Future Women

1 month ago | futurewomen.com | Michelle McQuaid

A few years ago, I found myself standing in a Portuguese town square, completely lost on day one of a solo pilgrimage along the Camino Portugues. The yellow arrows marking my path had vanished, and my inner voice was having a field day: “This is what happens when you try things you’re not prepared for.”At nearly fifty, I had chosen to walk 120 kilometres alone through Portugal and Spain – something utterly unlike me. I’d always been the woman who only attempted things I could excel at.

1 month ago | futurewomen.com | Jamila Rizvi

How much does it cost to be you? To walk in your shoes, to make your moves, to live your life? That’s the very question Anna is asking herself as she enters her 60s, the decade in which she will likely retire from the paid workforce. If you’re wondering who on earth Anna is and what she has to do with your retirement – let’s get you up to speed. Anna is our collective avatar.

1 month ago | futurewomen.com | Jamila Rizvi

She’s fifty and fabulous but is she financially secure? With half a century behind her, our fictional friend Anna has made a lot of life choices. Or more accurately, we have. We collectively made life choices on Anna’s behalf via social media polls (you can play along here). And we’ve done so in the spirit of learning how our decisions, big and small, shape our financial future. So, where have we landed our imaginary heroine, as she steps into her 50s?

2 months ago | futurewomen.com | Jamila Rizvi

Forty. It’s traditionally an age to take stock, recalibrate and, according to many women currently enjoying or fondly reflecting on this decade, time to start caring less about what others think. Why? Because you’ll want to save those cares for yourself, as you set yourself up for the second half of your career, and life in retirement. Which is exactly what we’re trying to do for our friend, Anna. You’ll recall that Anna is a fictional woman, now entering mid-life.

2 months ago | futurewomen.com | Jamila Rizvi

The stock-standard Australian, according to recent census data, is a woman in her 30s, with kids, living on a combined family income of $3000 a week. Does this sound like you? It could sound like Anna. If you’re yet to be acquainted, Anna is our avatar in a game of life we’ve got going amongst our FW community. She’s a fictional woman, rapidly ageing from 20-70 and, as she faces common life crossroads, we – yes, as in you and me, and FW’s online community – are calling the shots.