Retirement Coaching

Retirement, this is something we are all moving towards, an inevitable part of our lives……how close are you? Is it 10 or 20 years away, 5 years or just 1 year? And how are you feeling towards this impending change in your life, do you consider this to be a period of growth or decline? Do you think all will be over when you retire, or are you looking forward to new challenges in your life?

When asked how he felt about growing old, the American poet Oliver Wendell Holmes (then in his 70’s) replied, “It is better to be 70 years young than 40 years old!” This is a great attitude, but alas not the attitude everyone has towards age and retirement.

Personally, I have a problem with the word “RETIREMENT”. The definition is “to give up one’s work…..to withdraw, as to a secluded place……to retreat”. Since 1900, life expectancy has increased dramatically, people are living longer and healthier lives. In turn the number of years they have after they retire has increased, also more and more people are opting for early retirement. Do you think they all want to withdraw and retreat? I don’t think so, certainly Oliver Wendell Holmes didn’t. Brendan Kennelly (poet and Professor of Modern Literature at DCU), also shares this view and suggests a new word “Rebeginment” to indicate another beginning or era ahead, with new challenges. After all this is just another phase in our life…..first we had school, then work and now ‘rebeginment’.

We all dream of having the time to buy the paper each day and read it from cover to cover; of being able to take part in our favourite activities more often, whether golf or gardening; of at last having time to read all the books on that list; time to visit cities, like Paris, Prague, or other destinations. So many things you have always wanted the time to do, and now retirement will give you that time, or will it? ...............to be continued.

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At Nucleus Coaching we specialise in Retirement Coaching and will work with you to lay down plans for a fulfilled retirement. We work face to face and over the phone, for details email or call +353 86 6007125 0r +353 65 6820676.