27 practical lessons, let Bec guide you on everything you need to know to make your Prime Time count.

The period from your late 40s well into your 70s is what Bec calls your 'Prime Time'. These years can be some of the best of your life - if you make the right choices. Far from winding down, this is the time to truly live.
In this essential handbook, Bec guides you through the key pillars of power, money, health, work, purpose, happiness, family and travel. This isn't just about adjusting to a longer lifespan - it's about creating a richer, more fulfilling life.

Prime 27 Lessons for the New Midlife isn't just a roadmap to retirement - it's a playbook for a life lived with intention, energy, joy, and financial confidence. With Bec Wilson as your guide, you can embrace this incredible stage and truly make the most of your Prime Time.

Money takes centre stage in this guide, with strategies that go beyond the basics. Learn how to make the most of superannuation, invest with purpose, maximise compounding and franking credits, understand spending and layering of income and how to leverage tax concessions. Beyond simply reaching 'enough to retire', Bec shows you how to build flexible financial foundations that will allow you to enjoy these years to the fullest.

Along with the financial foundations, this guide is packed with insights for building purpose and joy into every day, with practical advice for extending or reshaping your career, crafting a purpose-driven 'second act', creating work-life flexibility, strengthening family ties and looking after your changing body.

Ready to make the most of your Prime Time? Then you need this book now!

570 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 30, 2025

About the author

Bec Wilson is one of Australia’s authorities on modern retirement. She is the author of the newly released and bestselling guidebook, How to Have an Epic Retirement, published by Hachette, and a well-recognised thought leader amongst over-50s across Australia. Bec writes a weekly column for the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age Money Section, has a podcast for pre and post retirees called Prime Time, guest speaks at events nationally, and is creating pre-retirement online education for delivery to modern pre-retirees at scale in partnership with some of Australia’s largest funds and service providers.

She was the Founder and former CEO of Starts at 60 where during her decade long tenure, she built one of Australia’s largest and most socially engaged online communities of more than a million people in their 60s and beyond and an award-winning and #1 mature digital media brand, helping them navigate the complexities of modern retirement. She also built Travel at 60, a scalable online/offline national travel company that is dedicated to over-60s.

Bec also has a long and respected background in communications and marketing, having worked in advisory, strategy, growth and consulting roles throughout her career. Most recently, she’s spent time guiding companies who are developing products and services for modern pre- and post-retirees including property developers, financial services companies and healthcare organisations.

She is also a mother of three kids now in their late teens (plus two noisy but cuddly shih tzu-poodles!), is married, loves to travel.

Reviews

[Robin P · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a massive book with so many great ideas about how to create a happy midlife (prime time). It's so big that you will need to dip in and out of it, but there are some nice clear steps to follow to act upon these ideas. It's divided into six themes or pillars: power; money; work, purpose and happiness; health; family and community; and travel and adventure. Most people will have already given some consideration to one of more of these pillars, but often we haven't devoted the time to thinking through our options and actively choosing options that suit us best and enable us to live our best lives. This book will help you do that. There are structured activities to help guide your thinking as life is a big project. This is a book that will remain in my library and that I will continue to access in years to come.