The secrets behind Australia’s most successful online entrepreneurs

(And what I've learnt from working with them)

For the past five years, I’ve been a little quiet.

You could say I’ve gone to ground; not because I’ve stepped away from the world of writing, but because I’ve been deeply immersed in it.

Behind the scenes, I’ve been helping some of Australia’s top CEOs and entrepreneurs write their business books. I’ve sat with each for nearly a year to discover their stories, extract their wisdom and package their ideas into award-winning, bestselling books.

And this one...

And this one...

Along the way, something became very clear.

Success leaves clues.

Why I wrote Secrets of the New Online Entrepreneurs

I often get asked, ‘How did this book come about?’

It was by accident, really.

I was at Sydney Airport, and I ran into my publisher.

She said, ‘Bernadette, when are we going to get that third book from you?’

‘Soon,’ I said. ‘I just need to work out what it’s going to be about!’

She said, ‘What have you learnt from sitting with and working with all those entrepreneurs you’ve written for?’

That got me thinking.  

What do they all have in common?

Could I codify their success?

Could I distil the essence of what they do and how they do it and create a blueprint around it?

My publisher loved the idea, as did I. They offered me a book contract, and we were off.

My goal wasn’t to write a ‘think, dream, believe’ book where you just breathe your way to success.

I wanted it to be much grittier than that.

I wanted to share real, practical insights from people who’ve actually done it.

So that’s exactly what I did.

I chose to interview a wide array of business builders: billion-dollar founders who went all in, lifestyle entrepreneurs who chose small over scale, creators whose businesses run on content, not capital, and not-for-profits using online tools to change lives.

Some were pure online players; others ran bricks-and-mortar businesses amplified by digital channels; some were hybrids. Each represented a different pathway into entrepreneurship.

For every founder who started small, another started big.

For every founder who partnered up, another said, ‘Don’t’.

For every founder who said ‘Make a plan’, another said ‘Wing it’.

I wanted the content to be both practical and tactical, inspirational and motivational.

I also wanted to explore the enduring emotional intelligence traits that show up in high-performing founders and reveal the modern tools, systems and techniques today’s digital entrepreneurs use to turn attention into income.

I sat down with a range of business owners — from global success stories to lifestyle entrepreneurs.

People like:

• Janine Allis from Boost Juice
• Shaun Wilson from Bondi Sands
• Tim Fung from Airtasker
• Adam Schwab from Luxury Escapes
• Kirsten Tibballs from MasterChef

… as well as a host of content creators and social media entrepreneurs who’ve built businesses in a completely different way, because not everyone wants to build a billion-dollar company.

Some people want flexibility, freedom and a business that fits their life, not the other way around.

What I discovered is that there is no single right way to build a business.

These founders have taken different paths, made different choices and paid different prices.

I am sharing what I learnt so you can make better decisions sooner, avoid the most common traps, and choose the path that’s right for you.

Why Australian entrepreneurs?

This book was written for Australian business owners, about Australian business owners, by an Australian business owner.

We all know the American stories of how those 18-year-old Silicon Valley brainiacs barely out of high school became multibillionaires by building apps that went nuts on the NASDAQ.

What we don’t know are the stories of our homegrown heroes; the stories that tell us how a regular person like you or me from the Sutherland Shire, or the Sunshine Coast, or South Dandenong took on the big players and won. Those were the stories I wanted to read, so those are the stories I chose to tell.

Why online entrepreneurs?

We’re all online. It’s just that some are more online than others.

I’ve personally had a deep interest in online business for two decades.

I sold my first online copywriting course back in 2004 and still remember the thrill of seeing $1000 drop into my account overnight from someone I’d never met.

That moment changed how I saw business, and I’ve been dedicated to learning more about it ever since.

It’s why I wrote my first book, Secrets of Online Entrepreneurs, then my second, How to Build an Online Business, and now this one.

No matter where you are on your digital journey, you’ll find something of value here.

Why is this topic relevant right now?

People say it’s risky to start your own business, that it’s much safer to stay where you are, in the job you’re in. Once upon a time, that would have been true, but not anymore.

With the advent of AI, global unrest and unstable economies, when so many are at the mercy of yet another restructure, redeployment or realignment, many are already living on the edge, wondering and waiting to find out if they have a job today, tomorrow, or ever again.

Now, more than ever, people are turning to entrepreneurship to build lives on their own terms: to choose how they work, when they work and with whom they work.

I would argue that being an entrepreneur is actually safer than working for any company right now, because when you know how to manifest something from nothing — which is what all great entrepreneurs know how to do — you will never be at risk. Learning the skills of entrepreneurship is a powerful form of self-protection.

Ready to discover their secrets?

If you’re building something, growing something, or even just thinking about what’s next… this book is for you.

You can download a free chapter here or order it here.