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I'm excited to tell you that this week I am taking my credentialing exam to become a Certifed Retirement Coach! To kick off my specialty, I am offering teleclasses on some of the big issues in retirement. Check them out under Upcoming Events

Seems that whenever you hear the phrase "retirement planning" you just know you're going to hear about 401(k) plans or money market accounts. That is only one piece of the puzzle. Other things that need to be considered are:

~What about your health? How long do you expect to be healthy?

~What expectations do you have for your leisure activities?

~What gifts and talents do you have that need to be shared?

~Who is dependent upon you, and for how long?

~How will you structure your time?

The truth is, people who retire to play golf or fish or quilt end up bored and dissatisfied after about 6 to 18 months. That's when they "Un-retire." (Frank Sinatra did it - his way.)

So, how do you know what to plan for? We all know that in order to plan, it's useful to know where you stand right now. As a Certified Retirement Coach, I am authorized to administer an evaluation called the Retirement Success Profile (RSP) you can take on-line which measures 15 factors that contribute to a successful retirement. (or "Un-retirement")

We use the results from your RSP and together develop a plan and a mission statement for you to move into your own Un-retirement!

If you know someone that is anticipating retirement within the next 5 years or less, or has already retired and is re-thinking the way they spend their time, please forward this newsletter to them. I'll be sending out a general annoucement to my annouce list next week offering some introductory specials, so stay tuned!

I welcome feedback and eagerly await your comments!

P.S. Thanks to Maya, Edie and Theresa for sending copies of issue #2 which I have happily archived on my website Resources page. And thanks, also, for your kind words.

The Wandering Career Path

Last week I attended the excellent Colorado Career Development Association annual conference. While there, I renewed contact with my Career Counselor friends and attended breakout sessions relating to career transtions. One class stood out: The Ups and Downs of the Wandering Career Path. The presenter, Larry Dutmer from the Colorado Mountain College in Vail, has allowed me to use his model to explain the big picture of career transitions.

You can find a copy of his model on my website on the Resources page.

When you look for a job, often times you look at the ads in the paper and say "I can do that" at least 12 different times, for 12 different jobs! And isn't that how the majority of people landed in their current career? They said "I could do that" and did it. Your career path "wandered" through what was available and had nothing to do with YOU.

All those things you "could do" represent the world of work. When you begin to filter that world of work through your skills, interests, values, personality type and other factors such as geographic location, time schedule, preference for travel, etc. it narrows the field down considerably. You devise a list of a few job titles that fit who you are instead of you fitting the job.

This then, is your possible path, or paths. But, you still need to know many things about this path, so you ask questions. In fact, you've been asking questions all along. Career folks call this questioning period "informational interviewing" and it's really just fact finding questions. For hints on what to ask, see the Career Tip below.

During informational interviews, you will learn what it's like to have this job, what sort of education or training you will need. what you can expect to earn and what the prospects are for the future. As you learn more and more about different career paths, the right one will surface. A friend of mine said, when she learned the basis of informational interviewing, "Oh - I can just follow my curiosity!" Right!

No one can predict how long this process takes. But, like the title of a book from one of my favorite authors, Barbara Sher, "It's Only Too Late if You Don't Start Now."

As a Career Coach, I can help you through this process. Please contact me for more information!

The people I love the best

jump into work head first

without dallying in the shallows

and swim off with sure strokes almost out of sight.

They seem to become natives of that element,

the black sleek heads of seals

bouncing like half-submerged balls.

I love people who harness themselves, an ox to a heavy cart,

who pull like water buffalo, with massive patience,

who strain in the mud and the muck to move things forward,

who do what has to be done, again and again.

I want to be with people who submerge

in the task, who go into the fields to harvest

and work in a row and pass the bags along,

who are not parlor generals and field deserters

but move in a common rhythm

when the food must come in or the fire be put out.

The work of the world is common as mud.

Botched, it smears the hands, crumbles to dust.

But the thing worth doing well done

has a shape that satisfies, clean and evident.

Greek amphoras for wine or oil,

Hopi vases that held corn, are put in museums

but you know they were made to be used.

The pitcher cries for water to carry

and a person for work that is real.

Informational interviewing can be likened to an investigative newspaper reporter. You want to know who, what, when, where, why and how!

To begin exploring a particular field, find out where people that do that kind of work gather. A good place to begin is at their professional association meeting. There, you will meet people actually doing that kind of work. Don't know where they meet? The library has a Resource Librarian who can walk on water. Ask. This person is very, very smart and grossly underpaid for all the knowledge he or she has acquired. They love to help. Ask.

The kinds of questions you ask can be divided into three layers. The first layer is the broad, open quesions about the profession in general or the industry. Here you want to find out about the trends the industry is facing and how the profession will be affected by them. How has the industry evolved and what is its future?

As your questioning continues, you'll begin to hear the same company names over and over which brings you to the next layer. Look at their ads in the professional journals and look at their websites. Find someone in that company to talk to and ask about the company culture. You are trying to determine if this is the sort of place you would like to work.

Finally, the final layer emerges, you start exploring specific jobs at specific companies. Here you want to find the person that needs your skills and talk to them about issues they are facing. You want to have a good understanding of their needs before you ask about working for them.

The truth is, by now, you've already been offered a job. Really interested people that take the time to explore options are rare. They will snap you up.

Have you ever wondered "What should I DO with my life?" Everyone needs something to live ON, but you also need something to live FOR.

In this workshop, you will learn what is important for career satisfaction and life enhancement. You will uncover deeply held values that must be honored in order to live a fulfilled life. We'll take a look at your life themes, and you'll learn a model of the universe that will help you understand how to create your intentions.

For details and to sign up, visit http://www.ForwardMomentum.com

The average age of retirement in the U.S. is 57 years old. People are retiring at a younger age and in better health than ever before. These days, especially with adequate planning, this can be a time that brings enrichment, personal fulfillment and renewal.

The benefits that work has provided have become such an integrated part of our lives that they have been elevated to "needs." Learn what your work has provided you and ways to replace those functions in retirement.

In this class, we will visit the major arenas that will need your attention ahead of time and talk about ways to prepare.

You will learn some of the common (and unusual!) paths retirees have taken and consider ways to learn which direction would fulfill you

Retirement life lasts longer than adolescence, longer than early adulthood, and longer than middle adulthood. The process of preparing for your retirement is is especially important.

In this class, you will take the on-line assessment, Retirement Success Profile (RSP), developed by Dr. Richard Johnson, to determine which of hte 15 universal factors you need to focus on to help prepare you for your retirement success.

For details and to sign up, visit http://www.ForwardMomentum.com

You are free to use material from Moving Forward! in whole or in part, as long as you include complete attribution, including a live web site link. Please also notify me where the material will appear. The attribution should read:

"By Debra DeVilbiss, CPCC, of Forward Momentum, LLC. Please visit Debra's website at http://www.ForwardMomentum.com for additional articles and resources on creating your right livelihood."

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