Caroline Hawkins
FOUNDER OF BUILDONLINEFREEDOM.COM & AND A PROUD AMBASSADOR OF LAUNCH YOU
I’m passionate about helping women over 50 reclaim their confidence, rebuild their wealth, and create genuine financial independence because I know how overwhelming midlife can feel when your future looks uncertain.
After experiencing financial anxiety, reinvention, and starting over myself, I’m committed to making the retirement path easier for other late‑bloomer women.
My mission is to introduce simple digital skills, beginner‑friendly online income training in a safe, supportive space where women can rise without shame or overwhelm. Every woman deserves retirement confidence, dignity, and the freedom to shape a healthy, secure, and meaningful life — on her own terms.
A story of resilience, reinvention, and discovering it’s never too late to rise.
This is a long read and I wear my heart on my sleeve. Because I want you to know, that just like you - I am real. Here, I share the good, the bad and the ugly. I tell my story not for pity, but to show you that there is a way forward. There is hope and possibility.
From Teenage Worker to Mother, Grandmother, and Reluctant Warrior
I’ve been working since I was 14 — after‑school shifts, school holiday jobs, anything that helped me contribute and stand on my own two feet. After finishing Year 11, I landed a full‑time job in a pharmacy, then moved into banking, working full‑time until motherhood arrived. I took a year off with each of my sons, returned part‑time, and did what so many women do: balanced work, family, and everything in between.
I’m now a proud mum of two grown sons and a grandmother of two — roles that shaped my heart, my resilience, and my deep commitment to helping women over 50 reclaim their confidence, dignity, and financial independence.
Then life threw its first curveball.
When Life Throws a Curveball (or Several)
When my eldest was just one, my husband suffered a workplace accident that left him with a chronic back injury. Some days he could work, some days he couldn’t — and employers don’t love that kind of unpredictability. So we made a bold decision:
we’d go into business for ourselves.
For 14 years, we ran a 7‑day‑a‑week convenience store. 4:30am starts. 8:30pm finishes. He worked mornings, I did the school runs and housework, then worked from 11am until close. It was exhausting, but it worked. We paid ourselves well. We paid ourselves superannuation. We were proud.
Then life decided we needed character development.
Illness, Betrayal & the Global Financial Crisis
Early in our business journey, I became critically ill and ended up in intensive care. My boys, just 4 and 6 at the time, were brought in to say goodbye. While I fought for my life, a family member “helping” in the shop was dipping into our registers. Somehow, we recovered — my health stabilised, the business steadied, and life moved forward.
But the hits didn’t stop coming.
When the Global Financial Crisis hit, 70% of our customers — tradesmen — disappeared almost overnight. We paid our staff first and watched our own wages and superannuation shrink. Then the 2011 Victorian floods arrived. We fed emergency crews and volunteers for weeks — breakfasts, lunches, whatever they needed. We were never reimbursed, but we didn’t chase it. It felt right to support our community.
Individually, each challenge was survivable.
Together, they slowly eroded everything we’d built.
Losing Everything — Including the Home We Built
I took a job as a store manager, hoping to rebuild my super. But our business was drowning, and part of my wage went straight back into keeping it afloat. Even my newly employed son helped us financially.
Eventually, we had to close the doors.
We sold the freehold for a fraction of its value.
And the bank still came knocking.
We lost our family home.
We survived — renting, rebuilding, leaning on each other. But inside, I was exhausted. I’d worked hard for 45 years — often seven days a week — and had almost nothing to show for it.
A Midlife Plot Twist: Becoming a Nurse at 54
I decided “enough is enough.” I needed stability. A decent wage. A chance to rebuild. So at 50 — while others my age were buying Harley Davidsons or caravans — I enrolled in university to become a Registered Nurse. (Honestly, nursing felt cheaper and slightly less dangerous.)
I studied hard. I worked harder.
But the strain of the past eventually caught up, and my husband and I separated.
I graduated in 2020 — the Year of the Nurse and the year of a global pandemic. Perfect timing, right?
The Financial Reality That Broke Me Open
Even with salary sacrificing into superannuation, the truth hit hard: I would never catch up — not because I failed, but because the system failed women like us.
Like so many women over 50, I’d spent years working part‑time while raising children, taking time out of the workforce to care for my family, and stepping into the role of default caregiver whenever life demanded it.
Those years of unpaid labour — the very work that holds families and communities together — came at the cost of my own financial security. Add in the lifelong gender pay gap, lower superannuation contributions, and the reality that women often return to lower‑paid roles after caregiving, and it’s no wonder so many of us reach midlife with far less superannuation or retirement savings than men our age.
I had less than a quarter of the recommended super for a woman my age.
I lay awake at night wondering:
• How long can I keep doing this
• What if I get sick
• Will I be able to afford rent
• Will I become a burden to my sons
• Could I end up homeless
I wasn’t just tired — I was terrified. And that fear wasn’t personal failure. It was financial anxiety.
It was the predictable outcome of a lifetime of caring for everyone else first.
The Night Everything Changed
For months I trawled the internet searching for one those get rich quick schemes that would give me the break I needed... you know, the one's that seemed too good to be true? - and they were!
Endless hype and false promises that preyed on vulnerable people like me... ad - after ad, after darned ad.
One night, I stumbled across something different. Something honest.
It read along the lines of:
“If you’re looking for a fast, easy, get‑rich‑quick program… this is NOT for you.”
Wait!
Not for me?
Then:
“If you’re prepared to dig in, be disciplined, and want support from people who genuinely want you to succeed — even with no experience and no tech skills — read on.”
That single paragraph changed everything. It gave me hope. It gave me direction. It gave me a way forward.
(And in case you're wondering - No, it's not one of those icky Pyramid Scheme thingys)
And Now… I’m Here for You
If any part of my story feels familiar, I want you to know that you're in the right place.
You’re not behind.
You’re not too old.
And you’re not too late.
You're right where you need to be.
And you're right on time.
MY MISSION
My mission is to eradicate financial fear for women over 50 and replace it with confidence, choice, and possibility.
I show women that it’s not too late, they’re not behind, and there is a simple, empowering path to supplement their income, stay connected to the people they love, and build a future that feels safe, dignified, and joyful.
MY VISION
I envision a world where every woman over 50 enters her later years with unshakeable financial confidence, vibrant health, and the freedom to live life on her own terms - a world where no woman feels scared, invisible, or left behind, and where late bloomers rise into a future filled with dignity, connection, and limitless possibilities.
MY WHY
I believe every woman over 50 deserves safety, dignity, and financial freedom; and that it’s never too late to rebuild confidence, create new possibilities, and shape a future that feels secure, joyful, and truly her own.
CORE VALUES
Safety
Every woman deserves to feel safe — emotionally, financially, and personally.
Safety is the foundation of everything I do. I create a supportive, judgment‑free space where women over 50 can learn, grow, and rebuild their future with confidence and calm.
Confidence
Confidence is rebuilt one gentle step at a time. I guide women through clear, supportive actions that restore self‑belief, reduce overwhelm, and help them feel capable, prepared, and in control of their financial future.
Dignity
Women over 50 have spent decades caring for others, contributing to families, workplaces, and communities. I honour that legacy. Every woman deserves to enter her later years with dignity, respect, and the freedom to make choices that reflect her worth.
Possibility
It’s not too late. You’re not behind. I believe in possibility at every age — and I help women see a future filled with opportunity, independence, and hope. Your next chapter can be your strongest yet.
$ Freedom
I believe financial freedom is a right, not a privilege. My work empowers women to supplement their income, strengthen their retirement, and create long‑term security through simple, accessible online pathways.