Better late than never is more than a casual phrase; it’s a quiet rebellion against the idea that your life’s big moments all have to happen on a fixed schedule. The proverb itself goes back to ancient Rome, where Livy used the Latin “potiusque sero quam numquam,” and Geoffrey Chaucer later echoed it in The Canterbury Tales, reminding people that arriving late is still better than never arriving at all.

When you hear “better late than never,” you’re hearing a declaration of second chances. Think of Julia Child, who didn’t publish Mastering the Art of French Cooking until age 50 and became a television icon soon after. Deseret News highlights how her passion for cooking emerged well after many people feel their story is already written. Or Vera Wang, who entered the world of high fashion in her 40s after missing her dream of becoming an Olympic figure skater. According to Deseret News and other profiles, she transformed a late pivot into a global brand.

There’s Ray Kroc, who bought McDonald’s in his early 50s after years as a struggling salesman, and Colonel Harland Sanders, who started franchising KFC in his 60s. VegOut Magazine and other outlets describe how both men turned decades of ordinary or failed work into foundations for companies that reshaped global food culture. Their lives say directly to you: the first half of your story does not get to dictate the ending.

Yet listeners know the pressure that pushes in the opposite direction. Social media rewards the “prodigy,” the 30-under-30 list, the overnight success. Career ladders, family expectations, and economic anxiety can make any detour feel like proof you’re behind, that you’ve missed the one open door. But the evidence keeps piling up that timelines are far more flexible than those pressures suggest. From late-blooming artists like Grandma Moses, who began painting seriously in her late 70s, to professionals who change careers in midlife, biographies and news stories keep repeating the same pattern: persistence plus time still works.

If you’re listening today and worrying that it’s too late, let the phrase “better late than never” become a personal invitation. Your dream started late is still your dream. The chapter you begin now counts just as much as the ones you wish had gone differently.

This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI