For accomplished women in their 50s and 60s
Retirement transition coaching helps you rebuild identity, purpose, and structure when a career ends. Preferment teaches it in an 8-week live course with Anne van Leynseele, starting with a free presentation.
Free to watch. Last updated: November 2026
The Preferment path
8 weekly live sessions
Retirement transition coaching is guided support for leaving a full-time career and designing what comes next: who you are, what moves you, and how you spend your days. Rarified Life offers it through Preferment, a live 8-week course for high achievers who want life after 50 to be active and purpose-driven rather than an ending.
Most retirement preparation is financial. It answers whether you can afford to stop working. It rarely answers what you will do on a Tuesday morning in month eight, or how you will introduce yourself when your title is gone. Retirement transition coaching takes on those questions directly, and Preferment is built around them.
Preferment is Rarified Life’s framework for redesigning life after 50 as an active alternative to traditional retirement. Rarified Life describes it as research-backed. It helps you align future plans with your personal values and build meaningful pursuits beyond your career. The name replaces “retire,” which suggests withdrawal, with a word about moving forward.
The book is included. A 40-minute Breakthrough Session can be booked before enrolling. See pricing details.
Rarified Life’s free presentation is written for accomplished women in their 50s and 60s who are nearing or in retirement. It speaks to women whose entire identity has been wrapped up in their work, and it applies even if your last day is still years away. No five-year plan required.
The path into Preferment is designed so you never commit before you are ready. Each step links to the Rarified Life page where it happens.
A free training on the 5-step plan for replacing the “What now?” feeling. Register for the presentation.
Optional. A 40-minute call to talk through your timing and questions. See available times.
Purchase Preferment on the course page once you are sure it fits. Read the enrollment guide.
Eight weekly sessions with Anne, homework from the book between them. See the curriculum.
Life coaching for retirement focuses on identity, motivation, and daily structure. According to lifecoachingcertification.net, demand for retirement coaching has seen a 30% uptick as baby boomers retire, with coaches addressing identity, purpose, and relationships, not just money.
Preferment answers those needs in order. Identity separates who you are from what you did for a living. Motivation finds what moves you without a paycheck. Alignment matches your values and strengths to your days. Accountability turns intention into routine. Launch names your mission for the next chapter.
Read more about life coaching for retirement, or explore finding purpose in life after 50.
A meta-analysis cited by lifecoachingcertification.net found 28% of retirees experience depression, with a 40% spike in self-reported depression during the first years after retiring (PMC, 2020/2022). These are published figures from outside sources, not Rarified Life’s own data.
Rarified Life’s presentation describes smart, capable women who get eight months into retirement and stop answering the phone. Preferment is designed to start before that point, and it can begin while you are still working full time. See more retirement statistics.
Each option below solves a different problem. The table uses the same criteria for every entry. Full reasoning sits in the retirement coaching options guide, published by Rarified Life.
| Option | Main focus | Format | Published cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Preferment course (Rarified Life) | Identity, motivation, alignment, accountability, launch | 8 weekly live sessions with Anne, book and homework | $3,000 stated on the course page |
| 1:1 retirement coach | Tailored to the individual client | Private sessions, schedule varies | $150 to $300 per session (lifecoachingcertification.net) |
| Financial advisor | Money: savings, income, investments | Meetings with an advisor | Varies by advisor; not covered here |
| Self-guided reading | Whatever the reader chooses | On your own, no live guidance | Price of the book |
“I spent a few years wandering around like a goldfish in a bowl. Preferment changed all that! I thought work defined me, but I discovered I am so much more. I learned to ‘be’ rather than just ‘do’ on autopilot.”
Watch Rarified Life’s free presentation for accomplished women in their 50s and 60s. If it resonates, the 8-week Preferment course is the next step.
