The Rebalancing Act

Retirement Coaches are always looking for a better word to describe life after a primary career. The word "retirement" projects a slide show of negative images--let your imagination fill in the screen. People use the phrase "the new retirement" or "rewiring". I don't think we've come up with the right language yet to describe what we're doing after we move out of traditional full-time employment. I'm right in the middle of it myself, and the best I can think of so far to describe my "new" life is rebalancing. I planned a phased retirement, and am now in the second phase. On May 31, 2008 I closed my psychotherapy practice to focus entirely on coaching--primarily my Retirement Con Brio business. I moved out of the office I leased and am working out of my home, seeing some coaching clients at their offices or homes--or Starbucks. I still do a lot of phone coaching. I'm in the coaching game about twenty hours per week--instead of my usual 40-hour work week. So I'm living the experience I talk about with clients. What I notice so far is that my days are divided up differently, and I spend more time at the health club, more time writing and more time relaxing with friends, and more time reflecting/ The re-shuffling of how I spend my time seems comfortable and energizing so far! I'll keep you posted as I move through this transition. I'd love to hear about your own journey.