Retirement coaching
Retirement coaching with Anne van Leynseele
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Retirement coaching from Rarified Life helps high achievers work out who they are and how they want to live once a career ends, using Anne van Leynseele's Preferment framework.
A retirement coach works on the side of retirement that spreadsheets miss: identity, motivation, daily routine, and purpose. Rarified Life's coaching treats this stage as a rise rather than a wind-down, and as of November 2026 it is delivered through the 8-week Preferment live course, with 1:1 coaching listed as coming soon.
Part of the guide to Rarified Life's life after retirement course and retirement coaching.
What does a retirement coach actually do?
A retirement coach helps you plan how you will live after your career, not how you will fund it. With Rarified Life, that means separating your identity from your job title, finding what motivates you without a paycheck, aligning your days with your values and strengths, and building the structure to make it stick.
Retirement coaching vs retirement transition coaching
Retirement coaching covers the whole question of life after a career. Retirement transition coaching zooms in on the shift itself: the months on either side of your last working day, when routine, relationships, and identity all move at once.
Rarified Life's approach covers both. Its free presentation says the plan works "even if your last day at work is still years away," and "without waiting for retirement day." In other words, you can start the transition before it starts you.
What is life coaching for retirement?
Life coaching for retirement applies coaching to one turning point: the end of a full-time career. Rarified Life presents Preferment as an alternative to conventional retirement, with four pillars: personal values, meaningful pursuits, learning, and physical activity.
The aim, in the words of Rarified Life's presentation, is to go from filling your days with errands and appointments to "a life people ask you about," while your energy, health, and closest relationships get stronger.
Why Anne van Leynseele coaches this transition
Anne did not arrive at Preferment by accident. Her career includes four distinct reinventions:
- She built and sold a production company in Los Angeles film and television.
- She advised Fortune 100 companies on digital strategy across three continents.
- She served as an Attorney Advisor in the Obama Administration and helped write the legal framework for recreational cannabis in Washington State.
- She co-owns an award-winning chocolate farm on the Big Island of Hawaii.
She also wrote the book Preferment, which the course is built on. The back cover describes it as the capstone of her experience, including the leap of buying her first house in a place she had never lived.
How do I start retirement coaching with Rarified Life?
- 1. Check your readiness. Take the free emotional readiness to retire quiz to see which themes feel solid and which feel shaky.
- 2. Read how the coaching is structured. The six Preferment modules show what you will work on, in order.
- 3. Choose your format. The Preferment live course is available now; 1:1 coaching is listed as coming soon on rarifiedlife.com.
Keep reading
- The Preferment live course, explainedWhat the 8-week Preferment live course includes, what it costs, and how it runs.
- Who the Preferment course is forWho the Preferment course and Rarified Life coaching fit, and who should choose something else.
- Retirement coaching vs other ways to prepareA ranked comparison of four ways to prepare for life after retirement.
Retirement coaching questions
More answers on the retirement coaching and course FAQ.
- What is retirement coaching?
- Retirement coaching is guided work on how you will live after your career, not how you will fund it. Rarified Life's coaching focuses on separating identity from your job title, finding new motivation, aligning your days with your values and strengths, and building accountability so intentions become routines. Those are the same themes as the six Preferment modules.See this answer in the full FAQ
- What is retirement transition coaching?
- Retirement transition coaching supports the shift itself: the stretch before and after your last day at work, when routine, identity, and relationships all change at once. Rarified Life's free presentation says its plan can start "even if your last day at work is still years away," so you do not need to be retired already to begin.See this answer in the full FAQ
- What is life coaching for retirement?
- Life coaching for retirement applies life coaching to one turning point: the end of a full-time career. Rarified Life presents its Preferment approach as an alternative to conventional retirement, centered on personal values, meaningful pursuits, learning, and physical activity, rather than simply stopping work and filling the calendar.See this answer in the full FAQ
- Does Rarified Life offer one-to-one retirement coaching?
- As of November 2026, the Rarified Life shop lists 1:1 coaching as coming soon. Right now, coaching from Anne is delivered through the Preferment live course, across eight weekly live sessions. Check rarifiedlife.com for the current status of private coaching before you decide between the two formats.See this answer in the full FAQ
- How much does a retirement coach cost?
- Prices vary by coach, format, and number of sessions, and this site has not verified a market-wide rate, so it does not quote one. Rarified Life has not published a price for private coaching, which is listed as coming soon. Compare programs on what is included: live time, materials, and length.See this answer in the full FAQ
- Retirement coach or financial planner: which do I need?
- They answer different questions. A financial planner works on whether your money will last; a retirement coach works on how you will live and who you will be. Money worries are widespread: NIRS reports 61 percent of Americans are concerned they will not achieve financial security in retirement. Many people use both.See this answer in the full FAQ