Recently, one of the bloggers I followed recommended a new book by an author I had read during my transition. This new book, as with many authors, includes a repeat of some of the same great tools and exercises the author finds especially useful – in this case tools to aid in transitioning. It made … Continue reading Hindsight
Category: How To
Thinking Strengths & Personality
As part of my training for becoming a Retirement Life Coach, I was exposed to some interesting theory on how we think and act, which then evolved into the hypothesis that we have innate strengths at each stage of the thinking/acting process. Here’s a short synopsis of personality functions through the thinking/acting process from the … Continue reading Thinking Strengths & Personality
Who Am I?
One of the important needs that working full-time met for me was providing me with a strong sense of identity, especially since I was a workaholic with no children and no hobbies. Recall the 5 important needs that a full-time career provides: Financial Compensation, Structure & Routine, Accomplishment & Utility, Social Affiliation, and Identity & … Continue reading Who Am I?
What’s on Your List?
Janis over at Retirementallychallenged published an interesting life list she had come across. (I wish I had the skill to do that last line with the appropriate link!) Her blog post made me go on-line to explore other people’s life lists to see if there were some new ideas for my own possibilities list. (There … Continue reading What’s on Your List?
Start, Stop, Continue
Years ago, one of my MegaCorp annual performance evaluation tools we used was called “Start, Stop, Continue”. I’m not sure how broadly this was used, but it was better than the “accomplishments and weaknesses” of previous years. That was before the Discover Your Strengths phenomenon; I always hated the weaknesses area! But the start/stop/continue was … Continue reading Start, Stop, Continue
Increasing Emotional Awareness
When I choose my word for the year to be Joy, I wanted to be happier every day. Transitions are hard, and I wanted to intentionally manage the roller coaster of feelings this huge change of entering retirement was creating in my life. Being the geeky researcher, I did a bunch of reading about emotions. … Continue reading Increasing Emotional Awareness
Feast or Famine
After 2 years into retirement, it seems like my weeks are either full of (self-chosen) activities or completely empty. Full and happy, this-is-great weeks. Or boring, am-I-failing-at-this-retirement-thing weeks. I’ve come to the conclusion that I need a life-concierge, one who is better at time management than me! When you are the concierge of your own … Continue reading Feast or Famine
Shut up Your Inner Critic
There is the old cliché “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks”. Oh, I am not saying I am anywhere near being an old dog, but starting new habits/behaviors is not easy. And I find that I am my own worst saboteur when it comes to starting something new! My own inner … Continue reading Shut up Your Inner Critic
Retirement Myth Busting
When I retired, a few well-meaning individuals informed me that the ideal retirement lifestyle for “someone like me” was 30/30/30. Meaning: 30% of my time focused on work, 30% of my time focused on volunteering, and 30% of my time focused on leisure. Simple as that – go do it. Besides the fact it … Continue reading Retirement Myth Busting
Will I or Won’t I…. become bored and depressed?
I recently saw another “phases of retirement” description that again highlighted a negative phase – this one talked about a retirement phase where you become bored and depressed. A previous stages review had a stage called “Disappointment”. I’m starting to wonder, at 18 months into this thing called retirement, will I or won’t I…. become … Continue reading Will I or Won’t I…. become bored and depressed?
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