Thanks to a youth-obsessed media, it’s easy to fall into the trap of comparing your accomplishments to the successes of those half your age. But these women are proof that just because you haven’t “made it” by a certain age doesn’t mean you never will.
Au contraire, there’s a good chance your success will be more sustainable. If these ladies are any indication, you’ve got decades of success ahead of you. Read on to find out how Madeleine Albright took her first paying job at the tail end of her 30s and the nine lives of Kristin Wiig’s career prior to Saturday Night Live.
1. Madeleine Albright
At age 39, Madeleine Albright took her first paying job as a legislative assistant to Senator Ed Muskie. Prior to that, she had spent 15 years studying for a Ph.D while raising her family. She was 59 when she became the first female Secretary of State.
“I think that women can do everything, they just can’t do it all at the same time,” she told Makers.
2. Jessica Chastain
At age 34, Jessica Chastain had the most memorable breakthrough in Hollywood ever. She went from relative anonymity to seven back-to-back feature films, including The Help.
Chastain endured bullying as a child, and people advised her to dye her red hair blonde at the beginning of her career. “For a long time I was making movies that then weren’t coming out for some odd reason, which is why in 2011 I had seven movies come out at once. They just kept getting delayed,” she told Graham Norton.
She also remarked to Glamour magazine, “I would have been a disaster. If I was 19 and I had the attention that I’m getting now, I would have just said stupid things.”
3. Mary Kay Ash
At age 45, Mary Kay Ash was a freshly widowed entrepreneur who started a cosmetics company with a $5,000 loan from her son. Over the years, her company blossomed into a direct sales giant that provided women with the potential to achieve both personal and financial success. 3.5 million people worldwide are presently Mary Kay Independent Beauty Consultants.
4. Meryl Streep
At age 30, Meryl Streep won her first Academy Award – which means she was just getting started! For the past few decades, she’s enjoyed an unofficial residency as the prom queen of Oscar Night.
Her road to fame wasn’t an easy one; in this clip she recounts how a famous producer once told her she was too ugly to be in his King Kong remake.
“I remember as I was hovering around 40, I thought each movie would be my last, really,” she said recently. We all know recent cinematic history wouldn’t be the same without her legendary roles in The Devil Wears Prada or The Iron Lady.
5. Barbara Walters
At age 34, Barbara Walters first appeared on The Today Show after years working behind the scenes. In an episode of Makers, she states that she wasn’t meant to get the role, as she had a writing background rather than a modeling one.
“They put me on for 13 weeks and I stayed on for 13 years,” she said. After The Today Show, she went on to become the first woman co-anchor of network evening news.
This is a good reminder. It can be easy to feel like it is already too late for us, and it really isn’t. Thanks
I’m 36 and on disability – hoping to work again soon and this is so encouraging!
This was a really inspirational blog post. I’m only 24 and feel like a career failure. I guess I still have time to make it, though 🙂
You’re just getting started Brianna! I have a post about women in their 20s too, I hope you find it inspiring: http://www.michellearick.com/20-successful-women-20s/
This is a great article! Very inspiring to a gal who’s approaching 30. 🙂
Love this! I am 32 and just started my business. I often feel like I waited too long but I am realizing I just wasn’t ready then and I am soooo ready now!!
That’s so awesome, Jennifer! Wishing you the best of luck with your business!
Very inspiring. Thanks for sharing.
http://www.hautepalette.com/single-post/2016/10/13/Rose-Quartz-and-Serenity
Truly inspiring – love this. Just the right time for me to draw inspiration from 🙂
Love this!! Always good to be reminded that we can be successful later in life.
So true! I especially love Jessica Chastain’s quote. She’s such an admirable example of persistence!
This is so motivating! Thanks for the encouragement I needed!
Thanks for reading, Jessica!
I’m only 22, but I often feel like I’m “running behind”. I had to drop out of college after 2 years because of my dads health and just haven’t had the time or finances to go back. It’s often discouraging to look at how much friends my own age are accomplishing, while I work any job that will take me without a degree and hope it’s enough to pay the bills. It’s so encouraging to read about other women who were even further on in life, following their dreams! Thank you for this post!
PS I’m fairly new to blogging and would love to have some more blogger friends! Let’s connect!
Hey Kate! Thanks so much for reading and leaving a comment. I totally understand the “feeling behind” feeling, especially when we live in a time when everyone brags about their successes on social media and seldom discuss their failures. It’s perfectly human to have good and bad times, and you sound like you’re absolutely on your way to finding what success is for you.
I also have a post about women in their 20’s that you might enjoy! http://www.michellearick.com/20-successful-women-20s/