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By: Helen Smith
Retirement is one of the most significant changes that any of us will ever experience.

Everyone approaches retirement differently and with a mix of emotions, some of us can’t wait and others of us will be worried or even fearful.

Planning for retirement courses are more important today than they have ever been. We are much healthier, much more active and can expect to live much longer – a whole new phase of life and opportunity is opening up. Unlike other phases of life, this time there is less structure. For the first time we are faced with a period of maybe 30 years when we essentially write our own ‘job description’. That requires plenty of thought and planning, to avoid pitfalls and to ensure we make the most of it and enjoy a balanced retirement.

You can take a big step by getting some expert advice through a retirement course on how to make the most of your retirement, thereby making your remaining time in employment as stress-free and productive as possible.

It is important to recognise that many retirement courses still focus far too heavily on just the financial side of retirement, even if lifestyle aspects are in theory covered. Although finance is important it should not be dominant because the lifestyle aspects of retirement and decisions about them are fundamental to making the most of retirement.

In the past many retirement courses have also focused too much on information giving. A good course will also include methods that cause the individual to examine each aspect of retirement from their own point of view and encourage discussion between delegates.

Value to the individual of Retirement Courses

A retirement course that provides the right balance will lead to a number of benefits for attendees including

• Overcoming concerns and fears, making retirement an opportunity to look forward to.

• Making attendees of the retirement course consider retirement in a way they won’t have done before and as a result clearly identifying both the issues that need to be addressed and the opportunities. Raising new areas to consider even for those who have done a lot of thinking about retirement. Making them aware of common pitfalls.

• Making the level of change they are about to undergo clear and the retirement course will enable them to produce a personal plan which makes their transition to retirement smooth

• Generating lots of ideas for enjoying retirement – their own, their colleagues’, and the tutor’s. Different perspectives help them develop their own plan.

• Understanding how their relationship with their partner and others may be affected and the importance of planning this together (ideally attending the retirement course together)

Helen Smith is a specialist retirement consultant, for more information on retirement courses please visit http://www.laterlife.com