From hippies to corporate titans, the Baby Boomers took America by storm, the size of their numbers and the force of their convictions shaping our nation in ways small and large. But now the first wave is at retirement age, and for the first time in their lives they are adrift, unsure of themselves when their identity is no longer tied to their occupations.
Instead of having a retirement party, selling the house and moving to a warm-weather state like generations before, Boomers are looking for something else, something more.
To help them figure out what to do in the next stage of their lives, which easily could be another 20 or 30 years, Boomers have many services available, CNBC reports, including certified senior advisers, elder life advisers and retirement coaches (http://tinyurl.com/9w9p376).
Help is on the way
A retirement coach, CNBC says, generally helps clients create goals and plans for their post-career lives.
The coach generally gets to know a little about a client through a phone conversation. Then it can go in many directions depending on the amount of money a client wants to spend.
SmartMoney reports that Howard Stone, founder of 2young2retire, might create a program that includes suggested reading, goal worksheets and one-on-one conversations with him during a year’s time (http://tinyurl.com/b55r9yy). From this, the goal is for Boomers to have a better grasp of what they want to do and how to achieve it.
For some, it might mean going back to school to earn an advanced degree. For others, their passion could lie in becoming immersed in a community theater. Or maybe sheep ranching has always been a goal.
And if your client has been a corporate titan and has plenty of money to spend, there’s Boston-based New Directions, CNNMoney reports (http://tinyurl.com/3dalfhv). For $15,000 to $75,000, New Directions will take your client on a yearlong discovery process. Friends and colleagues of the client will be interviewed. And the client likely will write a resume, a career biography and an exit statement for why she left her firm.
Booming field
According to SmartMoney, as the 77 million Baby Boomers continue to retire, the coaching field is expected to keep growing. Citing an Ameriprise study, SmartMoney says 45 percent of retirees surveyed in 2010 said they were living a dream retirement compared with 68 percent five years earlier. And only 57 percent said retirement worked out like they wanted it to, compared to 77 percent in 2005.
Clearly, the field is ripe for growth.
CNBC and others note, however, that there are little to no regulations governing the retirement coach field. An insurance agent or human resources worker could take an online course, hang up a shingle and call himself a retirement coach.
If your clients are looking for retirement coaching help, the best course is the most obvious: Do their due diligence, and find one that fits their needs.
We hope this information was useful to you and helps your clients and their families. If you have a specific case or a question, don’t hesitate to call our office. As always, feel free to call us for further advice or to share your ideas.
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