A recent post by Matthew Scott at The Life’s Work Group confirms what most of us already know: many baby boomers, getting close to retirement, have spent a lifetime doing work they don’t like doing.

Among their dreams for retirement? Finally doing something they want to do, and that includes starting their “dream business” or working in a totally different industry. More revealing: some 67% of boomers say they plan to work in some capacity. That’s more the result of poor retirement planning than anything else.

Matthew notes another disturbing statistic. Fifty-three percent of adults 55 - 74 spend the greatest amount of their leisure time watching television. That’s not exactly the dream that most people had in mind when they thought about their retirement.

Matthew’s advice:

1. Find the work that matters and you will never work another day for the rest of your life.

2. Retirement is a myth for overworked people who feel they earned a break from work that seemed like work and begin to take up the passions and hobbies they wished they would have pursued during their working years.

Of course, there’s a silver lining in all this for coaches. Many boomers need help setting retirement goals, defining late-life career paths, putting their plans into action. Coaches looking for a new niche market or a way of expanding their current practices would do well to consider how they can serve this growing and “needy” market.

If there’s a barrier to the sale, it’s the “I can do it all myself” mentality of many boomers. We were raised to be self-reliant and usually are. However, as with many sales objections, the objection itself is the reason for the sale: coaching can help boomers achieve the self-reliance they are seeking.

We just need to show them how.

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One of the tools coaches use to help clients uncover their true wishes and goals is sometimes referred to as ”peeling the onion.” Layer by layer of intention are examined and peeled back until the client is left with the “real” goal or goals. At that point, more effective strategies and solutions can be developed to reach the client’s goals.

So says executive coach William R. Murray on his Emotional Intelligence, Resilience and Leadership Blog.

Knowing your answers at a deep level gives you great energy to be resilient—to deal with life’s setbacks. Usually your first answer is not the final word. You need to dig deeper.

Using the example of a company VP who was upset that a subordinate was not turning in a report on time, Murray walked the client through the examination process with a series of probing questions. After looking more closely at his situation and “peeling the onion,” the VP discovered that he had several goals, including keeping a good relationship with his CEO and getting the subordinate to take responsibility for the report. With that clarity of intention at a deeper level, the VP was ready to come up with more useful strategies for working out the problems and getting what he wanted.

Moral: Dig deeper into what you really want so you can craft more resourceful strategies and stay resilient.

You can learn more about William R. Murray and read the complete blog posting here.

Other resources about emotional intelligence include: Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ, Primal Leadership: Learning to Lead with Emotional Intelligence, and Becoming a Resonant Leader: Develop Your Emotional Intelligence, Renew Your Relationships, Sustain Your Effectiveness.

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“Do you ever get the funny feeling that you are talking only to yourself? When you try to think about strategy for your company, do you stare at a blank wall? Are the voices in your head louder than the radio?”

Calling it “small business owner syndrome,” a recent article in Gaywired.com suggests that a good business coach might be the best way to “get out of your head” and develop the strategies and personal discipline an owner needs to get and stay on  track.

Business coaches often help clients articulate what they want their business to become and then develop the game plan to turn strategies in realities. Beyond helping business owners develop strategies and tactics, coaches can also play another important role: helping owners actually get things done!

One of the most important things that a coach does, however, is help you when you don’t complete your tasks. You see, when you don’t complete your tasks, there’s usually a reason. Sometimes the reason is right there in front of you. For example, you didn’t send out your bills because you went to exercise instead. If health is one of your goals, the coach can help you understand that it was a good trade-off. He or she can also help you find a way to get both goals accomplished.

Those who feel challenged when it comes to getting and staying productive might also consider reading Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity or the classic, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People to supplement their coaching sessions. Or perhaps even some coaches could use help in this area!

Click here to read the complete Gaywired.com story. 

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I was doing research for CNE when I ran into a story about Carey Powell, a Gilbert, Arizona based Certified Life Coach and owner of Fearless Soul Life Coaching. While reading Carey’s story, I learned that May is National Mental Health Month.

The timing is perfect for those of us, like Carey, who have clients and friends who are tangled in stress and need help finding a way out.

In Carey’s case, after 15 years in the corporate world she found herself depressed, overweight and burnt out. Life coaching turned her life around. Today her passion is helping others live a healthy, balanced life through her work as a professional life coach.

One of her major tasks as a life coach is helping clients deal with stress. It’s more than a coincidence that one way to remove our own stress is to do work that helps other people reduce their stress.

According to Carey, signs of stress include:

• Feeling angry, irritable or easily frustrated;
• Change in eating habits;
• Trouble sleeping;
• Problems with memory;
• Having trouble functioning in your job and/or personal life.

Carey suggests that exercise, even in small amounts, can do a great deal to help reduce stress. “Of course, I also recommend seeking the assistance of a life coach. A great coach can help you restore balance in your life by teaching you new techniques and helping you develop the skills to make positive changes.”

Life coaches who are interested in learning stress reduction techniques can consult with other life coaches who specialize in that area, take stress reduction classes, or read some of the classics in the field, including The Relaxation & Stress Reduction Workbook, now in its fifth edition.

You can learn more about Carey’s practice at Fearless Soul Life Coaching.

Want to read more about stress and National Mental Health Month? Visit the Mental Health America web site.

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