Books Archive

Thriving in Retirement

Retirement Wisdom · Dec 19, 2017 ·

By Anne C. Coon and Judith Ann Feuerherm

(2017-Praeger)

Book Review by Joe Casey

Women face some unique headwinds that can have a cumulative and lasting effect beyond the workplace and into retirement. The authors tell stories of 25 women across their careers and life course into their retirement years. It’s a timely book, as it includes frank recollections of the toll that discrimination and harassment played in the careers and lives of these women.

This book is primarily about resilience and creativity through the compelling stories of women who overcame multiple obstacles and are living satisfying lives in retirement – on their own terms.

The authors are also both thriving in their own retirements and bring different yet complementary perspectives to this work. Anne Coon brings an academic background, while Judith Feuerherm comes with extensive career coaching, consulting and leadership expertise.

What I really love about this book is that it puts the individual experiences of these 25 women in the context of historical events shared by the baby boomer generation, while delving into the specific challenges and opportunities they worked through following their corporate lives.

They paint a vivid portrait of the challenges and opportunities that are the essence of transitions to retirement, such as losing identity and building a new one, embracing the exhilarating freedom while dealing with the loss of structure. An example is a process of moving beyond titles and labels and into an unchartered phase of life where there is no longer a clear path laid out.

Many of these themes I also see in my coaching work among men and women alike. However, the authors provide a candid view into the concerns and fears of these women through their journey and some of the unique adaptions these women made, such as deciding that they needed to become their own role models.

This book is an excellent book for people approaching or currently in their own transition. It’s particularly relevant for high- achieving professionals, who will relate to these women as they retire from corporate life, but not real life, where they continue to thrive in new ways.

Joe Casey is an executive coach, who also helps people think through and create their Second Act careers, at retirementwisdom.com

Retirement Wisdom · Dec 9, 2017 ·

by Emily Esfahani Smith (2017 – Crown Publishing Group)

Book Review by Joe Casey

At Retirement Wisdom, we’re big on of purpose. In fact, studies have found that your longevity may even depend on it.

Yet, purpose is one of those subjects that I sometimes find hard to get my arms around. I wonder about how someone discovers their purpose – particularly when they transition from their primary career to their next chapter. I always feel like it requires a lengthy trip to mountains and extensive navel-gazing. That will need to wait for another day. Someday. Maybe.

It turns out that the mountains are optional. Emily Esfahani Smith uses an entertaining mix of wisdom from philosophers, research and stories to break this topic down. She draws useful distinctions between the related topics of purpose, happiness and meaning and illustrates the connection between purpose and identity.

She outlines the four pillars of a life of meaning – belonging, purpose story-telling and transcending beyond yourself. I found Esfahani Smith’s writing on the story-telling pillar, in particular, to be especially valuable. She describes the powerful role that narrative can play in rediscovering purpose. Approaching retirement, how you envision and craft the story of your next chapters can make all the difference.

Retirement is a major life transition and rediscovering your purpose is an important part of successfully navigating it. I highly recommend this book as an excellent way to begin exploring your purpose. It contains a wealth of practical knowledge and insights that can aid your journey.

Buy the Power of Meaning on Amazon

Listen to our conversation with the author on The Retirement Wisdom podcast here

Related Book Reviews You May Like:

Purpose and a Paycheck

Purposeful Retirement

About Retirement Wisdom

Are you retiring, but not done yet? Our coaches can help you create a retirement that’s a great one. A 20+ retirement is a terrible thing to waste. Design your life in retirement for more clarity, direction, and a sense of purpose aligned with your true values.

Retirement Wisdom · Oct 18, 2017 ·

By Dorie Clark (2017 – Harvard Business Review Press)

Book Review by Joe Casey

In Short

The ranks of silver entrepreneurs and entrepreneur women continue to grow. More and more people who are mid-career or beyond are concluding that moving on from corporate life offers greater flexibility and interesting, rewarding work. Many are deciding that it’s time to become their own boss.

Food for Thought

While the gig economy offers opportunities for Second Act careers and entrepreneurship, it’s quite competitive. You need an edge. Dorie Clark’s new book provides practical tips on how to build your own business and create multiple income streams in today’s economy. To succeed, you’ll need the right online strategies, and Clark walks you through the options. You’ll come away with a clear picture of what you’ll need to focus on, what you’ll need to start learning – or who you’ll need to hire to help you.

Takeaways

What I particularly like about this book is that it presents a variety of options for people to leverage their unique skill set and combine it with what they really enjoy doing. Some of the strategies she recommends can be implemented to begin building a business before taking the plunge full-time. In addition to her experiences, she includes stories from people who have done it successfully, all of whom started small, and shares their lessons learned. While some of the stories from younger folks may not immediately resonate, their expertise, tools, and tactics from the online arena may be exactly what you need.

A Kickstarter

Starting your own business after a corporate career involves risks. While you should consult your financial advisor before doing so, I think that this book offers savvy advice and smart approaches that can give you a leg up on your competition. Best of all it provides inspiration that can kick start your next chapter and gives you a roadmap of where to start.

Retirement Wisdom · Mar 22, 2017 ·

Answering Your Call: A Guide for Living Your Deepest Purpose

By John Schuster (2003 – Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc.)

Book Review by Joe Casey

In Short

Some people discover their true life purpose early, yet it’s not uncommon for this to unfold later in life. For some, it happens mid-career and leads to a major shift. For others, approaching retirement offers the time and space for reflection, exploration and discovery of their deepest purpose.

John Schuster explains that discovering your life purpose is not a linear process. It is highly individual and doesn’t just occur organically – or magically. it’s a result of thoughtful reflection and attentive listening to yourself – “your inner voice”. Schuster highlights that it’s equally important to know what not to listen to, such as the expectations of others (“the social noise”) and our own ego. Schuster demystifies how callings work and how people can tune in to them at different phases of life.

This is a book you’ll want to read, but it’s one that you’ll want to take your time with and engage with. The author provides thought-provoking questions and useful exercises as well as a concise summary at the end of each chapter. It’s one of those books that you’ll use, not just read.

Food for Thought

An interesting part of the book spotlights the roles that two types of characters play in our careers and lives – Saboteurs and Evocateurs. We can learn from both. The Saboteurs are inevitable. They distract you from your true calling. But they can play a vital part in testing you and sharpening your focus. They can be pivotal catalysts for growth – if you are listening.

In contrast, Evocateurs have a way of bringing out the best in people. They often see your potential and gifts before you do.

I came away thinking that we can clearly see the Saboteurs. They are often noisy, active and in your face – or behind your back. While it’s easy to recall special people, who have helped you, some Evocateurs are subtler and fleeting – and you need to be alert for them. Schuster provides strategies to “endure the Saboteurs” and to “embrace the gifts” from Evocatuers – and how to pass their lessons forward to the next generation.

Takeaways

We tend to think of callings as a dramatic bolt from the blue – a clear message that we were put on earth for a particular purpose (“I was born to be a professional skateboarder’’ one of my daughters suddenly announced to me at age 6). The author explains that sometimes there are obvious talents that lead people to a calling, but more often it’s a matter of listening to nuanced cues and discovering it over time. He recommends “reviewing your Call History” to see those cues more clearly. (Since we’re all tied to our phones these days, this is a skill we already know and can apply here in a different way).

A Kickstarter

Four questions to consider:

How close are you today to pursuing your true calling?
How have Saboteurs and Evocateurs impacted your career and life?
What can you do to pass forward the gifts you received from Evocateurs?
Who can you help discover their potential?

If you’re at – or approaching – a cross-roads, I’d highly recommend this book to guide your reflection and discovery process. It can be an invaluable resource if you’re considering a career change or transitioning to retirement.

Retirement Wisdom · Mar 22, 2017 ·

By Bill Burnett and Dave Evans (2016 – Knopf)

Book Review by Joe Casey

In Short

There aren’t many books that would make a great gift for high school graduation, college graduation, or a retirement celebration. This is one.

Bill Burnett and Dave Evans are two professors at the design school at Stanford, who have opened up the material from their long-standing course on Designing Your Life to all.

The book shares how the principles of design thinking can be applied to planning your life – at any stage. The book is filled with great examples of people at the later stages of their career who have used it to design their second act career.

Food for Thought

The authors outline five design mindsets you can apply to life planning:

Curiosity
Action-orientation
Reframing
Prototyping
Asking for help

While they are all important, the points they make on prototyping stand out. People often search for the ideal career/life and agonize over making the optimal choice. The authors advocate an approach of trying things, experimenting, learning and evolving that is quite different. They cite several examples where people find this approach actually saves time in the long run, while it may appear longer. As an aside, in my coaching practice, I’ve used many of these principles and can assure you they are well worth the effort.

Takeaways

A noteworthy contribution from this book is the recommendation to create multiple versions of your future when planning your next move. The authors recommend building several alternative visions and plans to begin testing and gathering more data before you commit to one.

A Kickstarter

Burnett and Evans note that this process is best done with others – it’s not a solo journey. They recommend finding partners to help think through the process. They make the important point that the perspective and insights from others, peers, mentors, and/or a coach, can be critical and they recommend finding a partner or team of partners.