Reader Interview - Jeanette Gower
Introducing a new section to this Newsletter and Blog - Reader Interviews.
Personally I’ve always loved learning about people’s backgrounds, seeing into their lives, especially if their background is different to mine.
I posed some questions to our guest today - Jeanette Gower - author of Reflections on 50+ years of Horse Breeding. Hopefully we can get to know her story and glimpse into her life and thoughts. Many thanks Jeanette.
Tell us about your Background
I’ve spent more than fifty years breeding Australian Stock Horses under the Chalani prefix, based in South Australia. Horses have shaped not only my career but my character, teaching me consistency, patience, and the value of a long view. From early show wins to late-night foaling seasons, this life has demanded equal parts logic and love, theory and practice, art and science.
Along the way, I’ve also worked in teaching, administration, writing, and small-scale investing. These days, I live on a rural property with my daughter and son-in-law, still working with horses, but also writing, mentoring, and managing investments that support the kind of lifestyle I want - quiet, purposeful, and self-directed.
What are your Passions?
Animals. Ethics. Education. In that order, usually. I’m particularly drawn to systems that work, whether it’s a reliable breeding program or a solid, low-drama investment strategy. I’m also passionate about helping people make informed, grounded choices, especially when it comes to animal care or financial wellbeing. And writing. Writing has become a natural extension of all of those things.
Did your passions motivate your career? How important do you feel passion is to one's career?
Yes, though I’d frame it differently now than I might have in my twenties. Passion gives you energy, but habits build your outcomes. Passion is the reason I began breeding horses. But discipline, planning, and sheer routine are the reason I’m still doing it five decades later. I think passion matters, but only when paired with responsibility and persistence.
What has been your retirement plan?
I didn’t have a “retirement” plan so much as a continuity plan. I knew I wanted to shift from full-time physical work into a blend of intellectual, passive, and interest-based income. That’s come through a combination of real estate, investing, and writing, especially long-form content and books. I don’t see retirement as stopping. Just recalibrating.
Tell us about your investing journey
I’ve always been an avid reader of books on financial literacy and mindset - probably because I sensed what was missing. Despite my father being an accountant, financial matters were never really discussed at home. School didn’t fill the gap either. When I started my first job, I was prepared to work hard and try to save as much as I could.
But horses taught me early. If I wanted to keep them, I had to be financially disciplined. There was one family mantra that stuck: never spend beyond your means. For me, that meant the horses had to pay their own way, whether through breeding a foal, giving lessons, or buying and selling occasionally for a small profit. That was on top of my work as a primary school teacher. Without realising it, I was in business. So I started reading not just about investing, but about running a sustainable, values-based business.
The real breakthrough came when my husband and I bought our first home, and it doubled in value over eight years. That sparked a deeper interest in real estate. After the untimely death of our stallion, we received an insurance payout and used it to purchase a block of land for $8,000. A few years later, we sold it for $27,000. That gain helped us secure our own horse property, and from there, I was hooked.
As we built equity, I learned how to use it to invest further. Around this time, I discovered The Investors Club in Australia. I immersed myself in their approach to safe, structured real estate investing; leveraging home equity to fund deposits, borrowing for the rest, and using rental income to service the mortgage while the property grew in value. Within a few years, I owned 5 investment properties, and more importantly, my daughter and son-in-law were starting their own journey into property investment.
Funnily enough, my father, ever the conservative accountant, was deeply worried that I was being taken for a ride. The idea of holding five mortgages made him incredibly uneasy. All he could see was the risk. He never fully understood what I was doing, or why I was confident. Risk, to him, was something to avoid at all costs. To me, it was something to understand and manage. We simply saw it differently.
Eventually, I became a Property Mentor with The Investors Club for ten years, supporting others to build their portfolios and financial confidence. That was an incredibly rewarding chapter.
When retirement drew near, I didn’t have a large super fund, just those properties and a determination to make the most of them. I didn’t want to be spending my retirement managing property, and though I had excellent property managers, one still had to oversee everything. Over five years, I gradually sold each one, freeing up equity to invest in shares inside a retirement super fund. That marked my first foray into the share market.
I now manage a comfortable, international portfolio that has returned over 40% in under five years, despite market volatility.
Because of that, I’ve been able to fund a peaceful retirement - writing books, publishing a weekly Substack, and continuing to support my horse breeding interests. I live quietly, with purpose and freedom.
If I have one regret, it’s that I didn’t start sooner. But as they say, the second-best time is now.
What does your ideal morning and evening routine look like?
Mornings are quiet and practical. I start with a cup of tea and check on the horses - feeding, watering, a quick general check. After that, I’ll spend an hour or two answering emails, reading, or writing. If I’m working on a project, that’s when my mind is clearest and I’ll work all day, probably only stopping for lunch, when I’ll watch the news, especially international news.
Other times I will be watching foals, handling them, or possibly riding out on a trail, and I love photographing them.
Evenings are about winding down deliberately. Simple meal, walk the dog, watch a documentary on YouTube. A good night’s sleep is part of the work.
Are there any habits or rituals you’ve adopted that had an outsized impact on your well-being or productivity?
Yes. Limiting noise, both literal and digital. Turning off social media and extraneous distractions. I never turn on a radio (even when driving). I like solitude. That alone gives me clarity and focus.
Also: meal prepping. It sounds basic, but eating simple, decent, unprocessed food consistently has a massive knock-on effect on energy, decision-making, and contentment. And I never buy something I could make just as easily at home (like a coffee). I just can’t see the point in spending money for no reason.
If I want to spend money, it is on my horses, classes and courses. These have life-long benefits for me. I will never stop learning. You can’t stop learning. You would be either dead or a zombie otherwise.
How do you personally define “wealth,” “health,” “self-improvement” and “freedom”?
Wealth is choices. It’s being able to say yes - or no - without regret.
Health is the capacity to enjoy a day without discomfort and see the beauty of nature.
Self-improvement is not performance. It’s small course corrections over time towards greater understanding of life’s lessons.
Freedom is when your time is your own. I use it to “stay in the present.” Or as they say, “enjoy the moment.” Freedom only comes from self-discipline.
Which of those four pillars do you find the most challenging to balance, and why?
Self-improvement, oddly enough. I’m naturally disciplined, but I also have a strong sense of responsibility to others, and sometimes that eclipses checking in on myself. Saying “no” or even “later” to someone else’s need can feel selfish, until you realise you’re running on empty. It’s a lesson I’ve relearned a few times.
What does “freedom” look like in your day-to-day life?
It looks like choosing the work I do, and when I do it. It’s also about location. I live where I want to live. I can go for a walk in peace, watch a horse graze, write something meaningful, and not be told I’m late for a meeting. That’s freedom. Freedom only comes from a life of self-discipline.
If you could design the perfect work-life balance, what would a typical week look like?
Most of my weeks are close to ideal now, because I’ve worked hard to make that happen. I am retired now from 15 years in my last full-time position as a Ward Secretary in a busy psychiatric hospital. I’d include:
Work sessions (writing, business admin, content creation) most mornings
Ongoing time with the horses and family
One day entirely off-grid, or attending horse events
A bit of social connection, nothing forced, just good conversation with a few long-time friends
What piece of life advice has served you best?
“Do it once, do it properly, or don’t do it at all.”
That doesn’t mean aiming for perfection. It means respecting the process, whether you’re studying for exams, training a horse, investing money, or making a decision that affects others. Cutting corners almost always ends up costing more in the long run.
That principle has saved me time, heartache, and, frankly, money.
Who is someone you look up to?
Right now? David Attenborough and Volodymyr Zelensky. These two are heroes in my mind.
I admire people who’ve built a life aligned with their values, without needing applause for it. Often, they’re not public names. They’re mentors, quiet achievers, or older women who made tough decisions in eras when options were few.
I’ve been fortunate to learn from people who shaped me in ways I’m still discovering.
One of the first was Merrie Elliott, a stud manager who became a lifelong friend and mentor. She is a quiet achiever with remarkable insight into horses and people. A no-nonsense, deeply ethical example to all, and never one to follow a trend if it didn’t make sense.
My husband, Peter Gower (dec), taught me the importance of framing stories, whether in a photo or on a page. His background in photography and journalism sharpened my own lens for detail and truth. Each of them has helped me think more clearly, act more deliberately, and live more intentionally.
Do you have communities or groups that you belong to? If so, what do they bring to your life?
Yes. I’m part of a few online communities centred around financial independence, writing, and ethical animal care. Some I started myself. Some are structured; others are informal. What they bring me is perspective. It’s easy to think your way is “the way,” until someone shows you a different lens. Good communities challenge and ground you at the same time.
In what ways have your networks introduced you to opportunities you wouldn’t have found otherwise?
Almost every turning point in my life started with a conversation, not a plan. Whether it was someone introducing me to an idea like investing, or my students encouraging me to write a book, networks are the ecosystem around your growth. They don’t always look like opportunities at first. But they compound.
Almost everything of value in my life came through people, not plans.
Ian Pickett was instrumental in opening the door to my deeper involvement in the horse world. His encouragement and introductions didn’t just shape the early days of my stud - they led to 19 years teaching adult Equine Science courses, which ultimately gave me the foundation to write my first book, Horse Colour Explained, on equine colour genetics. This book was widely acclaimed worldwide and even had a Dutch translation.
The Investors Club was instrumental in opening my eyes to strategic real estate. Later, Andrew Barnett gave me the tools to approach investing with the same discipline I’d honed in breeding. These weren’t just networks. They were springboards.
What are your thoughts on travel, and do you have any favourite destinations?
Travel, for me, is purposeful. I’m not a “holiday for holiday’s sake” person. But I love visiting places with meaning - historical sites, rural landscapes, or places that tie into my interests. One highlight was train travel through Scandinavia, and more recently, New Zealand and seeing the parallels and contrasts to Australia’s landscape.
I value quiet, scenic spaces over crowded tourist hubs. The wonderment of nature always has a spiritual effect on me, though I am an atheist.
From your perspective - what are the biggest risks you see in the future?
Climate change: I don’t care for myself - I will be long gone - but I care deeply about what kind of world my grandchildren will need to navigate.
Dependence without awareness: Whether it’s financial systems, food systems, or tech reliance, I worry that people are increasingly outsourcing their autonomy without understanding the wider implications. That’s risky at both a personal and collective level.
From your perspective, what are the biggest opportunities you see in the future?
Self-directed learning and living.
We’ve never had more access to tools, ideas, and networks that support independence and personal growth - financial, intellectual, and even geographic. The opportunity is there for people to build a saner life that’s deeply aligned with who they are. We have to forge our own path, but it takes intentionality.
We cannot play the victim. Our lives are not the fault of the government, or our upbringing, or bad luck. We are incredibly fortunate to be born in the “lucky country,” where our own future can be moulded by our endeavours and community ties.
What are your plans for your future?
To keep contributing, passing on to the next generations, supporting better horse care and responsible horse breeding through my writings.
Writing more. Mentoring selectively.
Continuing to invest with care. I want to refine, not expand. And I want to make sure that the people, horses, and projects I’ve nurtured continue to thrive long after I’m no longer hands-on.
To do more of what matters, and less of what doesn’t.
To write, mentor, and keep things simple.
What do you hope people will remember most about you or your work?
That I was consistent.
That I tried to do things properly.
That I told the truth, even when it was inconvenient.
That I cared about ethics more than image.
And that the horses I bred, and the words I wrote, left something better behind - “always with the horses in mind.”
What are your top favourite books? Books of Influence
I’ve always gravitated to non-fiction. I read it copiously. Fiction never quite hooks me the same way - there’s too much real to learn.
The Snowball by Alice Schroeder – Warren Buffett’s biography distilled decades of wisdom into a highly readable life story
The Selfish Gene and The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins – stirred my scientific and philosophical curiosity
Creating a Bug Free Mind by Andy Shaw – on clarity of thought and the nature of self-talk
The Road Less Travelled (and all works) by M. Scott Peck – emotionally and intellectually enduring
Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl – reflections on suffering, purpose, and agency
Poor Charlie’s Almanack by Charlie Munger – a classic on multidisciplinary problem-solving
From the horse world:
Breeding the Racehorse by Frederico Tesio – challenged conventional breeding theories
Horse Control series by Tom Roberts – grounded, observational wisdom for any thinking horseperson
[These shaped my own books, especially The Thinking Horse Breeder. I wanted to write exactly the type of book I craved when I first started out breeding and training horses.]
Links shared by Jeanette:
Chalani Australian Stock Horses
Reflections on 50+ Years of Horse Breeding
Thank you Jeanette!
I thoroughly enjoyed reading your answers. Quite a few things you wrote resonated with me - especially around control of your environment, being peaceful and having time and the environment to form deep thoughts and capture them.
I hope the readers gained an insight into your life and what has guided you on your success
If you would like to be considered for a Reader Interview - please let me know via Direct Message.
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I follow Jeanette on Substack and have enjoyed her contributions! This was exciting to learn a bit about her. What an amazing woman. This was a lovely interview and very inspiring. I follow you now too, :) Thank you both!